At last weekend’s Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), GM Motorsports hosted ‘Driven to Explore’ a two-day, hands-on STEM experience for 78 9th-grade students from Del Valle High School, Texas. The experience was delivered in partnership with the Austin Community College Make It Center and supported by the World Endurance Championship (WEC).
Students took part in structured STEM modules that connected rigorous classroom concepts to real motorsport applications, complemented by behind-the-scenes exposure to professional sports car racing at COTA.
The GM Motorsports K-12 STEM IMPACT group is co-led by GM Motorsports’ Robert Binns and Kenna Edwards.
“We started over three years ago as a small team with a clear mission: execute student outreach events, technical activities, and strategic partnerships that expose K-12 students to real-world motorsports engineering,” Binns says. “Each team member has a personal story of how a camp or mentor inspired their own STEM career. The IMPACT group is our opportunity to give back and inspire the next generation to follow.”
The COTA program included five structured modules to support their school curriculum: Tires Science (presented by Michelin), Mini-Scrutineering, Sphero Pit Lane Challenge, Media Moguls and a Paddock/Scrutineering Tours module with Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA, TF Sport, and WEC officials.
“Over the past weekend, 78 local high school students stepped beyond the classroom to see firsthand how world-class engineers, technicians, and business leaders apply STEM principles in a high-pressure racing environment,” Binns says. “Working as a team, students were challenged to build a competitive car within a strict ruleset, execute a pit stop, and pitch a business and sponsorship plan to GM program leadership. They also toured the garages to get an up-close look at the race cars and personnel before watching a live practice session.”
The GM Motorsports STEM IMPACT group started out with classroom talks, but has grown into trackside experiences, like that at COTA, competition judging, panel discussions, and comprehensive career discovery events. Previous events have taken place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and at the Virginia International Raceway.
“It is incredibly important for students to understand the role STEM can play in defining their future careers,” says Edwards. “Motorsport presents a tremendous range of opportunities for young individuals and Driven To Explore allows them a window into what is possible.”
“I look forward to the day when an intern or new hire joins GM Motorsports because they were inspired by the work of this group,” adds Binns.