KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Seprod Foundation says it has been working in the Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) space since 2014, and has been instrumental in setting the stage for Jamaica’s readiness for Centres of Excellence in STEM.

The Halls of Learning Outreach, initially introduced in 2004, has grown and evolved year on year, from providing scholarships to a one day open event exposing students from all socioeconomic backgrounds to coding and robotics activities in a fun and interactive way, the Foundation said.

“In 2014, Jamaican Girls Coding, a partnership with the Coalition of Service Industries, donated 30 tablets and executed two coding camps for 70 girls. This was the foundation upon which Jamaican Girls Coding carried out further coding camps and workshops with experts from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).”

The Seprod Foundation, which began collaborating with Halls of Learning on Outreach Day in 2015, and has continued to support this summer initiative each year, is celebrating the fifth anniversary of their partnership this year, the organisation said.

According to the Foundation, along with partner organisations such as the Musson Foundation, Halls of Learning and Jamaican Girls Coding they have carried out a number of initiatives that have fuelled interest among students and teachers in coding and robotics.

With an increasing number of children being exposed to coding and robotics and an increasing interest to continue these activities in schools, in March 2018 the partners, Halls of Learning, signed an agreement with the World Robot Olympiad (WRO) Association to become the official national organiser and launch WRO in Jamaica, with the Seprod Foundation as the presenting sponsor.

For the first time, Jamaican students at the primary and secondary school level were provided with the opportunity to enter and compete in a robotics competition, with the winners being given the opportunity to travel to the international competition and represent Jamaica on the world’s stage.

Winning teams have represented Jamaica in Thailand in 2018 and in Hungary in 2019.