Engineering Guru Woodie Flowers Lauded for Turning the Field into a Competition
In a world where innovation and creativity are the driving forces, the name Woodie Flowers stands as a beacon of inspiration. Born in Jena, Louisiana, in 1943, Flowers embarked on a journey that would significantly impact the landscape of engineering and education. After earning his bachelor's degree in engineering from Louisiana Tech University in 1966, he continued his academic pursuit at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he completed his master's in 1968 and his Ph.D. in 1973.
Flowers' career at MIT was marked by groundbreaking contributions, particularly in the realm of engineering education. He is credited for creating a more hands-on, humane way of learning, transforming one of MIT's most popular classes, 2.007 (formerly 2.70), into a model for interactive and collaborative learning.
In 1990, Flowers joined forces with inventor Dean Kamen to bring the excitement of engineering to high-schoolers. Together, they launched the FIRST Robotics Competition in 1992. This initiative revolutionized engineering by turning it into a competitive sport, capturing the minds of young people and fostering a community of future engineers.
Flowers' emphasis on hands-on learning and collaboration helped shape the competition's format. The competition encourages teamwork, creativity, and problem-solving, mirroring Flowers' approach to teaching and mentoring. His pioneering spirit is further honoured by the Woodie Flowers Award, created in 1996 to recognize outstanding mentoring in robotics.
By making engineering accessible and exciting, Flowers' methods helped increase interest in STEM fields among students. The FIRST program has expanded to include various age groups and has become a model for experiential STEM education. Flowers' influence extended beyond the classroom, creating a community of students, mentors, and educators passionate about STEM.
Flowers' commitment to mentorship is evident in the Woodie Flowers awards, which recognize outstanding mentors within the FIRST community. These awards highlight individuals who embody his spirit of guidance and dedication to helping young people develop their skills.
After his passing, Woodie Flowers was memorialized with grants and awards that continue to support and inspire students and educators in STEM education, ensuring his legacy and influence endure. Flowers' message was simple: work hard, create boldly, and treat others with respect - because being a good engineer goes hand in hand with being a good person.
Flowers' legacy is not just in the awards or buildings named after him, but in every student who discovered a love of STEM through FIRST. His wife Margaret, who helped run FIRST and was often credited as his partner in everything, continues to uphold his mission. Flowers' father, a welder with a penchant for tinkering and building, instilled in him a love for engineering from a young age.
Today, Flowers' influence continues to teach us all, embodying the "absolute moral core of the entire FIRST community." His coined phrase, "gracious professionalism," captures his ethos of fierce yet friendly competition. Flowers believed engineering education should be hands-on, playful, and collaborative, and his work continues to inspire a new generation of engineers and scientists.
- Woodie Flowers' impact on engineering education extended beyond MIT, as he teamed up with Dean Kamen to create the FIRST Robotics Competition in 1992, turning engineering into a competitive sport and fostering interest in technology and education-and-self-development.
- The FIRST program, influenced by Flowers' emphasis on hands-on learning and collaboration, encourages teamwork, creativity, and problem-solving, not only in the realm of technology but also in sports and lifestyle.
- The Woodie Flowers Award, established in 1996, spotlights outstanding mentors within the FIRST community, showcasing individuals who embody Flowers' spirit of guidance and dedication to helping young people develop their skills in areas such as news, sports, and education-and-self-development.
