“Lots of people find robotics so cool,” says Dr. Carlotta Berry.

Dr. Berry, who has coined the term “NoireSTEMinist®” to describe her work in the STEM professions, is an educator, speaker, author, hip-hop video creator and founder of two nonprofits.

She is both a professor of engineering and robotics at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, in Indiana, and the co-founder of the Rose-Hulman multidisciplinary minor in robotics

Her mission: to change the face of STEM to include underrepresented populations and women. In the process, she’s showing her students the ways in which their talents fit into engineering and robotics.

But those students aren’t restricted to the ones she sees in her classroom.

“Robotics for the streets” is both the theme of her message–AND the title of a workshop she’ll be presenting, in September, during the 2023 Make: Education Forum! This is a virtual event, and you’re invited to come and learn as she demonstrates the use of Arduino.

Arts and community

Imagination, fun and the arts are core elements of the process.

Carlotta, as she likes to be called, has produced several “Robot Slam Poetry” videos on her YouTube channel. She has also published two Black STEM romance novels.

And she has created a number of resources.

If you need a speaker for an upcoming event, her nonprofit, Black in Robotics, includes a speakers’ bureau. There’s also a reading list, spotlighting Black scholars and innovators.

Meanwhile, her Black in Engineering nonprofit offers videos, action steps and links related to anti-racism, STEM and diversity.

Carlotta talked about her professional journey, offered a closer look at the ways arts-oriented students fit into the STEM professions and shared the story of creating her nonprofits.

On this edition of Over Coffee® we cover:

• How Carlotta first became interested in robotics;

• How robotics can appeal to more arts-oriented individuals;

• A closer look at “robotics for the streets” and what the term means for communities at large;

• What first started Carlotta creating her “Robot Slam Poetry”;

• The story behind her term, “NoireSTEMinist®”;

• The story of her two nonprofits, Black in Engineering and Black in Robotics;

• Steps towards eliminating bias in AI;

• A preview of Carlotta’s workshop for Make: Education Forum (she’s created an open-source robot for educators!)

• A step Carlotta’s taking towards combating the current “marketing problem” with engineering as a profession;

• Her creative challenges, as a technical professional writing her first novel;

• The most creative fun Carlotta has had, in the past year, while taking STEM and robotics to the streets.