An Over Coffee® special-edition episode

National Robotics Week is coming up, April 4-12, 2026!

This is a national celebration of the robotics industry, our future innovators–and, of course, the educators who make this innovation possible.

On the National Robotics Week website, you’ll find all kinds of robot-related activities and resources. These include upcoming robotics events by state, robotics activity sheets, and even AI experiments, provided by Google! And you are welcome to submit your own robot-related event, as well.

And Over Coffee® is proud to spotlight three innovators who are inspiring students to explore how robotics fit into their interests–and their futures!

The history

National Robotics Week, according to their website, was first implemented in 2010, with 50 robot-related events around the U.S., after the 2009 passage of resolution H.Res. 1055, by the U.S. House of Representatives.

This resolution designates a full week in April as National Robotics Week.

As of 2017, National Robotics Week included more than 300 events across all 50 United States.

While events are still being registered for 2026, a quick check of the website revealed ten pages of approximately 150 events, nationwide, so far.

Meanwhile, our special-edition show explores the ways robotics are for everyone.

Here are NoireSTEMinist® educator/engineer and entrepreneur (and author!) Dr. Carlotta Berry, VEX Robotics Vice-President of Global Strategy, educator and author Jason McKenna, and Unified Robotics founder and executive director Delaney Locher, to showcase three different aspects of educational robotics.

On this edition of Over Coffee®we cover:

• How Dr. Berry takes robotics out of the classroom and into communities;

• The ways she introduces the creative and “arts” aspects of robotics;

• Her two nonprofits–which are great resources for speakers for National Robotics Week!

• Dr. Berry’s various platforms and arts-oriented ways she engages students in robotics

• The word she coined, “NoireSTEMinist®’, and its origins.

• How Jason became involved in robotics, as a classroom teacher;

• Why he felt intimidated by the idea initially;

• How his students reacted!

• How that epiphany eventually led to his career with VEX Robotics;

• A timeline for VEX Robotics’ competition

• Where to find VEX Robotics’ free curricula, as well as their robotics kits and competition information;

• How to get started with VEX Robotics with no budget;

• How the gap which Delaney first noticed in Seattle’s educational system led her to create Unified Robotics;

• An unexpected discovery that resulted from the first Unified Robotics competition;

• The ways success looked different, for the different teams;

• How Unified Robotics has grown since its inception;

• How to get students involved in a Unified Robotics team;

• The timeline for participation in Unified Robotics, geared towards encouraging year-round collaboration;

• One misconception parents may have, about their students with special needs in robotics.