Every morning, Dale Green and his wife, Marion, begin their day with prayer. “Our conversation with Jesus always includes a request to lift up KidWorks and all of the students,” says our March “Volunteer of the Month.”
Dale’s deep faith in God extends to the courses he teaches as part of KidWorks University, which offers weekly hands-on opportunities for students in kindergarten through fifth grade to experience volunteer-led workshops focused on art, science, music, dance, creative writing and more.
Dale has taught KidWorks University workshops since 2012, focusing on electronics, weather science, computer programing and woodworking.
Dale begins each weekly workshop by leading the students in prayer.
Our March honoree is an ideal person to teach these workshops. He’s an electrical engineer with decades of professional experience, having designed automated test equipment for hydraulic components, industrial grade battery chargers and telecommunications equipment.
“Dale is consistent and full of passion,” says Rachel Cervantes, Program Leader at our Dan Donahue Center. “His approach to teaching is to allow students to learn in a way they may not have previously experienced. When they ask questions, he challenges them to logically seek out solutions.”
Dale’s workshops also strongly support KidWorks’ focus on STEM curriculum—otherwise known as the U.S. Department of Education’s program to educate students about Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.
“Many of the students in the workshops I teach have not been exposed to some of these concepts,” Dale says. “Through the workshops, I hope to introduce them to fields of interest and careers that are not only meaningful but are where future job growth is the strongest.”
According to a 2018 Pew Research Center report, “employment in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) occupations has grown 79% since 1990, from 9.7 million to 17.3 million, outpacing overall U.S. job growth.”
Dale’s approach to the workshops he teaches is very experiential. After a brief lesson, the students do hands-on projects.
“My goal is that the students complete as much of the project on their own as possible,” Dale says. “This helps them discover their God-give talents, build confidence and also learn the importance of finishing what they begin—which is expected in the work world they will eventually enter.”
For the computer programming workshop, Dale coached the students in coding a hide-and-seek game.
“Characters would briefly appear on the screen in random positions,” Dale says. “The students wrote code that included a score counter and timer.”
Other workshops have included weather science, where the students used a balloon and empty can to learn the concept of air pressure systems. Woodworking projects included all the steps to cut and assemble the pieces for a stool.
“One of my biggest joys is when the students are so proud of what they’ve accomplished that they bring their projects home to share with their families,” Dale says.
Dale and Marion have four grown children. He enjoys staying very physically active—regularly biking, hiking and running.
We are deeply grateful to Dale for empowering our students through the variety of engaging workshops he teaches. He may very well be inspiring the next Thomas Edison!
By Glenn Leibowitz, volunteer writer
We invite you to share your talents with our students by leading a KidWorks University Workshop. To learn more, click here