The FUTRSPRT Interview Series: STEM Sports® CEO Jeff Golner
STEM Sports® is Advancing Education Through Sports
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By Matt Bowen
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FUTRSPRT Interview Series presents conversations with some of the sharpest minds in sports tech. Leaving no angle of competition or fan experience unscathed FUTRSPRT showcases those creating the future of sports right before our eyes.
FUTRSPRT’s Matt Bowen had the pleasure of speaking with STEM Sports® CEO Jeff Golner about the company’s upbringing, it’s current successes, and the positive difference it’s making in the classroom. What started with a lesson surrounding the bicycle is now traversing the globe.
What is STEM Sports® Today? How Would You Describe It?
STEM Sports® CEO Jeff Golner kicks things off with a simple statement that sums up STEM Sports® 101. He immediately backfills it with something that calls for a moment of reflection. What Golner says hints at the power of the paradigm STEM Sports® is creating.
“STEM Sports® creates a hands-on curriculum for teachers via lessons in the classroom.”
Golner continues, “We’re leveling the playing field because the student doesn’t have to be good at sports. On the other side, the kid doesn’t have to be good at math/science. We’ve seen kids from both sides really like the program.”
Golner then gives an example of the Chief Science Officers, a group of really bright students who love science, grades 6–12, that came away with a respect for sports after participating in some of the lessons. This shows that STEM Sports® is truly making its mark. It’s bridging a gap in learning and worlds that may have never intersected with one another. Thinking of these long-term effects, it deserves applause.
Golner ends this question with, “STEM Sports® is a turnkey solution, everything anyone needs to participate in inside the box. We like to say, open the box and add students.”
How did STEM Sports® Come to Fruition?
Golner gives a brief timeline of the company’s history:
- 2014 — In an effort to assist USA BMX at tracks across the United States STEM BMX is created as an eight-part series surrounding the science behind a bicycle
- 2016 — STEM Sports® is formerly created builds a volleyball curriculum with USA Volleyball as well as STEM Basketball.
- 2017 — Golner arrives and helps STEM Sports® expand its marketing presence. He later purchases the company outright. It now has three nationwide distributors of its hands-on kits, relationships with professional sports teams, and works side-by-side with some of the fastest-growing tech companies/products in the burgeoning industry. Coming in 2020 STEM Sports® will add lessons in baseball, hockey, softball, golf, tennis, and lacrosse to its roster.
What are some of the Pleasant Surprises You’ve Incurred?
“For me personally, a pleasant surprise would be that I am constantly learning about learning.”
Golner spent the early part of his career with the Arizona Diamondbacks, facilitating the game-day experience. He knows how to engage fans but what he says about learning proves that he’s hyper-focused on making STEM Sports® an integral part of the educational experience for students. He’s hungry to continuously learn and create an alluring product.
“Another surprise”, Golner says, “We wanted to patent our name and become a registered trademark. Our lawyers were doubtful at first but we got STEM Sports® patented and trademarked. It was motivating. As a company, we have an appetite for STEM and our “why” always lives in STEM. By being trademarked is further solidifies our “why.”
“The biggest surprise though would be our interest from overseas. We’re seeing strong interests from several continents now. We helped teach STEM to 160 children at a Boys & Girls Club in Mexico City. We’re testing in Japan next month. We’ve even been invited by a non-profit in Morocco to get in front of the Ministry of Education to discuss teaching basketball through STEM.”
Think about that for a second. STEM Sports® is worldwide. The positive impression it’s making is attracting official governments to implement its practices and products. This is why the future is infinite for STEM Sports®. In this fact resides hope.
What’s Next for the Curriculum/Tech from STEM Sports®?
“STEM Sports® is hands-on”, says Golner.
“It’s for left and right-brained people.”
He continues, “We’re cognizant that the use of devices will allow us to implement more lessons with kids. Tech is woven into the programs, but we’re also aware of the (tech/monetary) limitations some schools may have so we’ve also made the lessons readily available in a more analog fashion.”
Golner then describes something unexpected, “We’re working with HomeCourt for our basketball lesson and a major tech company involved with Major League Baseball. We have a wonderful partnership with Skyhawks, which is a sports camp for kids that teaches life skills through sports. In our soccer kit, we include a heart-rate monitor. In volleyball, a radar gun. Football — a Walkie Talkie to teach how communication technology works.”
Hold on — STEM Sports® is a kit, a physical box of stuff that is delivered to a teacher, camp counselor, or coach and includes wearable tech?
Yes.
Plus, STEM Sports® has a partnership with the likes of HomeCourt, who is a partner of the NBA?
Yes.
STEM Sports® is bigger than FUTRSPRT can fathom. It’s so simple yet withholds a compounding effect that pays dividends so large we can’t yet comprehend. It’s so exciting to dream of the positive outcomes it’s churning.
What Gets You Up in the Morning?
Golner isn’t shy here, “I really enjoy work. I love putting the puzzle together. I’m excited by the possibilities out there.”
“What the curriculum is doing is impactful. Kids get it and feel like they’re playing but they’re really learning. Something we’ve noticed is that teachers and students are interacting together in great ways — they’re forming bonds together.”
His last statement can’t help but make FUTRSPRT smile.
In 3 Years STEM Sports® Will be Known for ________?
“Our primary goal is to do traditional sports right.”
“By the end of 2019, we’ll release a K-2 curriculum.”
STEM Sports® is already K-8 but Golner further explains that attention at a K-2 level is important in sparking curiosities at an even younger age.
“We want STEM Sports® to be active on the college level where student-athletes are teaching K-12 lessons at local schools.”
“We’re really focused on expanding our interactions with pro sports franchises. We’ve already worked with our friends and neighbors, the Phoenix Suns, and are in talks with a few other NBA teams. We’re also talking to an XFL team and see the adoption of pro teams as a major component to our success.”
Given his background in sports what he rattles off next shouldn’t be a surprise, but FUTRSPRT found this to be neat.
“STEM Sports® wants STEM Night at the game. We want there to be in-game education. We want it to be intentional and all-encompassing. We want it to be meaningful — a way to engage kids and their families in new ways via STEM.”
Now that’s family fun at the ballpark.
Golner ends with, “My dream is for a future gold medalist to thank their fourth-grade teacher for driving their curiosity and interest in being the best through STEM while on the podium when receiving their medal.”
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Many times, the people/products FUTRSPRT covers will impact the sportstech landscape in the very near future. STEM Sports® is undoubtedly doing this. The beautiful thing about the company, right now its prime users are currently 10 years old. STEM Sports® is influencing the long-term future of sports and education for the better.
Correct, there’s a chance STEM Sports® will create a gold medalist in the future. That said, for STEM Sports®, there are better odds that its products will produce GMs and other front-office figureheads across the world of sports. All because they came across a STEM Sports® kit in science class as a kid.
