GOLD2023

ROBOTICS AND BEYOND INC

Bridging talent and futures in engineering, science, technology and design

New Milford, CT   |  www.roboticsandbeyond.org

Mission

Our Mission is to help young people to thrive in the technological world they encounter, discover and develop their talents, think and communicate effectively, create passionately, accomplish with enjoyment, pursue fulfilling careers, give back, and become models for future generations of young people.

Notes from the nonprofit

We believe that our model can provide the resources and opportunities that are essential for every community to help its young people envision and pursue fulfilling and rewarding careers and futures. Achieving this goal will also provide industry with the talent it needs to innovate, manufacture and compete and result in societal changes that last for generations. It is our goal to obtain funding that will allow us to refine our model, document our model and make it available for inspiration and adoption in any form desired for a community's needs, anywhere in the world.

Ruling year info

2007

Executive Director

Mr. Paul V Chayka

Main address

20 Bank Street P.O. Box 607

New Milford, CT 06776 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

20-8821398

NTEE code info

Educational Services and Schools - Other (B90)

Secondary/High School (B25)

Vocational Counseling / Guidance / Testing (J21)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

Sign in or create an account to view Form(s) 990 for 2020, 2019 and 2018.
Register now

Communication

Blog

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

This profile needs more info.

If it is your nonprofit, add a problem overview.

Login and update

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Robotics And Beyond Summer Camps

Week long camps, 30 hours. Broadly integrated age (K-12), topic, ability level and hometown of student. Projects include computer science, graphic design, mechanics, structural/artistic design, robotics, mechanical engineering, programming, physics, freestyle inventing, animation, videography and others. Career and education path perspective is provided by visitors and mentors from industry and college students. Student campers with learning styles in gifted, ADHD, Aspergers and Autism spectrum are accommodated in a highly successful way. Our Peer Mentor Development program is one of our hallmarks and receives high praise from parents and students.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth
People with learning disabilities

After school on weekdays, or on weekends, students experience 2-3 hours of instruction, guidance and challenges in programs at our facilities. Topics include mechanics, coding, robotics, electronics, game design, graphic design, animation, computer and server systems and others. Students attend one day a week for 5-10 weeks of the September to December or January to May semesters or weekend programs over a period of 3-5 weeks.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth
People with learning disabilities
Multiracial people
Sexual identity
People with psychosocial disabilities

During and after school hours on weekdays, we provide programs at schools and communities in towns up to 20 miles away from our home location of New Milford CT. Programs include 1-2 hours of instruction, guidance and challenges in topics of mechanics, coding, robotics, electronics, graphic design, animation and others. Students attend one day a week for 5-10 weeks of the September to December or January to May semesters.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Ethnic and racial groups
Sexual identity
People with disabilities
Social and economic status

8-10 week programs, 2 hours per week. Students are unemployed and at-risk young adults, including some Second Language Learners. Topics include careers and entry level skills and tools for jobs in technical and manufacturing trades.

Population(s) Served
Adults
Ethnic and racial groups
Social and economic status

We create opportunities for young people aged 12-21 and career professionals to share their knowledge and skills as mentors or instructors of other students. Participants shadow current mentors and instructors in our programs, observe how to interact with peers and share knowledge while encouraging learning and excitement for the topic. Mentors increase their own skills and knowledge and become lead instructors of their topics, preparing lesson plans and equipment, teaching and helping new mentors to learn and become lead instructors.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Ethnic and racial groups
People with disabilities
Sexual identity
Social and economic status

Where we work

Affiliations & memberships

National Science Teachers Association 2019

Videos

How we listen

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.

done We demonstrated a willingness to learn more by reviewing resources about feedback practice.
done We shared information about our current feedback practices.

  • Who are the people you serve with your mission?

    Robotics And Beyond serves young people in kindergarten through high school, college and technical schools, and adults in alternative educational programs. We assist all young people and adults desiring to discover and develop their interests and talents in all fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and design, and explore career opportunities. We serve “mainstream,” academically accomplished individuals but strive to identify and assist all individuals with learning and social fluency challenges and help them to reveal the phenomenal talent and energy that has lacked opportunity to emerge. We strive to identify individuals who have suffered from social and peer conflicts such as bullying, and help them to discover a community of peers, acceptance and success.

  • How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?

    To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences

  • What significant change resulted from feedback?

    In the past year, we have received comments and testimonials from alumni of our programs as students and as mentors or instructors. This feedback clearly described how important their experiences in our programs impacted their success in education after high school and in their careers. They also expressed how their experiences in mentoring peer and younger students has encouraged them to want to help in mentoring programs in their current lives. This understanding has helped us to focus more effectively on communicating these benefits to businesses in our region that employ the skill areas we address in order to connect them to valuable workforce talent. We are also communicating this more clearly to foundations and other funding sources which share our mission of social impact.

  • Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?

    We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback

  • What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?

    It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time

Financials

ROBOTICS AND BEYOND INC
lock

Unlock financial insights by subscribing to our monthly plan.

Subscribe

Unlock nonprofit financial insights that will help you make more informed decisions. Try our monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights?
Learn more about GuideStar Pro.

Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

Subscribe

Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

Subscribe

Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

ROBOTICS AND BEYOND INC

Board of directors
as of 04/19/2023
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Mr. Ken Bolin

United Technologies Aerospace Systems, Danbury, CT (retired)

Term: 2016 - 2023

Paul V Chayka

Robotics And Beyond

Michael Morrissey

Albertus Magnus College, New Haven CT

Daniel Sturm

IBM

Marguerite Chayka

Brookfield High School, Brookfield, CT

Jonathon Price

Regeneron, Inc.

Kenneth Bolin

United Technologies Aerospace Systems (retired)

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Not applicable
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Not applicable
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 3/20/2021
info Candid has made improvements to the race and ethnicity options.

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
White/Caucasian/European
Gender identity
Male, Not transgender (cisgender)
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual or straight
Disability status
Person without a disability

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

 

Sexual orientation

Disability

Equity strategies

Last updated: 03/20/2021

GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more

Data
  • We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
Policies and processes
  • We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
  • We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
  • We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.