Most programs show students a menu: here are some careers in STEM, here's what they pay, here's how you get there. We don't do that. We start with a question: who are you in this sport? 

We put wearables on student boxers and asked them to track their own stats. Then we asked them to make charts. Then we asked them what they noticed. What happened next is still the foundation of everything we build. 

There is a specific thing that happens when a student meets someone who looks like them, loves what they love, and got somewhere they didn't know was reachable. We've watched it happen. It's not inspiration — it's belief updating in real time.

We have all heard it a million times: “Technique is the foundation of badminton,” so we spend hours repeating drills and footwork to improve. But now, small sensors and apps can watch every swing, label your strokes, and quietly critique your form while sitting in your pocket.

A native of Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood is giving back to her hometown through a unique program that combines sports and science.