Bold Idea is excited to announce its Volunteers of the Year for the 2019-2020 program year - Marissa Robinson and Nate Rabins.

When deciding the recipients of this award, we always consider the volunteers who were crucial to our success for the year. Marissa and Nate went above and beyond in their contributions to Bold Idea at a time when we needed support the most. Their positivity, care for the students, passion for computer science education, and willingness to try something new make them indispensable to Bold Idea.

Outstanding mentors

Marissa and Nate, both software engineers at Plano-based Alkami Technology, started as volunteer mentors with Bold Idea. Both students and mentors have commented on their great interactions with them. Approachable, easy-to-work-with, passionate, and fun were words we heard a lot.

“Hrithik always mentions how Nate helps and encourages him in coding. Nate is a positive role model and an outstanding mentor who goes above and beyond in providing a great learning experience for kids,” said one parent in December 2019.

"Marissa has great energy and a lot of good ideas on how to motivate and engage the kids. She is always happy to take the lead and do what needs to get done," said an Alkami mentor that month.

Team Captains who led a major change

In January, they stepped up to lead their program site as co-Team Captains. After a month and half of weekly sessions, our program came to a halt. Due to COVID-19 precautions, we were no longer able to meet students in person. It was an uncertain future, both in the short and long term.

While we considered every possible change and delay in our program, Marissa and Nate stepped up to suggest online mentoring and distance learning as an alternative. Their attitude was: “Let’s try this. What do we have to lose?” And we followed their lead.

Together and in short time, we experimented with an online program, transitioning 25 Bold Idea students in Plano and Frisco to the new Bold Idea @ Home. Marissa and Nate created original materials, tried new methods, scrapped what didn’t work, and coordinated with parents and mentors.

What we learned from their work gave us confidence to try Bold Idea @ Home for 7 weeks over the summer - our first multi-week summer program ever. The program today is much different than we imagined in March, but that’s only because of Marissa and Nate’s willingness to learn by doing and find what works. (Learn by doing is one of Bold Idea’s values).

They are returning as Team Captains for Bold Idea @ Home this fall, and we couldn’t be more fortunate to have them on our team. Our ability to weather the unexpected this year and actually come out better is due in part to these two incredible volunteers.

Thank you, Marissa and Nate!