Lansing Tech Studio

Come see Lansing Tech Studio at Get LIT Lansing! 💡

Join us November 10 from 4:30–9 PM at MSUFCU on Abbot Road for Lansing Innovative Technology’s tech showcase!

We’ll be there sharing what our students are building and learning, including:
🤖 Student robot missions
💻 A few of our students showcasing their projects
🚀 An inside look at our programs and what’s coming next

And we’re looking for something BIG…

🤝 BUSINESS & COMMUNITY PARTNERS!

This spring, our students will be participating in tech workshops and working toward a Demo Day where they can showcase what they’ve created.

We’re looking for businesses, organizations, farms, nonprofits, and community members with REAL tech projects our students could work on.

Think:
• Apps
• Websites
• Video & demo reels
• Raspberry Pi automation
• Business technology projects
• AI projects
• Data or mapping projects
• Robotics
• Creative technology solutions
• And projects we haven’t even thought of yet!

These experiences give students the opportunity to solve real-world challenges, build their portfolios, develop new skills, and connect with professionals in the community.

If your organization has a tech project that could be a great learning opportunity for students, come talk to us!

📅 November 10
⏰ 4:30–9 PM
📍 MSUFCU on Abbot Road

Come meet our students, see what they’re building, and help us connect the next generation of tech creators with REAL opportunities.

We can’t wait to see you at Get LIT Lansing! 🚀

🚀 BUSINESSES: What tech project have you been putting off?
We’re looking for businesses willing to give our 10–16-year-old students a REAL problem to solve.

At Lansing Tech Studio, our students don’t just learn about technology—they use it to create, build, test, problem-solve, and make things that actually work.

We want to connect our students with local businesses that have a technology project, challenge, or idea they’d love to see tackled by a creative group of young innovators.

Maybe you need:
💻 A simple app or website
🎥 A professional video demo reel
📱 A digital tool to make something easier
🤖 A Raspberry Pi automation project
🌱 Technology to help automate something on a farm
📊 A way to collect, organize, or display data
🖥️ A prototype for a new idea
⚙️ A repetitive task that could be automated
🎨 A creative technology or marketing project
💡 Or maybe you have a problem and aren't even sure what the solution should look like!

Our students would work through the process of understanding the problem, researching, brainstorming, building, testing, gathering feedback, and iterating on their solution—with guidance from experienced coaches and experts.

We’re looking for projects that are REAL, meaningful, and appropriate for students to tackle.
You bring us the problem.
Our students bring the curiosity, creativity, and willingness to figure it out. 🔥

If your business has a technology challenge that could become a student project, we’d LOVE to hear about it!

Comment below or message us and tell us:
👉 What does your business do?
👉 What problem or project do you have?
👉 What would you love to see technology help you accomplish?
Let’s give the next generation a chance to solve REAL problems for REAL businesses. 🚀

Lansing Tech Studio:
Empowering the next generation of leaders through technology, innovation, leadership, and service.

Our FLL teams are officially moving into the next stage of their BIOGLOW projects! 🌱🤖

The teams have started choosing their solutions to help solve problems related to biodiversity. Now comes an incredibly important part of the process: GETTING FEEDBACK and ITERATING on their ideas! 🔍💡

And do you know who makes an AMAZING person to ask for feedback?

📚 LIBRARIANS! 📚

Librarians are:
✨ Incredibly friendly and approachable
✨ Knowledgeable about SO many topics
✨ Amazing at helping people find reliable information
✨ Great at recommending books, articles, databases, and other resources
✨ And they truly LOVE helping people learn!

So, teams, don't be afraid to walk into your local library and ask for help! Tell the librarian about your biodiversity problem, share your idea, and ask:

💬 “What resources would you recommend?”
💬 “What information should we learn more about?”
💬 “Who else should we talk to?”
💬 “What questions do you think we should be asking?”
💬 “Can you help us find information that could make our solution better?”

Remember: Scientists, engineers, and innovators don't work in a bubble. They ASK QUESTIONS, SEEK OUT EXPERTS, LISTEN TO FEEDBACK, and make their ideas better through ITERATION.

And sometimes, one of the best experts to start with is the person behind the library desk! ❤️📚

Thank you to all the librarians who make learning and discovery possible in our communities! 🥰

🤖 LOCAL BUSINESSES & HACKERS COMMUNITY — WE NEED YOUR HELP!

Our Lansing Homeschool Hackers teams have started another season of FIRST LEGO League, and we’re looking for businesses and community members who want to help make this experience possible.

💙 Businesses can sponsor our Hackers teams!

Even a $50 or $100 donation can help cover:
👕 Team T-shirts
🏆 Competition fees
🧰 Robot and team supplies
🚗 Travel and other season expenses

And you can help even if you’re not able to make a donation yourself!

📣 PASS OUT A FLYER TO A LOCAL BUSINESS!

We’ve attached two different flyers, and each has a specific purpose:

🤖 Hackers Team Sponsorship Flyer
👉 Use this one when you know a business that may be willing to directly sponsor our robotics teams.

It’s the best choice when your conversation is specifically about helping cover the costs of this season’s Hackers teams.

💡 Lansing Tech Studio Flyer
👉 Use this one when you’re introducing a business to Lansing Tech Studio for the first time or when you think they may be interested in supporting our broader STEM and technology programs.

It gives them a bigger-picture look at what we’re building and how they can become involved beyond just sponsoring a robotics team.

📬 Not sure which one to give them? Give them BOTH!

The Hackers flyer makes the immediate sponsorship opportunity clear, while the Lansing Tech Studio flyer helps introduce them to the larger mission.

Know a business owner? Have a connection at a local company? See a business in your neighborhood that supports kids, STEM, education, or community programs?

Take a flyer and make the introduction!

You never know which conversation could turn into a sponsorship, a partnership, or a new opportunity for our students. 🚀

💙 Sponsor. Introduce. Share. Connect.

Every connection helps us create more opportunities for young innovators in our community!

Parallel Technologies, Inc. 's fundraiser for Lansing Tech Studio was featured in their board update:

www.tech4change.org

🚀 FIRST K-8: What We Know So Far!

FIRST has shared some exciting updates about its upcoming K-8 robotics program, and we’re looking forward to seeing how it develops!

A lot will be staying the same for students familiar with FIRST LEGO League:

🔹 Core Values will continue to be part of the experience.
🔹 Students will still work on an innovation project.
🔹 Robot missions will remain compatible with SPIKE Prime for the first 1–2 years.
🔹 The table size will stay the same (so you can keep using your currently built tables)

These updates are encouraging for our Lansing Homeschool Hackers community, as they mean many of the professional skills and STEM experiences students gain through FLL can continue to be useful as they grow.

So, what's next?

We currently have four FLL Challenge teams and a siblings-only FLL Explore team. Next year, we plan to expand our robotics opportunities to include a high school team through FIRST Tech Challenge or VEX, thanks to the generous financial donations and building space donation we have received.

We’re also exploring whether FIRST K-8 or a VEX program would be the right fit to provide opportunities for our younger students.

We’re still waiting for the full FIRST K-8 program to be revealed before making our ultimate decision of choosing FIRST or Vex for our full K-12 robotics program in 2027. We want to understand the complete program, how it will work, and how it can best serve our students and families to make sure it aligns with the Lansing Tech Studio mission.

We are just so grateful that after growing this program for 5 years we get to say that we will have a built out K-12 robotics program next year!

We’re excited about the possibilities ahead and grateful for the support that is helping us grow robotics opportunities for homeschool students in our community!

Read more about the updates here:

FIRST K-8 Programs: 2027 and Beyond | FIRST Stay informed on the next generation of FIRST K-8 robotics programs launching in 2027, designed to foster teamwork & STEM learning for young innovators.

We are so incredibly thankful each year for all the experts that volunteer their time and knowledge to teach our students about the theme of the year and give them feedback on their projects to iterate their ideas and move through the scientific process!

This year Dr. Kirt Onthank from Walla Walla University will be virtually meeting with at least one of our teams!

Check out his research here: https://gab.wallawalla.edu/~kirt.onthank/research.html

💡 Help Us Shape Lansing Tech Studio Service Projects for 2027!

One of the things we love about Lansing Tech Studio is that our kids aren't just learning how to build, code, create, and problem-solve — they're learning how to use those skills to make a difference. ❤️

As we plan for 2027, we're rethinking our monthly service projects. We want to mix things up and create opportunities for our students to serve in ways that connect their interests and skills with real needs in our community.

Here are some ideas we're considering:

💻 Tech Help Days — helping seniors or community members with technology

🤖 STEM Days for Younger Kids — our students teach and lead hands-on STEM activities

♿ Accessibility Projects — identify a need and design a solution to make a space or activity more accessible

🌱 Environmental Projects — pollinator gardens, habitat projects, community gardens, or other hands-on projects

🎨 Community Beautification — creating signs, art, or improvements for a community space

📱 Community Resource QR Codes — creating QR codes that make it easier for people to find local resources like food, housing, transportation, and other community services

🗺️ Food Resource Map — researching and creating an easy-to-use map of local food pantries, free meals, community gardens, and other food resources

❤️ Homeless Care Packages — putting together practical care kits

🍲 Community Meals — serving or preparing meals for local organizations

🧹 Earth Day Park Cleanup — this one is staying! 🌎

🏘️ Helping Local Nonprofits — using our technology and creative skills to help an organization with a real need

🎯 Community Problem-Solving Projects — identify a real community problem and work together to create a solution

We don't necessarily want to do the same thing every month. We want service to be an opportunity for our kids to DO something meaningful, learn new skills, work together, and see the impact they can have.

So, we're asking our Lansing Tech Studio community:

👉 What kinds of service projects would YOU love to see us do in 2027?

Do you know of a local organization that could use our students' help? Have an idea for a hands-on project? Have a skill you'd love to share with the kids?

Drop your ideas in the comments! 👇

We're excited to build our 2027 service calendar with our community! 💙🤖🌎