Galveston Independent School District officials say the move of Ball High School’s robotics and engineering teacher was made to expand the program’s leadership.
But the move drew backlash from alumni who were concerned about the program’s future.
“We don’t want successful people to leave, but sometimes people make the decision to pursue other opportunities,” Superintendent Matthew Neighbors said. “It is our job as a district to continue to support the program with a positive structure, financial resources and leadership. We are committed to finding new leadership that will continue to push the program in bigger and better directions and maintain the history of success we have had with the program over the years.”
District officials informed Katherine Pickavance in June that her position had been offered to someone else and that she would be moved from head of robotics to high school coach, a lower-paying position, she said.
Pickavance turned down the offer and instead took a job as a robotics coach in the Clear Creek Independent School District, hoping to return to the island and get involved with various robotics programs.
“It was pretty unexpected and I’m going to miss it dearly,” Pickavance said of her students.
Pickavance was named the Daily News Teacher of the Year in 2020 for his contributions to the classroom.
She said she joined the robotics program in 2019 with little knowledge of what the program entailed.
Under her leadership, several Galveston Independent School District robotics teams advanced to the VEX Robotics World Championships and for the first time, Ball High School hosted two tournaments, welcoming competitors from around the world.
“Ball High has always hosted tournaments, but we’ve never hosted a large event, a mixed event or a signature event,” Picavans said. “We wanted to take our small, cafeteria-style tournament and make it something bigger.”
At the district’s board meeting June 25, nine members spoke out against the change in leadership, fearing the program would not continue long enough to have the same impact on students.
Eight students, three of whom spoke on behalf of their peers, shared their stories and how the program played an important role in their high school experience and their careers beyond.
Max Wilson is a 2017 graduate of Ball High School and a PhD student in Humanoid Robotics and software engineer at the University of Texas at Austin.
“I played competitively for eight years in middle school and high school, and I would say it was hands down the most important formative experience of my life,” Wilson said. “I wouldn’t be where I am today without the lessons I learned there.”
Wilson said he has seen the program go through “ups and downs” and remembers when it was just a group of students meeting in their garages after school.
Now Wilson, who leads the university’s robotics club, is primarily concerned about funding sources to enable students to continue their journey to compete in competitions.
Wilson said the district’s ability to host signature events brings in about $6,000 in revenue per event from registration fees alone.
“Two events that draw large crowds may be canceled,” he said, “and all of the grants that Picavans is applying for will be canceled.”
District officials want to continue hosting tournament events and have plans in place to raise funds, Neighbors said.
“Parents have expressed a desire to set up a parent support club to support robotics and we have staff at the school who can facilitate and assist with that process,” Neighbors said.
Neighbors said that along with support from parent groups, the district plans to increase student participation and enrollment in robotics at the high school level.
“We want to hire people who are dynamic and can help grow the program,” Neighbors said. “Part of that job is making sure that students who participate in the younger years can continue the program as they move on to high school. Ultimately, we need strong people to run a program that students want to be a part of.”
Neighbors said the district has promoted Kristin Hardeman to lead the robotics program. Hardeman was previously the robotics coach at Central Middle School.
Neighbors said the district plans to announce a new high school robotics coach, another position, before the school year begins.
