Baltimore -
Morgan Stanley Baltimore today celebrated the graduates of its second-annual STEM Robotics Program. Hosted at Morgan Stanley’s Thames Street Wharf office in Harbor Point, middle school students from The Crossroads School demonstrated the robots they built during the 12-week program, powered by code they wrote with mentorship from Morgan Stanley employees.
The graduation convened family members, school faculty and Morgan Stanley employee volunteers to celebrate the students’ accomplishments. It was the program’s largest graduating class to date.
“Our STEM Robotics Program introduces students to coding and robotics under the mentorship of Morgan Stanley technologists from diverse STEM backgrounds,” said Madeline Hutchinson, Global Head of Technology Philanthropy at Morgan Stanley. “Building a robot may seem very different from building technology solutions for a global investment bank, but the fundamentals are the same.”
The STEM Robotics Program is an after-school workshop hosted at The Crossroads School in Fells Point. Morgan Stanley employee volunteers teach students the basics of MakeCode using Circuit Playground processors, culminating in the students building robots that run on the code they’ve written.
The 2024 program introduced a new level two track, where graduates from last year’s level one program were invited back to learn Python, write Python code for their robots and control the robots using an app on a smartphone or tablet.
“Witnessing students who joined the program with no coding experience quickly becoming adept coders building fully functioning robots is remarkable,” said James Bond, CEO of Living Classrooms. “Morgan Stanley’s STEM Robotics Program is proof that through investment in STEM education and compassionate mentors, our students can do anything they put their mind to.”
Graduating students will receive not only certificates of excellence in MakeCode and Python coding and robotics design, but also their own Circuit Playground processor to continue their programming journey.
More than 40 Morgan Stanley Baltimore employees donated a combined 500 hours of mentorship over the course of this spring’s program. The success of the Baltimore Robotics Program has led Morgan Stanley to establish similar programs in Alpharetta, GA and Boston, MA.
“Nothing gets the next generation more interested in STEM than robots,” said Baltimore program co-lead Jocelyn Hordge, a Capital Markets and Core Processing Associate at Morgan Stanley. “The foundation we’ve laid through this program equips the students with the skills to become changemakers in the technology revolution. I’m excited to follow their contributions to Baltimore’s burgeoning technology ecosystem as they mature and pursue careers in STEM.”
The Crossroads School is a unique tuition-free public charter school operated by Living Classrooms Foundation that serves 162 students in grades 6-8 at the Edward St. John Learning and Teaching Center located on its East Harbor Campus. Living Classrooms Foundation is a non-profit organization that strengthens communities and inspires children, youth and adults to achieve their potential through hands-on education, workforce development, community safety and health and wellness programs that use urban, natural and maritime resources as living classrooms.
About Morgan Stanley Baltimore
Morgan Stanley established its presence in Baltimore in 2003. Over the past 20 years, the Baltimore office has grown continuously and is now one of the firm’s most prominent operations and technology hubs globally and a vital contributor to the city’s community. Today, the office houses 2,000 professionals in areas including Operations, Finance, Legal & Compliance, Technology, Wealth Management, Risk Management, Firm Resilience and Internal Audit.
About Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a leading global financial services firm providing a wide range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services. With offices in 42 countries, the Firm’s employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, institutions and individuals. For further information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com.
Media Relations Contact:
Matthew Feldman, matthew.feldman@morganstanley.com