FLIGHT LAB

Exposing Students to a FLIGHT of Activities From Different Industries

As a Flight Lab module, our Young Engineers STEAM program is an exciting before & afterschool experience for students K-8 focusing on engineering and technology through an INNOVATIVE, PERSONABLE and HANDS-ON approach. During our 45 min – 2 hour class sessions, students are engaged in STEAM activities that nurture their curiosity, inspire creativity and teach them how to succeed.

Students who participate in STEAM activities:

Are able to see themselves in STEAM careers
Learn how to solve problems
Develop critical-thinking skills
Become comfortable with failure and trying again
Learn to work successfully in teams
Deepen their connection and understanding of math (Algebra, measurements, geometry, data tables, etc.)
Develop self-confidence

Our Vision

Become an Experience Factory!

The task is tall, but we’re up for the challenge… just like our students! Our vision is to guide children to make CONNECTIONS between their imagined quality of life and their present academic-selves.

Our Mission

Plant: Connect the seed to soil and let them blossom.

There are endless careers. Our goal is to expose students to a variety of activities that hopefully connect with their individual interest… their SPARK! Once they find their SPARK, it grows via organic guidance (relationships) and off they go!

Sample activities

Business Entrepreneurship Simulator
Natural Disaster Structure Design
E-Gaming
Film Making/ Video Editing/ Stop Motion
Weight Load Bridge Design
Mathematical Puzzles
Robotics
Science Fair
Environmental Science Data Analysis
Virtual Reality
Mousetrap Cars
Gardening
And many… many MORE!

Through our partnership with Something to Build Upon, we secured our own vendor number (#43072) with CPS, and we have partnered with the following schools: Harvard Elementary, Morgan Park High School, It Takes A Village (River City), Bronzeville Classical Elementary, Beasley Academic Center and Edgar Allan Poe Classical Elementary.

FLIGHT LAB: A Turnkey before and after-school Experience by L.O.T.U.S.

Hands-On Learning. Real-World Connections. All Materials Provided.

Dear School Leaders and Community Decision Makers,

I hope this reaches you well and grounded in the responsibility we carry each day.

I’m writing to introduce L.O.T.U.S. and open a door for partnership. Our work is simple at its core. We help young people connect who they are today with who they are becoming. When that connection clicks, behavior sharpens, effort gains direction, and school begins to feel like preparation instead of obligation.

Who We Are
L.O.T.U.S. exists to help students make real connections between their habits (academic and otherwise), their choices, and the quality of life they’re building. We don’t deal in theory alone. We create environments where students can see, touch, and practice what their future can look like. Once they see it, they start to move differently.

Summer: Camp Flight
Camp Flight expands this same approach across a wider set of experiences. Each week is a sampling of pathways. Students engage in STEAM, culinary arts, filmmaking, entrepreneurship, fitness, and more.

Exposure is only part of it. Reflection is where the shift happens. Students begin to recognize patterns in themselves and make more intentional choices.

Registration and Contact Check Digital Backpack and eLEAP for Evanston programming:

https://explore.digitalbackpack65.org/providers

Evanston School Breaks: Flight Lab registration is available through the City of Evanston
https://app.amilia.com/store/en/cityofevanston/api/Activity/Search?days=0&SelectedTags=&SelectedLocations=&SelectedAges=&SelectedProgram=&SelectedCategory=&SelectedSubCategory=&textCriteria=hip+hop

Camp Flight (Summer) details and registration
https://lotuschicago.org/camp-flight/

For direct questions
Aaron Ireland
312-330-8116

Afterschool Partnership Opportunities
We are currently building partnerships with schools in the Evanston area to support or operate afterschool programming. There are two primary ways we can work together.

Option A: Full Afterschool Program Management
We design and run the full program so your team can stay focused on alignment and outcomes. This includes registration, communication, staffing, curriculum, and day-to-day management.

Students move through rotating experiences in groups of 15 to 20. Each cycle introduces a new area of focus. When students are not in a specific module, they are engaged in structured activities like team building, journaling, mindfulness, creative work, and strategy-based games. No idle time. Every moment has intention.

Option B: Targeted Program Delivery
We can also plug into your existing structure on select days. This model brings focused programming into your school without disrupting what’s already working.

A typical structure might include 6 to 12 sessions per quarter, each centered on a theme such as cooking science, engineering challenges, strategic games, logic and math puzzles, science fair lab, VR lab, film making, e-gaming, or science labs. Each quarter can introduce new instructors with specialized expertise.

Pricing (negotiable)
$300 per hour class with one instructor
$350 per hour class with two instructors

We invoice monthly and remain flexible in shaping the program to fit your goals and constraints.

Flexible Design
Every school has its own rhythm. We build with that in mind. Programs can run daily or on select days. They can stay rooted in one theme or rotate across several. Staffing can scale from one facilitator to a full team depending on your needs.

Closing
Young people are not short on potential. What they often lack is consistent exposure and a clear line of sight between effort and outcome. When that line becomes visible, their decisions begin to change.

If there is an opportunity to build that clarity together for your students, we’re ready.

With respect,

Aaron Ireland
Founder and President
L.O.T.U.S. (Lifting Ourselves Through US)
lotuschicago.org
IG @lotusglobe
312-330-8116

Why partner with L.O.T.U.S.?

Turnkey solution — we handle everything from materials to facilitation
Customizable for grades K–8 (or adaptable by request)
Supports STEM equity, career exposure, and hands-on engagement
Aligns with NGSS and school goals for academic enrichment and whole-child development

Let’s bring the lab to your learners and watch them build, question, discover, and lead.

FLIGHT LAB modules include: Legends & Lore (Strategic Games), Film Making w/ Coquie Hughes, e-Gaming w/ Kevin Fair, and much more.