Photo By Kathryn Clark | Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Southeast employees smile for a...... read more read more
For over a decade, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Southeast has volunteered with MathCounts®, a nonprofit organization that reaches students in grades 6-8 to build confidence and improve attitudes around the sometimes-dreaded subject of mathematics. The organization’s programs can help expand a student’s academic and career possibilities in the future.
On Feb. 21, NAVFAC Southeast continued its tradition of volunteering with the local Northeast Florida chapter. Volunteers gathered at the Adam W. Herbert University Center to welcome students to the 42nd Annual Northeast Florida Chapter MathCounts® Competition. This year’s math competition garnered participation from more than 30 local schools, as students faced off in multiple rounds of problem-solving.
Thirteen NAVFAC Southeast employees registered to spend their Friday volunteering as team guides, proctors, and scorers for the competition. For some, the volunteer experience was personal. Allen Mathis, a NAVFAC Southeast project manager, felt a sense of pride as his son participated in this year’s competition.
“He takes after his old man and loves solving a good math problem,” Mathis explained. Nostalgia was another feeling for Brandon Garvin, a NAVFAC Southeast program analyst, who recalled “wonderful” memories of participating in a similar math competition in elementary school.
In the end, all who volunteered agreed it was a great opportunity to give back to the local community, including its students.
“It felt good to see we had a significant presence at the event,” said David Walter, supervisory structural engineer at NAVFAC Southeast. “Engineering requires people passionate about learning and asking why and how things work. Cultivating this desire in younger generations is our duty.”
NAVFAC Southeast’s engagement with local students focuses on those interested in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) industry.
“The importance of volunteering is to encourage students,” said Garvin. “To be a source of mentorship, a real-life career example, and to express the importance of STEM to students who may not know the endless possibilities of a STEM education.”
As a key command overseeing military infrastructure, NAVFAC Southeast offers a unique glimpse of how STEM skills are crucial in shaping the future of the nation's warfighter. By engaging with students early on at events like MathCounts®, NAVFAC Southeast aims to inspire the next generation of young professionals to consider a career in engineering.
NAVFAC Southeast, headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, provides planning, design, construction, contracting, environmental services, public works, real estate, and facility maintenance for the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, Space Force, and other federal agencies across the Southeast. Its area of responsibility covers installations from Charleston, South Carolina, to Corpus Christi, Texas, and extends south to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
| Date Taken: | 03.12.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 03.12.2025 08:55 |
| Story ID: | 492587 |
| Location: | JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 49 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, NAVFAC Southeast Volunteers at Local Math Competition, by Kathryn Clark, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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