Justin Heckman, physics teacher and robotics coach, is a recipient of the 2026 Iowa STEM Teacher Award.
According to Dan Harbeke, Regional Head of Public Policy and External Affairs at Google, “We are thrilled to honor these extraordinary teachers who work on the frontlines, inspiring and teaching the next generation of innovators to fill the jobs of tomorrow. By working together, we can provide access to STEM learning that will equip students with critical skills that lead to economic opportunity and highly-skilled jobs right here at home.”
Heckman has been a teacher here at AL for 26 years. What inspired him to pursue science?
“That’s a long story. It turns out I am pretty good at physics, but when I was a kid, I enjoyed tinkering with stuff and working on things, particularly bikes. So ultimately I went to college, and I wanted to be an engineer,” said Heckman.
Heckman says physics is the backbone that makes technology work.
“Physics is really a concrete describer of the things that exist in our world that make all the technology work. So whether it’s tvs or computers or cars or airplanes, all the principles that make those things work are described in physics, and or like going to space and satellites, and GPS. So I think it’s just really great. It thinks it’s just a really great subject that sort of covers all the things that make our lives easier.”
The award comes with a prize that Heckman intends to spend on robotics.
“There’s $1500 I get to spend in the classroom, and I’ve considered that. I am not sure, I may spend that on robotics. It turns out it’s a really expensive program, and so there are nice things that we don’t get to buy. . .”
Heckman sees this award as something positive for the community and the school district.
“It’s sort of strange as a teacher, I’m not really looking for attention,” said Heckman. “I think it is very good for Council Bluffs community schools to be able to say, ‘Hey, we actually have a lot of good opportunities for kids. We have good programs specifically in STEM. We have kids who graduated from that program, who work at NASA, who have graduated from MIT, and so I think it’s meaningful that people outside the district know our district is a great place. Not just for kids to learn, but also specifically if kids are interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.”
