Texas City Breaks Ground on State-of-the-Art Robotics Center

• With support from Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery, Texas City Independent School District broke ground on its new state-of-the-art robotics center.
• In 2022, Marathon announced a multi-year investment to help the school system purchase equipment and supplies to support the new center.
• The school system, which serves nearly 8,000 students, will use the STEM-focused center to advance its programming in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

With a ceremonial flip of the dirt, the future home to Texas City Independent School District’s (TCISD) award-winning robotics club is underway. The groundbreaking event, held on April 10, gave way to the much-anticipated center.

In the spring of 2022, Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery committed a multi-year investment in the project through TCISD’s Foundation for the Future, which collaborates with the community and the school district to generate and distribute resources to enrich, maintain and expand TCISD programs.

“This will be a first-of-its-kind of facility here in Texas City, and our partnership with Marathon helped make this day possible,” said Dr. Melissa Duarte, TCISD Superintendent of Schools.

The state-of-the-art facility aims to broaden robotics education across the school system, which serves nearly 8,000 students in La Marque and Texas City and will provide greater access to STEM-focused careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

“Together we succeed,” said Dave Leaver, Vice President of Refining at the Galveston Bay refinery, as he kicked off his remarks at the groundbreaking ceremony. “Does that sound familiar? It’s TCISD’s vision, and today we’re seeing this vision become a reality through our shared desire to enhance robotics education for our community’s youth.”

Leaver added that Marathon’s gift, which will go toward the purchase of robotics equipment and materials at the facility, will not only support the school’s vision of advancing its robotics programming but will also provide new opportunities that support today’s students becoming tomorrow’s leaders.

“Because of this, Marathon is proud to support this important initiative, and we are thankful for our partnership and to be a part of this milestone at TCISD,” Leaver said.

Construction of the facility, with its official name, TCISD Marathon STEM/Robotics Center, is scheduled for completion by the end of the year.