The big game for Union City High School students is this weekend. It will be played with bodies of steel, a field, and a ball. Sweat beads will form on hairlines, pulses will quicken, and passionate fans will scream from the sidelines.
It has all the makings of a varsity game, but this is a special game: a varsity sport for the mind, in which
20 of the 25 MagneGeeks Robotics Team students from the Union City High School Academy for Enrichment and Advancement are competing in Washington DC as part of the prestigious USFIRST competition.
This is the first time a Hudson County team is taking part in the nationwide competition since it began 1989.
“In the beginning, we thought we couldn’t do it,” said Awad Shibly, a junior at the academy. But within a week of receiving the program description and rules, the group was organized, settled and ready to build.
“Everyone has pitched in with their own talents.” – Carla Rotoli
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Teams received a kit of parts containing motors, batteries, a control system, a PC, and a mix of automation components, but no instructions. Working with mentors, students had to design, build, program, and test their robots on their own.
Last year they applied for and received a $5,500 NASA grant to participate in the 2010 competition along with a smaller grant from USFIRST for rookie teams. The total cost to participate is approximately $10,000 to $12,000. “Many of the other schools have to do fundraising on their own,” said Peter Drozd, one of two team mentors. “We’re very fortunate this has been supported by our central office.”
The other team mentor, Carla Rotoli, is a geometry teacher with a background in engineering and is thrilled to have the opportunity to take the students to the competition.
“The competition is so cool,” said Rotoli. “You see the spirit of the teens; everyone works [for this] all year.” Rotoli said the students have been staying late at school every night for six weeks to prepare for the competition. “I never thought I would see this,” she said. “Everyone has pitched in with their own talents.”
The students set up a variety of groups including mechanical, electrical, programming, communications, management/finance and other, for those unsure of how they wanted to help.
Team effort
Priscila Laboy, a junior, is one of only eight girls participating in the group. “I like building stuff,” said Laboy. She worked in management and helped the group by monitoring the budget and scheduling.
Junior Jeffrey Matos participated in the programming of the robot. “I had to tell it things like how fast to go,” said Matos.
Freshmen Karla Erazo and Andrea Algarin worked on communications, keeping a blog updated with information about their process. “It was interesting,” said Erazo. “It was cool watching them build it and program it.” Both students previously participated in an after school robotics program in eighth grade and are already looking towards more opportunities for the future.
“We’re getting ideas of what we could do next year,” said Algarin, who hopes to be a graphic designer or an architect.
Nearly everyone involved in the project had an interest in engineering or robotics since early childhood and many cited watching their fathers rebuilding and fixing things as inspiration for getting into this field. “I was always fascinated by things like that,” said junior Chris Parraguirre.
“It was fun,” said sophomore Edward Cortes, who was attracted to engineering in the eighth grade. “I wanted to see how things work.”
The students agreed that the programming was the most challenging aspect of the process, but they met it with creativity and enthusiasm.
“The students have been fantastic,” said Drozd. “My goal is that we’re able to compete and do a good job.”
After this weekend’s competition, the students may have the opportunity to compete in the finals. To follow the team’s progress, visit their blog at www.aeaeagles.blogspot.com.