PUHI — Time is running out for the construction of two more remotely operated underwater vehicles. Time is also running out to raise funds to send teams from four Kaua‘i schools to the Big Island Regional ROV competition on May
PUHI — Time is running out for the construction of two more remotely operated underwater vehicles.
Time is also running out to raise funds to send teams from four Kaua‘i schools to the Big Island Regional ROV competition on May 9.
Denice Sheffer, a robotics instructor at Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School, said this year there will be four schools planning to attend and participate in the BIRR.
Those schools include Waimea High School, a returning school to the competition, CKMS, Kapa‘a Middle School and Kaua‘i High School.
Students from the four participating schools and the program’s mentor, Stu Burley, took part in the first-ever Grove Farm swap meet where he had the winning Waimea High School ROV on display and students from CKMS worked with prototype ROVs in a big water tank provided by Burley from the Waimea High School program.
“The goal is to get the arm on the ROV to go through the hoop,” said Tyren Kaneshige, a CKMS operator. “When we go to the Big Island, there will be other tasks assigned to the ROV, but for now, we’re just trying to get the ROV to poke through the ring.”
Sheffer said in addition to getting the ROVs built, students need to submit technical reports before getting the ROVs into the water at the Sparky Kawamoto pool at the Hilo Intermediate School.
“The kids get a lot out of going to the competitions,” Sheffer, a three-year veteran of teaching robotics at CKMS, said. “They see what is possible in the world, they see that they have a possible career ahead in technology and that dream is worth anything to nurture.”
The CKMS teacher said she has seen many of Kaua‘i’s students only see the possibility of working at the grocery store or mall, or if they are lucky, a career at a hotel.
“Unless they see the possibility that local kids can actually take the leap into math, science or technology, they won’t try,” Sheffer said.
Burley said the team effort is so rewarding and life-long friendships have developed from the two previous teams he had taken to the BIRR competition.
Sheffer has plans to take three students from CKMS to compete on the Big Island, but there is the problem with funding.
“We tried our best at the Grove Farm swap meet and are still in need of more funds,” she said.
In addition to Da Imu Hut kalua pork that was sold in Puhi, Sheffer said there were other portions doled out into the community to help with the sales, and they still need more funds.
Marissa Balasco, a physics and chemistry teacher at Kaua‘i High School, reported that her students did a trial run Friday and discovered their ROV is working following a minor electrical problem that was corrected.
“Robotics competition is life-changing,” Burley said. “I worked with ROVs while working at the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Mana and never thought I would work with them after I retired.”
Following his retirement from PMRF, Burley said that Computer Sciences Corp. sent him to a one-week school at Monterey Peninsula College in California to learn how to build ROVs.
“It was the most fun I ever had, thanks to CSC,” Burley said. “The first year at Waimea High School was very exciting and we went on to win top honors in engineering.”
In that year, Burley said there were 12 seniors in the ROV Club and all 12 are in college today, including one attending the U.S. Naval Academy.
In 2008, Burley took another group, this time with five seniors and finished with second place honors.
“All five seniors are in college today,” Burley said. “This year we have only two seniors, one planning to attend the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa and the other, the U.S. Naval Academy. The Waimea High School ROV Club is batting 1.000 and when I reflect on the 19 seniors, I get teary-eyed.”
Despite the hectic surge of activity surrounding construction, creating technical reports and fundraising, Burley said, “No matter what, I’m going because I want to be included in next year’s international event in Hilo.
“It has been fun! Fun! Fun! I have been blessed to be able to work with the ROV program on Kaua‘i. Let’s Imua and very humbly, I say mahalo.”
