On Thursday, March 7th, Westie STEM Engineering Students traveled to The Ethel Walker School in Simsbury, Conn. to participate in the Connecticut SeaPerch Underwater Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) competition.
The Westie teams took first and second place in the “Mission Course” and “Obstacle Course” challenges, respectively, and qualified for the SeaPerch International Competition, which will take place at the University of Maryland on June 1st.
"I'm extremely proud of our students,” said Eric Rice, Career and Technology Department Head. “They dedicated their time after school to developing a winning ROV. Most impressive to me was seeing how they worked as a team to complete a complex task. We are thankful for the support from our Administration and the Board. The team is looking forward to our next challenge at the University of Maryland."
Congratulations to the following students who participated: Demealio Black, Mikael Caliandra, Sebastian Espinoza Zambrano, Muhammad Hamed, Cristopher Hernandez, Tanjib Jamil, Andrew McLarty, Isaac Morales, Ryan Ni, Ahmed Osman, Mustafa Osman, Shiv Patel, Steven Polanco, Johann Quinones, Sufyan Sayed, Alyssa Spitler, Akeem Traore, and Justin Woychowski.
“SeaPerch is an amazing program at WHHS,” said junior Justin Woychowski. “The team meets 1-4 times a week after school to work on the ROV or practice driving closer to the competition. Traveling with the team on a school day is the most fun. The process of designing the ROV models the Engineering Design Process, which we learned from our coaches, Mr. Rice and Mr. Piccuillo.
After last year, major changes were necessary to adjust the carrying capacity of the robot, which we fixed by reconstructing the frame after several sketches in meetings. The new design involves a PVC hook with a failsafe brace, which the ROV lacked last year. At our first test, we had a motor failure on our second team's ROV, so members from both teams had to work together to make more sets of motors to replace them and have backups for the competition.”
Added junior Tanjib Jamil, "I'm very proud of our team for being able to compete in a regional competition, we have put in much work and effort to achieve this goal. We couldn't have done this without support from our teachers, and I hope our team can uphold this effort for the coming years.”
Senior Alyssa Spitler also had this to say, "SeaPerch is an incredible experience. I have been able to learn about marine/ocean engineering while having fun and learning with my friends and classmates."
The students also attended the March 18th board meeting and presented in front of the West Haven Board of Education members.
"I couldn't be happier for this group of students, especially the upperclassmen!” said Robert Piccuillo, an Engineering and Science Teacher who played a big role in leading the team. “They've put in the time and effort over the past few years and have come very close to winning the regional competition, so to see them get the win this year is extremely gratifying.
“I can't wait to see them compete at the highest level in Maryland and hope all their hard work and determination pays off! And I would be remiss if I didn't mention the support we received from the Administration and the Board of Education. We couldn't do this without them!"
