por Jay Wilson

On Saturday, Feb. 24, the Henry Cluster STEMM Foundation partnered with David Ege, the branch manager of the San Carlos Library and the Friends of the San Carlos Library, to host the first “Robotics Showcase Extravaganza!” in the library’s lower parking lot. Patrick Henry, Pershing Middle School, Dailard Elementary and Cajon Park Middle School from Santee participated in the day-long event.

The event was a tremendous success. Over 300 people attended to see demonstrations of small robots, to the 6-foot-plus robot from Patrick Henry. All the robots were designed and built by the students.

Following the demonstrations, HC STEMM Foundation board member Karen Miller conduced a workshop for interested parents, students and teachers to learn more about forming a robotics team at their school or any youth-oriented organization.

There are robotics competitions for elementary, middle school and high school teams. First Robotics is for high school students. There is also First Lego League for fourth- through eighth-grade students. Adult coaches guide the students to think like scientists and engineers to design and build a robot to solve a problem.

These youth-oriented robotics teams can be established just about anywhere; youth groups, community organization, religious groups, neighborhoods and more. For more information about establishing a student robotics team for this year’s competition, contact [email protected].

Another program sponsored by the HC STEMM Foundation is expanding partnerships with San Diego State University and the schools within the Henry Cluster. Dr. Pat Abbott, professor emeritus from SDSU’s geology department is currently working with Olivia Allison, the science department chair at Lewis Middle School, to provide additional resources and information to coordinate with the current seventh-grade science curriculum.

The HC Cluster Foundation supports:

• K-12 STEMM programs by allocating fiscal, material, and human resources.
• Honoring and celebrating Cluster students and staff through regularly planned awards and recognitions.
• Promoting unity and cohesiveness of the schools within the Cluster.
• Engaging the greater community in identifying, developing, and fostering partnerships and connections with local businesses and agencies.

The foundation’s activities are coordinated by volunteer board members and committee chairs, and are intended to supplement programs already in place at the schools. The foundation works in tandem with parent-teacher organizations, staff, and administrators to best serve the needs of the individual school communities, and serve as a central point of contact between the schools, so they can coordinate their programs with each other. For more information, visit hcstemm.org.

— Jay Wilson escribe en nombre de la Fundación Henry Cluster STEMM.