La Plata, MD – A team from Milton M. Somers Middle School is eligible to compete at the national SeaPerch competition in May after being named the overall winner at a regional event held earlier this month. The Somers Titans team of sixth graders Megan Anderson, Samuel Chernoff, Luca Silverans and seventh grader Byron Franchi was named the top team among 16 competing teams at the Southern Maryland Regional SeaPerch Competition held March 16 at Henry E. Lackey High School.
SeaPerch is an underwater robotics program in which students build and operate an underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV). Students build their ROVs from kits while using engineering and science concepts with a marine engineering theme. Students in the SeaPerch program also learn how to problem solve, apply technical applications and work as a team.
The competition was broken down into three categories: an obstacle course, poster presentation, and fast and furious competition.
In the obstacle course, students worked together to navigate their ROV through an underwater series of rings and competed to complete the course in the fastest time. In the poster presentation portion of the event, teams delivered oral presentations about their robot design, construction challenges and what they have learned through the SeaPerch program to a panel of judges. In the fast and furious part of the event, teams competed for the fastest time while driving their robots a distance of 10 meters to a finish line.
The Somers Titans team received a first-place win in the obstacle course competition and second place in the poster presentation. They were selected as the overall winner for having the best average score in the poster and obstacle events. Coach of the Titans team is Amy Arnold, a science teacher at Somers, and Stephen Possehl, a Somers parent volunteer.
As overall winners, the Titans team is eligible to advance to the national level competition, scheduled for May 20-21 at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.
Two other teams from Somers placed at the event. The Somers Tobor 2003 team of sixth grader Aastha Patel and seventh graders Jomari Brown, Natalie Fox and Hudson Wright received first place in the fast and furious category and second place in the obstacle course challenge. Arnold and Possehl also coach this team.
The Somers Bad Unicorns team received third place in the obstacle course challenge. Team members include seventh graders Maxwell Mitchell, Sahil Patel, Erin Possehl and Ebin Sebastian, and Arnold and Possehl work with this team as coaches.
Teams from John Hanson and Benjamin Stoddert middle schools, and St. Mary’s Bryantown School also competed in the event. Visit http://www.seaperch.org./index to learn more about the SeaPerch program.
Charles County Public Schools provides 26,300 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has 36 schools that offer a technologically advanced, progressive and high quality education that builds character, equips for leadership and prepares students for life, careers and higher education.
