Bowie High School Amongst Winners in Cubesat Competition
On May 12, 2016, the Museum of Science Fiction, in partnership with Cornell University and NASA, announced its three winners of its international CubeSat Competition. Along with Ithaca High School of Ithaca, NY and Dulwich High School of Suzhou, China, Bowie High School was announced a winner of the competition.
“I was shocked at first when I found out we won. Bowie, a school often looked down, won a national competition and gets to work with NASA. I felt incredible,” Carla Barron, 11, said.
Working with UTEP, the students came up with the name Stellar Students in Orbit (SSiO). The students worked together to write a 20-page proposal about the basic tasks the CubeSat will do and a design of what the CubeSat would look like. Of course, when they first entered the competition, most of the students didn’t know about what exactly they had to do.
“Our objective was to build a little satellite,” according to David Salas, 11th.
The students were by themselves when it came to working on the project. UTEP was only there to help guide the students in the right direction. Although they were against other schools from around the world, the team believed they would win, no matter what.
“I believe we had the chance of winning. When you put that much time and effort into something, good things happen,” Barron said.
The next step to this project is working on the actual building of the cubesat. The team will learn about the facts that go into building and launching the satellite.
With the experience of working as a team of engineers, the team will also receive assistance from students at UTEP that are studying mechanical engineering. Most of the students believe that this project will give them thoughts about what they should choose as their careers.
“This opportunity will definitely have an affect on my future, giving me a taste of the engineering world,” according to Barron.
Robotics Teams Compete Against Other Schools
The Bowie Robotics teams plan to enter and win this year’s VEX competitions that occur throughout the year. In charge of this club is Robotics teacher, Mrs. Vasquez-Loya. Every year, new students join the club.
“Bowie Robotics is not that old, about two years. When it started, I was not a part of it. I joined the second half of the first year. So when I joined, I didn’t know who was in the teams and who wasn’t. I thought it was only going to be nerds,” Zahit Porras, 12, said.
While the club itself is still relatively new, the students in the club feel that this experience has made an impact on what careers they may have in their lives.
“This program did get me more interested in a career. Since middle school, I knew I wanted to do engineering, Yet, I didn’t know what type, this influenced me to go to mechanical engineering,” Porras said.
The students design their robots based on the challenge they face. The challenge of the competition changes every year, where this year’s challenge is Starstruck.
“The way we decide to build the robot depends on the challenge they give us,” Leslie Llamas, 12, said.
In the last two years, the teams competed against tough schools like Eastwood and El Dorado. With the club itself being fairly new, about two years, the teams do plan on winning some of the competitions this year.
“I feel that the team this year will be stronger than before, due to the enthusiasm that the members are showing. So I do believe we can reach higher than before,” Porras said.
“I was shocked at first when I found out we won. Bowie, a school often looked down, won a national competition and gets to work with NASA. I felt incredible,” Carla Barron, 11, said.
Working with UTEP, the students came up with the name Stellar Students in Orbit (SSiO). The students worked together to write a 20-page proposal about the basic tasks the CubeSat will do and a design of what the CubeSat would look like. Of course, when they first entered the competition, most of the students didn’t know about what exactly they had to do.
“Our objective was to build a little satellite,” according to David Salas, 11th.
The students were by themselves when it came to working on the project. UTEP was only there to help guide the students in the right direction. Although they were against other schools from around the world, the team believed they would win, no matter what.
“I believe we had the chance of winning. When you put that much time and effort into something, good things happen,” Barron said.
The next step to this project is working on the actual building of the cubesat. The team will learn about the facts that go into building and launching the satellite.
With the experience of working as a team of engineers, the team will also receive assistance from students at UTEP that are studying mechanical engineering. Most of the students believe that this project will give them thoughts about what they should choose as their careers.
“This opportunity will definitely have an affect on my future, giving me a taste of the engineering world,” according to Barron.
Robotics Teams Compete Against Other Schools
The Bowie Robotics teams plan to enter and win this year’s VEX competitions that occur throughout the year. In charge of this club is Robotics teacher, Mrs. Vasquez-Loya. Every year, new students join the club.
“Bowie Robotics is not that old, about two years. When it started, I was not a part of it. I joined the second half of the first year. So when I joined, I didn’t know who was in the teams and who wasn’t. I thought it was only going to be nerds,” Zahit Porras, 12, said.
While the club itself is still relatively new, the students in the club feel that this experience has made an impact on what careers they may have in their lives.
“This program did get me more interested in a career. Since middle school, I knew I wanted to do engineering, Yet, I didn’t know what type, this influenced me to go to mechanical engineering,” Porras said.
The students design their robots based on the challenge they face. The challenge of the competition changes every year, where this year’s challenge is Starstruck.
“The way we decide to build the robot depends on the challenge they give us,” Leslie Llamas, 12, said.
In the last two years, the teams competed against tough schools like Eastwood and El Dorado. With the club itself being fairly new, about two years, the teams do plan on winning some of the competitions this year.
“I feel that the team this year will be stronger than before, due to the enthusiasm that the members are showing. So I do believe we can reach higher than before,” Porras said.