KING GEORGE, Va. –
The temperature outside may have seemed frigid, but more than 100 students from 50 teams were jumping “robot first” into the pool at the 2023 Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) SeaPerch Regional Competition held at the King George YMCA March 18.
SeaPerch is an underwater robotics program that enables students to build a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). The program introduces students to STEM concepts. The multiple roles a team must fill to complete the competition allows students to have real-world experience with all of the facets a scientist or engineer may face in daily operations.
The students completed two underwater challenges and then delivered a final presentation to a panel of judges. The first underwater challenge consisted of several hoops lined at the bottom of the pool. Students had to drive their ROV through the hoops, come up to the top of the pool and successfully guide the robot back through the hoops. Students had two attempts within a 15-minute window to complete the challenge.
The second obstacle the students faced was a challenging course setup. Students earned points by moving floating noodles, opening door-like structures and carrying objects from one side of the course to the other. The teams had 10 minutes to complete as many tasks as they could on the course for a total number of points.
In both underwater challenges, volunteers from Fredericksburg’s Mad About Diving assisted students and their ROVs during the competition. The scuba divers untangled the power cords, reset obstacles and made sure the ROVs fully completed the tasks.
For the third challenge, students presented a technical report to a panel of judges. The panel consisted of volunteer engineers and scientists from NSWCDD. The judges asked a series of questions about challenges that the students faced, highlights from the process, design aspects, skills needed to complete the project, team workload delegation and other critical thinking questions.
Last year’s regional coordinator for the competition, Luis Valcourt-Colon, a software engineer at NSWCDD, worked as one of the judges for the competition. “I just love the idea of the program,” he said. “I never had these opportunities growing up, so to see these students have this opportunity is just mind-blowing. They get to try skills we use every day at work and that is really awesome.”
Melissa Boitnott from the Weapons Control and Integration Department worked as the regional coordinator for the competition. Boitnott started assisting with the program in 2018 after hearing a call for volunteers. “I think the very first STEM event I was involved with was in sixth grade, around the same age of these students, so volunteering in this way allows me to spark that same inspiration I found.”
Boitnott said she is inspired by the students who return every year with a different plan to execute the missions. “The students get to show off a culmination of everything they have worked on all year long,” Boitnott said. “This event could be the first step into STEM for some of these kids and gets them excited about it. We have a lot of cases where students are returning year after year, so they try one strategy one year, but get to try something different the next year.”
NSWCDD K-12 STEM Lead Michael Clark stressed the importance of their volunteers and NSWCDD’s partnership with the King George YMCA. “This event wouldn’t be possible without all of the volunteers, teachers and parents that dedicate their time for the students. We are also really grateful to the King George YMCA who works with us to make this event great.”
A virtual ceremony will be held March 30 to announce who will advance to the May 13 international competition at the University of Maryland.