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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018 HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A9 EDUCATION ‘EL DUMPSTERBOT’ LIVES! Students learn programming, building skills in new Echo robotics program By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN STAFF WRITER It may be named “El Dumpsterbot,” but the stu- dents of Echo School’s robotics team hoped their machine would take them in a different direction. A group of 22 Echo mid- dle and high schoolers sent four teams to a qualifying event in Hillsboro on Satur- day, where they competed for a spot in a state compe- tition. Though they didn’t make it to state, their teacher, Don Walker, said the stu- dents’ hard work showed through. “It was a valiant effort,” he said. “We had a lot of robot troubles, probably from the long bumpy ride. Our teams ranked 21st, 27th, 28th and 32nd out of 34 teams.” Walker said the teams needed to place in the top 17 to move onto state, and that Helix was the only local team to move on. On Thursday, students worked on some repairs and updates to their robots. Students from the “Super Cougars” team worked on “El Dumpsterbot,” a robot designed to push a block back and forth, and lift a small garbage can. The name, however, stems from somewhere else. “Originally we had gears, and we had to cover the gears up to make sure they weren’t dangerous,” said Devlyn Wilson, an eighth-grader. “So we had cardboard over it, and it was very messy.” As they work to finish up their projects and catch last-minute issues, the stu- dents recalled how much they learned in just one semester. “I had a little experience going in, but not much,” said Joe Faulkner, a ninth-grader. He was one of a few that did, as most of the students started from scratch. “They’ve had no experi- ence with programming or anything,” said Don Walker, the group’s advisor. “We start with going over safety, and then once we get the chal- lenges presented to us (for the competition), we pull the information we need to pro- STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS Echo freshman Michael Dorn and Elijah Garcila work on a pulley system for a mechanical arm on their robot Thursday in Hermiston gram a robot.” Each group, comprised of five to six students, built a robot that can perform some basic function — lifting or pushing an object, and mov- ing back and forth. As some students worked Thursday morning on physical issues, like getting the robot’s arm to move, others huddled over computers, making sure the robot was programmed to do what it’s supposed to. “One portion of our com- petition is autonomous mode,” said Luis Ibarra, an eighth-grader. “There’s a 30-second period where the robot has to move by itself, and the drivers can’t touch the controls.” The students will pro- gram the robot to perform some task during that time, whether moving in a spe- cific direction or pushing an object into a certain area. The competition was scored based on various skills. “It’s based on what the robot can do to score points, how well the drivers can drive, and of course how we build it to make it work,” said Charlei Harwood, a builder and designer. Each team consisted of programmers, builders and drivers, as well as someone to do outreach and record the process. “I take pictures for the group and work on the engi- neering notebook,” said Maddie Owen, an eighth- grader. “We have to keep track of what we’re doing each day.” Walker, a math teacher at Echo School, started the pro- gram this school year when he moved to the district after seven years as a teacher in Stanfield. He still assists Stanfield with their robotics teams. The team went to five local meets this season, com- peting against teams from Umatilla, Stanfield, Pendle- ton and Helix. “The majority of them love it,” Walker said. “Their biggest challenge is figuring out ways to think critically through problems, and figure stuff out on their own.” Ninth-grader Joe Faulk- ner said they had issues to smooth out before Saturday, but he was excited to put the robot into action. “We’re trying to still get the arm working,” he said. “We’re trying to get it to the right power level, to do what we need it to do.” Hermiston chess club teaches strategy as well as social skills By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN STAFF WRITER A deafening silence set- tled over the Hermiston High School library as 20 kids stared at chess boards, plot- ting their next moves. The Region 23/24 chess tournament drew elementary schoolers from Heppner, and middle and high schoolers from Hermiston — all trying to qualify for the state tour- nament. The tournament is March 9 and 10. After a high-drama three- way tie for the top high school spot, all three stu- dents will move on to state. The winners were senior Gabriel Gomez and sopho- mores Isaac Bonifer and Jer- emy Bowden. Each boy won four of the five matches they played. At the middle and ele- mentary school level, the top five scorers will attend the state tournament as a team. The winners for the middle school level are Luke Gray, Zane Herron, Nathan Boo- her, Dillon Herron and Elijah Robinson. The elementary school BREAK continued from Page A1 Linn has said at several pre- vious meetings that the pro- posed schedule would be disruptive to testing for ele- mentary school students and teachers, as well as make it difficult for teachers who have children in different districts. “Especially at the ele- mentary school, we feel we were devalued,” he said. “The Ed Council never came back and got feed- back from teachers. It’s my impression that they didn’t intend for things to change.” Linn said that while the district said it wanted to make a decision that was best for all students, he didn’t feel that was the case with this choice. “We feel this prioritizes high school sports kids over academics at the elementary school level,” he said. Rocky Heights teacher Shanna Evans also read a prepared statement oppos- ing the schedule change. Loretta Fitterer, presi- dent of the Hermiston Asso- ciation of Teachers, which designates the Educational Council in its collective bar- gaining agreement, spoke in favor of the calendar change in her statement to the board. STAFF PHOTO BY JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN Students from the Heppner Elementary School chess team were at the Hermiston-hosted chess tournament on Saturday. Students played to qualify for the state tournament. winners are Owen Guerra, Nicholas Wenberg, Claire Lindsay, Jaime Cavan, and John Lindsay and Maya Payne, who tied for the third-highest score. As Hermiston High School sophomores Neveah Cubbage and Kylie Barker waited to start their final round of the day, they reflected on their games so far. The biggest challenge, Cubbage said, is that with a fairly small group of people, they have to find new ways to beat the same opponents. “If you play a lot of the same people, they know what your moves are, and they can figure out how to beat you,” Barker said. But both agreed that their favorite aspect has been meeting new people. The two became friends when they joined chess club sev- eral years ago. Club advisor Delia Fields said there are anywhere between 30 and 40 people in chess club, encompassing all three secondary schools. The team practices twice a week, and students get the chance to play opponents of vary- ing skill levels, and get assis- tance from adult volunteers. Fields said the chess club received a boost this year, when it became an official “Chess for Success” team. Joining a group of schools all over Oregon and one in Washington, the organization started in 1992 as a way to teach chess to at-risk youth, to help them develop critical thinking and problem solving skills. “It’s allowed us to go from a small, strong program to a larger strong program,” Fields said. “The kids aren’t hamstrung by registration fees.” A group of about 40 ele- mentary schoolers from Hep- pner made the trip to Herm- iston. The only elementary school in the area with a Chess for Success program, students have found a lot they like about the game. “I like the ‘touch-move’ rule,” said fifth-grader Jaime Cavan, noting a rule that if a player touches a piece, they have to move that piece. “Sometimes my opponent messes up.” Claire Lindsay, a third grader, said one of the chal- lenges has been playing chess under pressure. “When I went to state, it was really hard,” she said. “I saw that I was going to be able to get a draw, but I didn’t win,” she said. For some students, chess has quickly become a favor- ite pastime. Though they were done competing for the day, Luke Gray and Zane Herron, sixth graders at Armand Larive Middle School, sat with a chessboard outside the library and played a practice game. Both had won four of their five tournaments. “I just love to play chess,” Gray said. “It’s a nice, relaxing game,” Herron said. “It’s a good way to free your mind and focus. I believe it makes you more self-aware.” Gray has been playing for several years, and learned from his father. “My dad’s a trucker. And when he was on the road, we would play online chess on chess.com,” he said. MaryAnn Elguezabal, the Heppner chess coach, said many of her students come in with little to no chess expe- rience. The Chess for Suc- cess program provides lesson plans, and she relies on vol- unteers to help teach. Both Elguezabal and Fields said they have seen changes in their students out- side of the chess game. “We’re a safe landing place,” Fields said. “They learn social skills, real thoughtful and purposeful actions.” Elguezabal said she has seen an improvement in patience and manners from many students. “They learn that every- thing you do has a conse- quence,” she said. “Once you’ve moved that chess piece, it’s moved.” “But we need to make sure we’re doing best not just for high school kids. It’s not just based on sports. It’s based on how it impacts all kids.” Karen Sherman, board chair T UESDAY , F EBRUARY 20 TH • 2018 AT 7:00 P . M . School board members said while they knew the change would make some upset, they felt they could not ignore the Educational Council’s recommendation. Board member Ginny Holthus referred to a letter Linn had sent to the board, outlining his concerns. “Regarding the com- ments on sports — we’re making the recommendation based on the fact that they’re students first,” she said. “It’s difficult to set aside the time that the Ed Council spent,” added board member Josh Goller. Board chair Karen Sher- man acknowledged that some would be negatively affected. “But we need to make sure we’re doing best not just for high school kids,” she said. “It’s not just based on sports. It’s based on how it impacts all kids.” Sherman and Mooney said that an online survey was made available to all district staff members. Gomolski said he had heard comments from many people in the past few weeks. “You’re right,” he said to the teachers present at the meeting. “It always seems like we’re doing what’s best for high school sports kids. At this point, I don’t feel comfortable voting for it.” Linn said he was disap- pointed with the decision. “A lot of community members will be negatively impacted,” he said. “This is going to be an every-year issue. We’ll have to try to influence the Ed Council next year.” The 2018-2019 school year is now scheduled to start Aug. 27 and end June 10. Winter break is sched- uled for Dec. 24 through Jan. 4, and spring break for April 1 through 5. 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This EO Forum program is offered as part of Blue Mountain Community College’s annual Arts and Culture Festival. For more information on the festival go to www.bluecc.edu.
