An exceptional group of Brockton High School (BHS) students defied the odds to achieve success working with robotics technology. The BHS Drone Club builds, programs, and flies small machines in Aerospace Robotics Competitions; a third-place finish at the regional level moved them on to the national finals in Los Angeles last June. That accomplishment would be significant for kids from any school, but for the Brockton students, it represented a victory for underdogs, fueled by determination and hard work.

“Our students are competing with teams from affluent suburban schools, with engineering courses in their curriculum, special facilities, and corporate sponsors,” said Kevin McCaskill, Brockton High’s principal. “Cedric Turner is an inspired teacher who guides the club, and he is supported by volunteers from MIT Lincoln Labs. However, we can’t begin to match the suburban budgets, and we’ve never had industry support – until now.”

Two Companies Step Up

Two Boston companies are stepping up to level the playing field. GreenSight Inc. is an innovative, visionary company focused on robotic platform development and manufacturing, while The Sproul Company are experts in STEM education and community engagement. They are already partnering in federal level technology education projects focused on robotics.

“With Kevin McCaskill’s encouragement, we recently hosted the Drone Club at our headquarters in Charleston,” explained Joel Pedlikin, GreenSight COO and co-founder. “The students saw how we design, build, and test our robotic systems. Their questions were great, and the enthusiasm was infectious. “

“The kids were so impressive that I decided, pretty much on the spot, to offer a set of paid internships,” continued Joel. “Now we’ve decided to join with The Sproul Company and go a step farther, helping the Drone Club acquire new equipment and facilities to support building and testing next year’s drones.”

Looking Forward to Next Year

“The Drone Club enjoyed a great 2024, with students devoting hundreds of hours to learning, assembling, coding, and problem solving, “ said Cedric Turner. “With added resources, funded by our new sponsors, 2025 should be even more exciting and rewarding.”

Follow the links below to learn more about the BHS Drone Club

https://www.wcvb.com/article/brockton-high-school-seniors-prepare-autonomous-drone-coding-competition/60285895

https://www.wgbh.org/news/education-news/2024-06-24/charting-their-own-course-brockton-drone-club-builds-next-generation-of-engineers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcwxbuV1PjE

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