On Saturday, May 7, 2016, Webb Institute welcomed sixth and seventh grade students from The Bridges Academy in West Islip, for a SeaPerch Fun Day event. Those students were enrolled in a full-year SeaPerch Program at their school, and the day’s event capped off their year-long project.

The SeaPerch program is an innovative underwater robotics program that equips teachers and students with the resources they need to build an underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) in an in-school or out-of-school setting. The program aims to provide students with the opportunity to learn about robotics, engineering, science and mathematics (STEM), while building an underwater ROV as part of a science and engineering technology curriculum.

During the SeaPerch Fun Day, the students participated in a variety of fun in-water challenges and activities at Webb using the ROVs they built at their school during the year. The challenges, designed by Webb students, included locating a ship’s black box, retrieving objects, capping an oil well, and robot soccer. Webb students ran the events and served as technical advisors to the teams from The Bridge Academy. Once the challenges were completed, an awards ceremony took place to crown the winners.

“Our students really enjoyed working one-on-one with the kids from The Bridges Academy  and sharing their knowledge of engineering with them,” said Matt Werner, Dean at Webb Institute.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this great educational event, and helped to make it a fun day.

For more information about SeaPerch, please visit their website.

To view SeaPerch Photo Gallery