James Caruthers, right, engineer in the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division Weapons and Energetics Department (4.7), watches as Inyokern Elementary School students operate a robot they built for competition. Caruthers and two other 4.7 engineers, Sheila Jones and Peter Witkowski, worked together to conduct a robotics program at three local elementary schools - Pierce, Faller and Inyokern. They went to the schools during the after-school boys and girls program to help the kids work in teams to build a robot out of kits. The NAWCWD volunteers gave lessons on robotics and conducted competitions for the teams using the robots they built. “All three of our NAWCWD scientists and engineers who participated had so much passion for the robotics program and spent a lot of time preparing assignments and projects for the students,” said Trish Gresham, WD Education Outreach coordinator. “They definitely captured the interest of the students.”
(Photo by Trish Gresham)