The New College Institute kicked off March in full force with STEM activities for K-12 students.
On Friday, March 1, 5th-grade students from Patrick Henry Elementary School visited NCI to participate in the third annual Grow the Planet Code-a-Thon. Students across the Commonwealth became mission specialists for the Virginia AFCEA Space Alliance (VASA) for the day.
Participating students were tasked with completing a series of coding challenges to ensure a ship filled with astronaut colonists could safely land on Planet X and set up the first sustainable off-world colony. As the students completed each challenge, they were able to share and discuss their findings with other students from around the Commonwealth via Zoom.
“It was impressive to see these fifth graders compute and work through these challenges,” said NCI Chief Academic Officer Dr. Susheela Shanta. “Our students confidently presented their completed challenge multiple times throughout the day.”
That same weekend, NCI’s FIRST Robotics Team, STAGS Team 1262, kicked off their 2024 season at Blacksburg High School on March 1-3 for the Chesapeake District Blacksburg VA Event.
The STAGS walked away from their first competition with awards for Team Spirit, Safety, Safety All-Star, and Best Cart. Their drive team fought hard, and they advanced to Match 12 of the semifinals before being eliminated. The STAGS ranked 13 out of 25 with a record of 10-10-0.
“We are incredibly proud of our STAGS students,” said NCI Executive Director Joe Sumner, “They put in countless hours perfecting this robot for the competition in Blacksburg, and they haven’t slowed down since then in preparation for the next competition.”
Because of their performance in Blacksburg, the STAGS have advanced on to the Chesapeake District Glen Allen VA Event at Deep Run High School on March 15-17. The STAGS are one of 30 teams who will be competing in Glen Allen. Spectators can view the competition live in person or on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/firstchesapeake1. All FIRST Chesapeake events are free and open to the public.
