The University of Alabama in Huntsville teamed up with Sparkman High School to give 1,500 Madison County students a glimpse of a new STEM-related program.
Earlier this month, the two launched a new collaboration called PILOT (Performance and Integration in the Logistical Operation of uncrewed Transport), on Drone Fly Day at the high school’s football field. On hand for the occasion were several engineers and students from UAH’s Rotorcraft Systems Engineering and Simulation Center (RSESC) to demonstrate what their aircraft are capable of.
“First, we’re very interested in cultivating the students in STEM and then, second, in UAH and then, third, in our center – in that order,” said David Hatfield, RSESC deputy director. “We employ UAH students to help us do some of our work. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get some of these kids interested, and they may show up over here at UAH as students that we hire in the process.”
Jerry Hendrix, RSESC director, addressed potential commercial applications of drone technology in addition to its current limitations.
“It’s a problem you could help solve,” he said, “if you come to UAH.”
Sparkman teacher Scott Coonfare reached out to the RSESC about the possible collaboration that could help to bring engineering-related education to multiple Madison County schools.
“We need an engineering program, and UAH is the engineering school,” said Coonfare. “We’re trying to get more STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) classes and more students excited about the engineering processes.”
Coonfare’s plan for PILOT includes three phases over the next three academic years:
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Phase One, 2024-2025 – Teams of Sparkman High students build drones and learn how to fly them with supervision and assistance from UAH engineers, who set benchmarks – including a safety plan – and judge a flying competition in February.
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Phase Two, 2025-2026 – Sparkman High students improve drone design and construction and incorporate computer programming. Phase One moves into Sparkman Ninth Grade School and Sparkman and Monrovia middle schools.
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Phase Three, 2026-2027 – Sparkman High adds a college-level class focusing on aerospace engineering and continues the Phase Two class. Phase One expands into elementary schools.
To fund materials for the first year, Sparkman applied for a grant from the Association of Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and received $2,500 to buy five drone kits, one for each team.
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