Release Date: Thursday, December 23rd 2010
ADA middle school students invest time to design
12/23/2010 - West Side Leader
By Staff Writer
DOWNTOWN AKRON — Eleven Akron Digital Academy (ADA) middle school students are part of a team that has designed a Rube Goldberg, an “overengineered machine that performs a very simple task in a complex fashion,” according to ADA officials.
The ADA’s piece of the project is shown above right with students Marques Bethune, at left, and Monica Drope.
As part of a network of seven Summit County middle schools, ADA’s students will participate in First Night® Akron 2011 in Downtown Akron Dec. 31. Their machine, combined with those from other area schools, will ignite the midnight fireworks.
“This is a great 21st Century Skills science project,” said K-8 Program Director Barbara Meacham. “The students had to research and collaborate to get this project completed. Students worked as a team every evening for three weeks, including one Saturday.”
“When I signed our students up for the project, I knew it would be challenging, but I also had confidence that they would rise to the challenge, and they did,” said Community Engagement Coordinator Jaunaé Carter.
In addition to First Night participation, students and their project will be featured on Time Warner Cable Channel 411, and the community will have an opportunity to vote for a favorite school by logging onto a website.
Supervising design and construction are two of ADA’s staff members, Joe Feil and Walter Kidder. Carter and high school principal LaShawn Terrell also could be found helping students design a school banner that will be displayed with the project, according to ADA officials.
Students contributing their talents include sixth-graders Jessica Heisser and Niya Moss and eighth-graders Bethune, Shyann Bibey, Carly Conley, Drope, Lashell Green, Teddy Julian, Donald Key, Schae Painter, Kaylynn Priebe and Julie Ward.