Robotics Team Advances

Congratulations to Mr. Sam Bartlett and our Robotics Team!  They competed this past weekend in the Heart of Texas Boosting Engineering, Science & Technology (BEST) Robotics Technical Competition, and took home first place.  This is an outstanding result especially considering we are in the first year of our Robotics program.  They now advance to the State competition in Dallas in two weeks.  Students from both the Middle School and High School make up the team, and they represented Lorena extremely well.  The picture on the left shows the team's trophy, t-shirt, plaque for best t-shirt design, and the official program for the competition.  You can find out more about our Robotics team by reading this post from earlier this year. 

Science, Technology and Engineering Success

Lorena High School science/physics teacher, Sam Bartlett, had a simple idea:  If you build it, they will come.  Last spring, with hopes of developing a local science club, Mr. Bartlett applied for and won a grant  from the Lorena Education Foundation to purchase parts and build a computer from scratch.   With his grant in hand, Mr. Bartlett then solicited students to form LSTEC (the Lorena Science Technology and Engineering Club).  Last week the students and Mr. Bartlett met after school to build their first computer, Leopard I.  With excitement in the air and an overall atmosphere of half business and half party, the students finally flipped the switch.  “There were cheers and high fives when we turned it on for the first time and it worked”, said Mr. Bartlett.  “I want to thank the Lorena Education foundation again for making this fantastic experience possible.”  He went on to explain the high school students will also form the Lorena High School BEST Robotics Team, using the computer to design and build a robot and then compete later this year in the Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology competition, or BEST Robotics.

LISD appreciates Mr. Bartlett, who, like so many other teachers in Lorena, strive to show students that science, math and technology can be fun, challenging and rewarding.  If you would like to help the Education Foundation make future grants like this possible, you can mail your donation to the Lorena Education Foundation, P. O. Box 39, Lorena, Texas 76655 or consider participating in our annual Golf Tournament Fundraiser on Friday, October 26th.  For more info about the tournament or the foundation, contact them at EducationFoundation@LorenaISD.net.