Noblesville Schools announced Tuesday that Metro Plastics Technologies has given Noblesville High School (NHS) a robot valued at $50,000.
The robot will be used as part of the engineering curriculum at NHS, providing students with the opportunity to implement computer manufacturing programming in real-life applications.
“This partnership with Metro Plastics is a game-changer for our students, not only in taking their robotics programming skills to the next level, but in having the opportunity for mentorship from Metro employees,” said Andrew Wilkins, NHS engineering teacher and Project Lead the Way (PLTW) coordinator.
Metro Plastics has already partnered with NHS for several years by hosting class tours and student interns from the school’s workforce development program, believed to be the largest high school internship program in the state.
NHS presented Metro Plastics with a plaque in recognition of their generous donation. (From left) NHS principal Dr. Craig McCaffrey, engineering teacher Andrew Wilkins, Metro president Ken Hahn, and Metro engineering manager Scott Adams. (Photo provided by Noblesville Schools)
“Our goal is to always provide opportunities for students to develop the skills they need to be strong contributors in the real world,” added Wilkins. “We’re so thankful that Metro shares this vision and has supported us in making it a reality.”
“Without a market for used robots with artificial intelligence, we decided to look for alternative uses for our old robot once we received our new one,” said Ken Hahn, president of Metro Plastics Technologies. “Our interaction with the Noblesville High School STEM program, along with the quality interns we have encountered, prompted us to look into how NHS could utilize the technology. The NHS staff quickly replied with a detailed description of the learning possibilities it presented within the community, and the robot’s fate was sealed.”
NHS has been recognized in an elite, top 1 percent group nationally as a PLTW Distinguished School for providing broad access to transformative Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) learning opportunities for students.
Noblesville Schools offers 16 different PLTW courses for middle and high school students including classes like robotics, biomedical, cybersecurity and aerospace engineering. It is also one of only a few districts in the state to offer PLTW programming K-12, with elementary students regularly exploring flight, energy, construction, robotics, and more.