LEXINGTON, Ky. — Newton’s Attic is introducing girls from the Second Street School in Frankfort to coding in a special Coding with Drones program this winter, thanks to funding from Traditional Bank in Frankfort.
Twenty-seven girls from Second Street School in Frankfort are enrolled in the seven session intensive, hands-on engineering program designed to improve their confidence with technology by taking their drone designs from idea to prototype to the final test competition.
“Newton’s Attic is so grateful to Traditional Bank in Frankfort for funding this program,” said Dawn Cloyd, director of Community Outreach. “It has been wonderful to work with these young ladies and watch them discover the interesting and important things they are able to do when they learn to use and apply technology to real world problems.”
The Coding with Drones program is focused on hands-on, project-based learning not often offered in traditional classrooms. The program combines computer programming instruction, hand-on experience in the use of the drone hardware, and basic safety and fabrication skills using power tools in a professionally monitored workshop environment. The overarching objective of the program is to provide students with an immersive education in fabrication and coding, as well as, an introduction to handling and use of autonomous drones.
The drone technologies used in the Coding for Drones program are increasingly useful in emergency search and rescue operations, land, rubble or resource surveys of dangerous or difficult to access areas, monitoring crop growth over large acreages, and in many other applications. By gaining familiarity with the equipment and understanding the numerous industrial applications, the students involved are developing practical skills, which can be beneficial if they choose to pursue further education and careers in these fields.
“Second Street School is very thankful to the donors that made this opportunity possible for our students,” said Samantha Sams, Second Street School principal. “Our girls have learned a variety of skills that have piqued their interest within the STEM field while expanding their knowledge and skillset for the future. We are very thankful for Newton’s Attic and all the work they do to provide these amazing opportunities for children. This has been an amazing experience for these 27 girls and myself and it has provided a foundation for expanding STEM opportunities to all students at Second Street School.”
The Coding with Drones program for Second Street School ends on Thursday, Feb. 20 with students giving a flight demonstration of the drones they designed. The community is invited to join as the girls’ engineering skills will be showcased between 2:00 and 4:00 p.m. Newton’s Attic is located off Versailles Road at 4974 Old US Hwy 60, Lexington, KY 40510.
Newton’s Attic is partnering with Corning Glass Foundation, LG&E-KU, and Traditional Bank later in the spring to offer the Coding for Drones program to 24 middle school boys from the Black Male Working Academy/Carter G. Woodson Academy (BMW/CGWA). The partnerships with these local companies makes it possible for Newton’s Attic to provide this intensive learning program to student in regional public schools serving a significant minority and economically disadvantaged populations.
Newton’s Attic, a nonprofit founded in 1998 by Bill Cloyd, is dedicated to providing students with highly unusual educational experiences and providing STEM (Science Technology, Engineering Mathematics) educational resources to parents, students and teachers. Our mission is to stimulate interest in science and engineering through exciting hands-on projects, classes and summer camps. To learn more about Newton’s Attic visit www.newtonsattic.org
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