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www.marinelink.com 57 SEAPERCH The University of Southern Missis- sippi in Hattiesburg, MS, and the Mis- sissippi Regional SeaPerch Committee in mid-May hosted the Fourth National SeaPerch Challenge on the campus of Southern Miss. It was here that 108 teams of 451 middle and high school students – students from 19 states, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and for a fi rst time ever, and international team from New Zealand – convened at the University’s Payne Center and Johnson Natatorium for a weekend of competi- tion and fun. The 2014 competition was notable in that it set new records, with a 30% in- crease in the number of teams and a 35% increase in student participation as compared to 2013. This fourth National Challenge was sponsored by the Of- fi ce of Naval Research (ONR) and the Naval Engineering Education Center (NEEC) as well as ASNE, CISD, Lock- heed Martin, Louisiana State University, Maritime Reporter & Engineering News, MathWorks, Mississippi State Universi- ty, NRL, NAVSEA Warfare Center Di- vision Newport, the Navy League, the Navy League STEM Institute, NDEP, SNAME, STEM2Stern and the Univer- sity of Southern Mississippi. Currently the AUVSI Foundation ad- ministers SeaPerch and ONR has funded this popular educational outreach pro- gram since the end of 2007, during which time SeaPerch has grown exponentially, with more than 180,000 students hav- ing participated in virtually every state. With more than 12,000 teachers and mentors engaged in the program over the past seven years, students have learned valuable life skills through hands-on ac- tivities and enhanced science curricula to discover the excitement of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) as a potential future career path. This underwater robotics program supports teachers and provides curricu- lum enhancement in compliance with national standards to assist students in constructing this underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) in an in-school, after school or out-of-school setting. Students build their own SeaPerch ROV following a curriculum that teaches sci- ence and engineering nomenclature, ter- minology and basic principles with an ocean and marine engineering theme. Because of its popularity and rapid rate of expansion, a natural goal of the SeaP- erch Program has been to develop geo- graphical districts and regions where top winning teams from qualifying competi- tions could earn a slot at the annual Na- tional event. All teams arrived on campus on Friday to check in and care for several logistical details. After dinner they were invited to a presentation by the Science Brothers and were treated to an Ice Cream Social, to meet and mingle with fellow competi- tors. The next day the day started early in Payne Center’s auditorium. Susan Nel- son, Executive Director of SeaPerch and Mistress of Ceremonies, welcomed the 108 teams, parents and friends and thanked the members of the Missis- sippi Regional Planning Committee. Mississippi Hosts Fourth Annual National SeaPerch Challenge 108 teams of 451 students from 19 states, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as a team from New Zealand competed in the Fourth National SeaPerch Challenge MR #7 (50-58).indd 57 6/30/2014 11:12:12 AM
