Calmont Wire & Cable is always looking for ways to give back to the community and working with schools and universities. Recently the president of Calmont Wire & Cable, Barbara Monteleone, heard a radio story about a MacArthur Fellowship Award winner, Mr. Amir Abo-Shaeer. Mr. Abo-Shaeer was named a MacArthur Genius in recognition of his work with the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy in Goleta California and Team 1717. He is the first high school teacher ever to win this award.
The MacArthur Fellowship Award is an annual award given by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to between 20 and 40 recipients per year, in any discipline, who “show exceptional merit and promise for continued and enhanced creative work.” The award consists of $500,000, paid over the course of five years. There are no requirements as to how the award winners spend the prize, as it is considered to be an investment in their future contributions to society.
Video:: Mr. Amir Abo-Shaeer discusses the program
After hearing about Abo-Shaeer’s work with students, Barbara contacted Dos Pueblos Academy to learn more about their program.
“I was inspired by Mr. Abo-Shaeer’s imagination and vision to bring engineering to high school students. Making engineering and technology exciting to children before college will help reverse the engineer drought that America industry is suffering from.” Said Barbara.
Calmont supplied the Academy with wire for their robotics department. Calmont designed, manufactured and delivered over 1000 feet of flexible high stranded wire free of charge. The wire will be used for robots students will use in a First Robotic Competition in March in Long Beach, CA.
Students from Dos Pueblos Academy
Dos Pueblos Academy mission is to provide a project-based education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math to high school students in a way that is:
- Relevant – The exciting, hands-on projects provide a real world problem solving experience
- Business Oriented – The program teaches skills needed for success in established business and entrepreneurial ventures
- Team Based – The students work in teams on projects and in the community
- Engaging – The learning environment is accessible and exciting
So that graduates are well prepared to achieve their goals of pursuing higher education and contributing to the workplace and society.
School history
Dos Pueblos High School (DPHS), in collaboration with UCSB, Santa Barbara City College (SBCC), and local industry partners determined that our community would benefit from the presence of an engineering program designed for students at the secondary level. The staff at DPHS decided that the most effective way to implement this program would be with the support of a Specialized Secondary Program Grant offered through the California Department of Education (CDE). DPHS applied for and received a four-year grant from the CDE, consisting of one planning year and three implementation years. The DPEA offered its initial course during the 2002-2003 academic school year with the introduction of Engineering 1 and Computer Science 1. We offered additional courses and engineering emphases throughout the life of the grant, and we fully implemented the program in its current form during the 2005-2006 school year when we added the capstone senior-level Regional Occupation Program (ROP) Robotics course, supported by the Santa Barbara County Education Office (SBCEO) .
Team 1717 Long Beach FRC 2012
First Robotics Challenge (FRC)
“The varsity Sport for the Mind,” FRC combines the excitement of sport with the rigors of science and technology. Under strict rules, limited resources, and time limits, teams of 25 students or more are challenged to raise funds, design a team “brand,” hone teamwork skills, and build and program robots to perform prescribed tasks against a field of competitors. It’s as close to “real-world engineering” as a student can get. Volunteer professional mentors lend their time and talents to guide each team.
Students get to:
- Learn from professional engineers
- Build and compete with a robot of their own design
- Learn and use sophisticated software and hardware
- Compete and cooperate in alliances and tournaments
- Earn a place in the World Championship
- Qualify for nearly $14.8 million in college scholarships
To learn more about FRC visit: http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc/
If you are interested in having Calmont conduct a presentation to your students or employees on wire and cable, please contact us today. Calmont is proud to share it’s industry expertise by offering presentations, wire and cable 101 to students and engineers alike for free and with no obligation. At Calmont we feel that the more students and customers understand the manufacturing and design process of wire and cable, the better they will perform with their studies and with their jobs. Calmont can assist with sample requests and in certain circumstances provide wire and cable free of charge for schools and universities.
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