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Special Double iSSue




                                                                                                          Summer/Back to School 2024
            TEACHING                                                            TRANSPORTATION






                             TODAY WI                                     ™                      TODAY                                 WI




              WISCONSIN’S 4K–12 EDUCATION CONNECTION SINCE 1997                           YOUr WISCONSIN TrANSPOrTATION CONNECTION

                       Washington Island Team                                               Avoid ‘Braking’ the Bank: PHS

                       Finishes 19th in World                                               Auto Shop Will Service Cars


                                                            had to pick up, carry and   Gabe Meredith, staff
                                                            place  items  in  specific   Hi-Lights (student newspaper)
                                                            locations.          Plymouth High School
                                                               The  team  finished   One of the major aspects of the auto shop
                                                            25th in the pool navigat-  is that students and teachers are welcome to
                                                            ing  an  obstacle  course   bring their vehicles in and perform work on
                                                            and   their   technical   them. If the students are in auto tech or basic
                                                            design report was judged   auto, they can repair the vehicles themselves.
                                                            43rd out of 71.     If  the  students  aren’t  in  either  automotive
                                                               Kinsey participated   class, then they are able to have the auto tech
                                                            on  a  Washington  Island   students repair/maintain the vehicle for them.
                                                            team the previous school   The  most  common  way  that  students  can
                                                            year that did not advance   bring their cars or trucks into the auto shop is by
                                                            to  the  state  champion-  directly  asking  automotive  technology  teacher
                                                            ships,  but  she  learned   Beau  Biller,  or  by  having  a  student  in  auto
                                                            from that experience.
        Washington Island students Tug and Marlie work on their Remote          tech  ask  him.  The  teacher’s  preferred  method
        Operated Vehicle for Sea Perch competition.            Her team the previ-  of bringing their cars in is calling Mr. Biller or
                                                            ous  year  built  an  ROV   emailing  him.  The  only  requirement  to  get  a
            For  the  third  year  in  a  row,  Wisconsin’s   with a triangular V-wing design that happened
        smallest school qualified a team for the inter-  to have too much weight on one corner, making   vehicle worked on is to supply the proper parts
        national  finals  for  design,  development  and   it difficult to pick up objects. The previous year,   or things that are being replaced when necessary.
        maneuvering  of  a  Remote  Operated  Vehicle   her team had an ROV with a hook designed to   The auto shop does tire jobs, fluid checks,
        (ROV).                              pick up some objects that had loops on them, but   part  replacements/fixing,  transmission  swaps/  having a lot of tasks and activities to be com-
            The Washington  Island  Fast  and  Furious   it was unable to pick up a Wiffle ball. Kinsey   repairs,  overall  checks/assessments,  and  other   pleted, there is much to like about the class.
        team  was  the  top  middle  school  team  out  of   substituted the hook with a dowel rod, which   automotive activities. There is a wide variety of   Most auto tech students enjoy working on
        two  from Wisconsin  and  finished  19th  out  of   was able to pick up all objects when she or a   tools and students who are capable of many dif-  vehicles. “My favorite part of auto tech is that it
        71 teams from all over the world in the inter-  teammate manipulated the ROV correctly.  ferent jobs to fix the vehicle.     doesn’t feel like school and it’s an escape of the
        national  Sea  Perch  finals.  Washington  Island   This year, Kinsey’s group built a “utility”   There are many different benefits of bring-  mind,” said senior Leyton Schaefer. The aspect
        teams finished 14th in the world in 2022 and   ROV, “more of a box shape,” out of PVC pipe,   ing trucks and cars into the auto shop. “It’s nice   of spending all class doing hands-on work is one
        22nd in 2023.                       elbows and T-shaped fittings. The new Fast and   for students to bring vehicles in because it’s less   of the reasons why auto tech is a popular class.
            The  Washington  Island  team,  includ-  Furious team’s design had better balance than   expensive and it’s the best way for students to   Other auto tech students have their favorite
        ing  fifth-grader  Marlie,  sixth-grader  Tug,  and   the one her team built the previous year, and also   learn  about  automotive  technology  and  get  a   parts of working on vehicles. “My favorite part
        eighth-grade team captain Kinsey, had the best   she and her teammates were able to create better   general understanding of auto maintenance,” said   of  working  on  different  vehicles  is  the  differ-
        finish ever by a team from the island on one of   buoyancy due to where they located pieces of   Mr. Biller.  ence between them and the variation between the
        the challenges. The group finished fifth in the   pool noodles over the plastic-pipe frame.  Since the auto shop handles many varying   alternative vehicles,” said senior Dylan Andrews.
        world in the middle school “mission challenge,”   Marlie, a fifth-grade student, was assigned   models and brands, there is a lot to learn and do.   Getting skills in automotive repair and mainte-
        in which the operators had to drive the remote-                         “My favorite part of teaching auto tech is doing   nance can help students with their future careers
        control underwater device they built and then                           different things every day and it’s always a new
                                                          Continued on Page 4   task  or  problem  to  solve,”  said  Mr.  Biller.  By   Continued on Page 32

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                 Viterbo University • University of Minnesota-Duluth • Concordia University • UW Madison • Fabick Cat/Fabtech
             South Dakota State University CIM • STEM Shuttle • IBEW 158 • Ironworkers Local 8, • High School Racing Association
             Operating Engineers 139 • North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters • Wisconsin Asphalt Paving Association

              Northland Technical & Community College • Wisconsin Science Festival • Western Technical College • eCybermission
                         ABC of Wisconsin • Bellin College • Bergstrom Automotive • Gandrud Automotive • UW Superior
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