Stockbridge InvenTeam returns from expedition to American Samoa

The Stockbridge InvenTeam visits the National Park of American Samoa’s visitors center. From left to right: Kael Bunce, Lori Zemke, Katelyn Knieper, Michelle Zemke, Hailey Howard, Bob Richards, Kaleb Adkins, Chelsey Asquith, Molly Nichols, Julia Marhofer, Baylee Heidrich, Hailee Fraser, Chloe Miner, and Kaitlin Miller.

by Michelle Zemke and Sylvia Whitt

InvenTeam members Michelle Zemke and Kael Bunce prepare the ROV for deployment.

From Nov. 21 through Dec. 5, the Stockbridge InvenTeam traveled to American Samoa with three main goals. First was to conduct research on the bottom fish species around Aunu’u Island. Second, as part of their goal to “Inspire, Engage, and Educate,” they worked alongside local youth to build their own ROV (remotely operated vehicle) during their own ROV workshop. The team worked with 55 students from the 12 high schools across the island, including one from the island of Manua. Third and finally, the team visited eight of the twelve high schools on the islands, teaching them about ROVs and the work the InvenTeam has done in past projects.

This year’s team includes: Michelle Zemke, Katelyn Knieper, Chloe Miner, Kael Bunce, Baylee Heidrich, Sylvia Whitt, Chelsey Asquith, Molly Nichols, Julia Marhofer, Hailee Fraser-Gutting, Kaitlin Miller, and Hailey Howard—all under the inspiration and capable leadership of their robotics teacher, Robert Richards.

One of the most important parts of the trip was the educational outreach done by the students. The workshop they developed was a two-day event in which four students from each high school in American Samoa worked with one Stockbridge student to learn how to build a control box, frame, and propulsion system.

Two students troubleshoot buoyancy before placing their ROV back into the water.

At the end of the second day, all the groups went to a nearby pool to test and compete with their ROVs.

“This workshop was so much more rewarding for me than I had anticipated,” Junior Sylvia Whitt said. “My group taught me so much about their customs and even troubleshooting. And I had gone into the workshop thinking I was going to be the one doing the teaching.”

Throughout the two-day workshop, InvenTeam members worked with 60 students, including those of the American Samoa Community College.

In addition to the ROV workshop, the InvenTeam traveled to eight of the high schools in American Samoa to give short presentations on what ROV are, how they are operated, and how students may use them in their own ocean waters. In total the InvenTeam inspired 1,000 students to create their own ROVs.

Samoan student pulls ROV from the water.

The InvenTeam also conducted a bottom fish study using their own student-built camera system. The team captured footage of numerous types of fish including a species of foraminifera, or foram, that the scientists of the National Marine Sanctuary never knew existed in their waters. The team was able to deploy their ROV to a new maximum depth of 200 feet while the camera system was being dropped.

For junior Baylee Heidrich a favorite part of the trip was using the camera system. “We worked so hard over the past year to create this system for this task, and it was very rewarding to be able to use it for the bottom fish study and to capture such amazing images.”

Overall, senior team leader Michelle Zemke said the InvenTeam had a very successful trip to American Samoa. They spread their love of robotics and the ocean to the students of American Samoa while also conducting research for the National Marine Sanctuary. “The best part of the trip was working with the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa,” she said. “They showed me what they do on a daily basis, and inspired me to come work at a National Marine Sanctuary in the future.”

The group was invited back to American Samoa, and they hope to return with the ambition to collect samples of the forams, a type of amoeba, they discovered, do an ROV workshop for teachers, and also a workshop to implement cameras on the Samoan students’ ROVs. The Stockbridge InvenTeam expressed appreciation to their many sponsors and supporters. They have realized, yet again, that these life-changing educational experiences could not happen without this support.

The Camera System boat crew mounts GoPros as they get the camera system ready to deploy.

Participants in the ROV workshop gather in front of the Ocean Center after testing their ROVs in the pool.