Arizona students build, race solar-powered go-karts
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) — Arizona students are building solar-powered go-karts and racing them as part of a program designed to expose them to STEM careers.
State data shows STEM careers are growing faster than any other field.
Fourteen teams from 11 schools spent nine months tinkering, failing, rebuilding, and rewiring go-karts before racing them. The Southern Arizona Research, Science and Engineering Foundation, or SARSEF, hosts the high-speed challenge.
110 Arizona students worked on solar go-karts this school year. For some, it was a bumpy road.
“On our test day, our car completely flipped, so that means our solar panels were broken. Everything was kind of destroyed up to our electrical wires,” said Angel Gonzalez, a junior at San Miguel High.
Learning through failure
Gonzalez said overcoming the setback required teamwork.
“It took a lot of cooperation within myself and my team to come back from that setback and be able to push through it,” he said.
For 71 years, SARSEF has been offering students hands-on STEM challenges they can’t find in the classroom.
Kayla Miranda, SARSEF’s Racing the Sun Program Manager, said exposure is critical for students who might otherwise feel limited in their options.
“STEM a lot of times is viewed as unpursuable because there’s not many things that are given exposure. So, the beauty of SARSEF is we’re exposing you to all things STEM,” Miranda said.
SARSEF serves hundreds of students each year. It reports that 78% of those students come from high-poverty areas.
“It helps resolve some of that curiosity that they were a little bit unsure of in school,” Miranda said.
Building skills beyond engineering
Jabori Scott, a Cesar Chavez High senior and team leader from Phoenix, said he learned many engineering skills.
“Measurements have to be precise,” he said. “If your measurements aren’t precise, you’re really not getting that correct information that you need.”
Scott said the program taught him more about himself, too.
“People around me said I’m a good group person – like good at leading – and that I should carry it on – like do it as I move forward in my path of education,” he said.
Anyone can start a team, and any school can sign up for the nine-month program. The program costs between $2,000 and $5,000 per team, and SARSEF offers scholarships for Title I schools.
Isabela Lisco is a Report for America corpsmember covering education solutions for 13 News. Her position is made possible through funding from Report for America and the Arizona Local News Foundation’s Arizona Community Collaborative Fund.
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