2008-2009 Out of Orbit
Ready to Fly with NEW and VETERAN Members
Students
- Name:Alicia Cortese
- School:Marcos De Niza
- Grade:11
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Welding and Spirit Team
- From the Mind of Alicia:This is my first year in Robotics. It's a fun new season and I'm excited to be here.
- Name:Andrei Kimmel
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Mechanics, control, electrician, occasional spirit
- From the Mind of Andre:I have to learn by taking something apart and rebuilding, with the occasional help of blueprints. I am currently in the JROTC at my high school, and my position is platoon sergeant. I plan on joining the Air Force ROTC in college, and learning bioengineering and cybernetics, among other things. I have this idea to create cybernetic replacement limbs or organs in order to prolong life. We have the artificial heart already ( the Jarvik Artificial Heart), but I plan on being able to replace everything. High hopes, right? This would make life easier for many war veterans, and car accident victims. This is the main reason I joined robotics. I am usually very quiet, and I try to analyze everything before I jump in, or say something. In this club I have always been able to share my ideas, and explain them. Instead of seeing it does not work and casting aside, the mentors explain how I can make it better, and then help me. This is a great club, and more people should have the opportunity to experience it.
- Name: Fahad Alam
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:11
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:3d modeling
- From the Mind of Fahad:He draws pictures of destroying robots when he isn't destroying robots. May in fact run on ramen and copious levels of awesome, dangerous levels of awesome. Too much awesome for you.
- Name:Ariel Hodge
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:
- From the Mind of Ariel:
- Name:Suzanne Williams
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:President, programming
- From the Mind of Suzanne:It is exciting to actually put all the math and science we've learned up until now to use. This is basically what it all comes down to; technology. My major is going to be chemical engineering, and this is a very exciting supplement to my education.
- Name:Lauren Johnston
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:3-D Modeling
- From the Mind of Lauren:This is my first year in the Robotics club, and I can't wait until we compete!
- Name:Malcolm Mainland
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Welding/ Spirit
- From the Mind of Malcolm:Joined robotics for the ability to learn new skills.
- Name:Katie McKean
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:
- From the Mind of Katie:I'm here because a friend dragged me, and then I got interested in the program.
- Name:John Martin
- School: Highland Highschool
- Grade:12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Programming
- From the Mind of John:It interests me!
- Name: James Martin
- School: Highland Highschool
- Grade:11
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:3D Modeling
- From the Mind of James:I was influenced to learn!
- Name:Nick Padula
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:9
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Construction and Graphic Arts
- From the Mind of Nick:Basically I've always had a curiosity of computers and I always took them apart and I figured robotics would be pretty awesome...rawr
- Name: Harrison Koza
- School: James Madison Prep
- Grade:9
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Mechanical, website
- From the Mind of Harrison:I had known about the team last year (when it was founded) but I wasn't really able to join at the time. Now I'm less busy (or lazy, take your pick) so I've joined the team. So far, it's been fun working on the robot and the website. I've basically been helping with whatever random stuff help is needed for.
- Name: Iris Gishkin
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:12th
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Mechanical, Team Secretary
- From the Mind of Iris:I'm really excited to be a part of robotics this year! I love learning about anything involving science and I'm glad that I have the oppturnity to get hands on experience. In my free time I enjoy surfing the net, playing video games, and reading.
- Name: Curtis Williams
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:10
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:3-D modeling and design
- From the Mind of Curtis:I have an extreme love for physics and mathematics, and I am very excited to learn about the modeling software.
- Name: Mario Sanchez
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:Senior
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Web Page
- From the Mind of Mario:I first heard of the robotics team during summer school. Someone from the Corona Robotics team told me about it so here I am. My thoughts on the team is that it's awesome. I encourage everyone to join the team where ever I go. In other words I'm spreading the word on the Marcos de Niza campus.
- Name: Jon Schack
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:
- From the Mind of Jon:
- Name: Kelvin Chan
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:
- From the Mind of Kelvin:I joined the club because I like Robotics.
- Name: Jonathan Chen
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:
- From the Mind of Jonathan :I am aspiring to become earn my mechanical engineering degree at either Arizona State University or University of California: Berkeley.
- Veteran: Robert Stoll
- School: James Madison Prep
- Grade: 9
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Programming, Web, Mechanical-lackey
- From the Mind of Robert:We live in a world where sports, music and hollywood often overshadow the world of science and math. FIRST combats this evil nature, making engineering look as flashy as these other things. I am a one year veteran, and getting pumped for a new year and new opportunities.
- Veteran: Morgan Hammel
- School: James Madison Prep
- Grade: Freshman
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Mechanical, Where I am needed
- From the Mind of Morgan:
- Veteran: Chris Bierwagen
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade: 12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Mechanical
- From the Mind of Chris:The world is my playground. Robotics is the means to have fun in the world. Life is not safe with crazy mad engineers.
- Veteran: Robert Glickman
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade: 10
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:TBA
- From the Mind of Robert:This is my second year in Robotics so I have some experience. I'm just waiting to see what happens.
- Veteran: Joshua "Moose" Horn
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade:12
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:
- From the Mind of Joshua:
- Veteran: Jordan Meissinger
- School: Marcos de Niza
- Grade: Sophmore
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:
- From the Mind of Jordan:
Mentors
- Name: Jose Orosco
- Occupation: Engineer
- Previous FIRST Teams: Team 1897 (two years)
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Mechanical, Electrical, Programming
- From the Mind of Jose: FIRST is... and will always be... FIRST :)
- Name: Shea Ferring
- Occupation: Aerospace Engineer (AKA Rocket Scientist)
- Previous FIRST Teams: Teams 233, 1592, 1897, 698 (one year each before they kicked me out to start another team)
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:Anything and everything FIRST
- From the Mind of Shea: Training students to be addicted to success while demonstrating the power of a team!
- Name: Marc Lumeyer, MSEE
- Occupation: Elec. Engineer
- Previous FIRST Teams: Team 660 (2002)
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Electrical & Control Systems Mentor
- From the Mind of Marc: I've been into robotics since my first set of LEGO's back in the 70's. Building bigger and better ever since. I am currently working for Orbital Sciences as the Lead EE for an Orion flight test rocket for NASA. This is my 2nd year with Team 2449, but I've been involved with FIRST since 2002. I enjoy the challenges that a competition season brings, as well as the challenges we create for ourselves during the "off season". I strongly encourage ALL of the OutOfOrbit team members (Students and Mentors alike) to use this experience to the fullest. You'll be amazed at what we can achieve once we set our minds to it! Some of my other hobbies are 4-wheeling, Hot-Air Ballooning, and PC/Console gaming.
- Name: Stan Ferris
- Occupation: Science Teacher
- Previous FIRST Teams: First time
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Mechanical
- From the Mind of Stan: It is exciting to see the students learn real design, building, and programming skills from the professional engineers. The FIRST contest is not simply a virtual challenge, but requires young people to achieve goals in teamwork, engineering, fabrication, and deadlines. This experience will be invaluable to these future engineers and scientists!
- Name: John Baca
- Occupation: Lead Instrumentation Engineer at Orbital Sciences
- Previous FIRST Teams: one year vetren
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Electrical & Control Systems Mentor
- From the Mind of John: My career started in automation, specifically designing wafer handling systems for the semiconductor industry. For my generation, silicon wafers started out at 4” dia. and when I left the industry to go into aerospace, we were spinning, chucking, flipping & manipulating 12” dia. wafers using articulating robotic arms. My wife has always worked in the Gilbert school district, and I started volunteering during her school’s career day in the 90s. Each year, my table top demo had some robotic device using the LEGO Mindstorm block, and each year was a challenge to take some thunder away from careers like SWAT or getting rides on fire trucks. This is my second year with FIRST and with Team 2449. I am very proud of the students’ & teachers’ commitment which makes me look forward to participating and mentoring. I encourage all students to take advantage of FIRST benefits, particularly in the networking. I also request that the students encourage their parents to come by more often to meet with the mentors. Having parents show some interest will have long term positive effects on the Team and on the students. Other interests are camping, dirt bike riding and on occasion at work I’ll participate in starting up an ear-piercing rocket engine or causing a chest-pounding sonic boom by detonating ordnance.
- Name: Mary Ann Stoll
- Occupation: Program Coordinator, Water Sustainability
- Previous FIRST Teams: First Time
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Web page design and development
- From the Mind of Mary Ann: The students are awesome... trying things they never imagined. It's a compromise: I listen to their music; they do things for the web page even though they "know nothing about making web pages." I really admire the students who have stuck with it, taken risks, and been here all those building hours.
- Name: Michael Veto
- Occupation: Student
- Previous FIRST Teams: First Time
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Mechanical
- From the Mind of Michael: Everyday working with the FIRST team's mentors and students is an exciting experience where I get to learn and have fun at the same time. It’s a great exercise of all the stuff one doesn't learn from school.
- Name: Karla Orosco
- Previous FIRST Teams: Well last year was awesome Thanks team 2449, two years before team 1897
- Main Area(s) of Involvement:tools and Website
- From the Mind of Karla:I just hope that every student learns a lot of new things and our Spirit grows up. Enjoy, get fun and smarter! Thanks to FIRST for this great opportunity!
- Name: Sandra Gorton
- Occupation: Physics Teacher
- Previous FIRST Teams: First Year
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Wherever needed
- From the Mind of Sandra: It has been great seeing the kids getting involved and bringing in new people. They are proud of what they are doing and eager to share their experiences with others. I can't wait to see the final product and the looks on the faces of the team.
- Name: Ray Taylor
- Occupation: Process Engineer
- Previous FIRST Teams: First year
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: 3D Modeling Mentor
- From the Mind of Ray: Helping robots take over the world, one CAD drawing at a time.
- Name: David Vice
- Occupation: Tempe District Electrician
- Previous FIRST Teams: First year
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Electrical wiring and manufacturing
- From the Mind of David: This has been a lot of fun; it takes me back to my college days. The kids in this class are the best. They are the ones who the future belongs to. Hopefully they will solve the engineering problems of the future.
- Name: George "Scooter" Valuikas
- Occupation: Electronics/Ordnance Technician
- Previous FIRST Teams: First Year
- Main Area(s) of Involvement: Electrical and Structural manufacturing
- From the Mind of George: I really enjoy working with the students. It's great to see the look of understanding when they finally grasp a new concept. I feel I'm involved in a very worthwhile project.
