News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz On Sunday, Randy Stevenson, left, and Bryeana Rinvelt, right, are seen working on components of their ROV as part of the MATE Competition educator workshop. After the educators built their ROVs, they tested them at the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center.

ALPENA — Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) experts led an ROV building workshop for regional educators on Sunday at the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center.

Andrea Schmuttermair, an instructor with Project ROV (a professional development course), said that the workshop aims to instruct teachers in the region as to how to build ROVs and how they can teach those technical skills to their students.

“Their goal is to go through the build themselves so they can then implement this in their classrooms and learning environments,” Shuttermeyer said.

Schmuttermair also said that the workshop encourages the development of future ROV professionals.

The workshop was hosted by the MATE ROV Competition, an internationally recognized competition that is part of the Marine Technology Society (MTS). It brings students from across the globe together to showcase skills in marine technology, according to a Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary press release.

Jody Patterson, MATE ROV Competition and MTS workshop leader, told The News that the workshops offer resources for educators to learn new skills or refresh their skills in robotics.

Patterson said the workshop helps educators “to learn how to apply their robotic skills to underwater robotics, which is a slightly advanced topic, but connects so well with all the science that is being taught in the classrooms. These teachers are learning how to build the technologies that support all of those sciences.”

Patterson said that once educators leave the workshop and return to their classrooms, they will offer their students hands-on opportunities to apply STEM topics they are learning in the classroom to real-world applications. MATE’s hope is also to encourage more instructors to develop teams that will later compete in the MATE ROV competition.

“This is a practical application for them to build an underwater robot that’s capable of performing some mission tasks that the MATE ROV competition announces each year in our mission challenges,” Patterson said. “And those mission challenges are always topical, timely issues … ocean acidification or invasive species in our Great Lakes.”

Patterson said other topics that the MATE ROV competition covers include water quality issues, sustainable energy, and more.

“All of those topics that those students are learning about, they are innovating solutions for helping us better handle those threats and those challenges in our aquatic bodies of water,” Patterson said. “So students have the opportunity to really engage on those topics. Explore them more deeply and really dive in with their underwater robot to help innovate solutions for those challenges.”

Patterson explained that some educators that participate in the workshop learn how to build ROVs for the first time. Educators will take their completed ROVs home with them so that they can transfer their new skills to their learning environments.

“They’ll take all of these robots home with them and be able to demonstrate them for the classroom and for their students and then have their students completely rebuild them,” Patterson said. “They will go through the same challenges that these teachers are now struggling with … and they’re doing great!”

Patterson noted that any time she gets to visit TBNMS, one of MATE’s regional partners, is a great experience. She also enjoys working with educators.

Patterson said it’s an opportunity “to really help these teachers engage on these topics and have the skill set that they need, so that they can dive in.”

Daniel Moffatt, TBNMS stewardship and education specialist, explained the ROV workshop offers an opportunity to further the reach of the sanctuary and provides resources for educators. Moffatt was instrumental in setting up the workshop.

“This weekend workshop represents an opportunity to increase and broaden awareness of our National Marine Sanctuary system through marine technology and conservation,” Moffatt said. “It provides educators with a support network and the resources to connect their classroom learning to Great Lakes science.”

Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.