Highway 68 ROV Club Wins Again at MATE Underwater Robotics Competition

The Highway 68 ROV Club "Sea Sweepers" finished first overall for the fourth consecutive year in the MATE Monterey Bay Regional Underwater Robotics Competition in Aptos. The team now advances to compete in the International ROV Championship at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Tex., in June.

This year's competition simulates the use of underwater ROVs (remotely operated vehicles) in the Gulf of Mexico and on Jupiter’s moon Europa. Teams are required to complete several underwater mission tasks, submit a 25-page technical report, and make a technical sales presentation to working marine science and engineering professionals who serve as competition judges. The “Sea Sweepers” had the highest scores in two of the three competition elements.

The “Sea Sweepers” team includes Salinas High School students J.P. O’Dell, Tyler Allen, Michael Georgiarou, Jack Hyland, Hanna Hitchcock, Chase Oleson, and Brian Ishii, independent student Montana Sprague, and John Yeager from York School. Working in Yeager's garage beginning in the fall, the group designed and built a very sophisticated ROV that could be transported to Jupiter for exploration of Europa’s oceans.

The Highway 68 ROV Club is independent and privately funded, so they welcome contributions and local business sponsorships. For more information, click here or contact the team’s coach and mentor, Kurt Yeager at kurt@seasweepersrov.com .

Go Sweepers! Good luck fundraising and traveling to Houston!

Book fair en español!

The PTA of the Dual Immersion Academy in Salinas is hosting a book fair with materials in Spanish.

Open to the public.

The fair began Tuesday and continues today from 8:30 am to 6 pm, and Thursday from 8:30 am to 3 pm.

The academy is at 1114 Fontes Lane • Salinas.

For more information, call 831-753-5615 or click here.

Monterey High teacher Aristotle Constant wants your support

There could be fireworks -- or at the very least, lively public comments -- during Tuesday's regular board meeting of the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District, as supporters of English Teacher Aristotle Constant  promise to show up to support him.

Constant, an 18-year-veteran of Monterey High, was told last week he's being "'involuntarily transferred" to another school. Constant did what many in his position would do in a similar position: reach out to the community.

Last week, a Facebook page appeared announcing Constant's impending transfer. You can access it here. It's asking community members to call or email the superintendent and board members to prevent Constant be sent to another school.

Constance's die could be cast as the district issued a terse response that points out to the teacher's contract.

"All personnel are employees of the district and not of one particular school or department. The Superintendent and/or Executive Director of Human Resources is authorized to reassign and transfer all personnel provided the affected employees remain in their areas of certification and occupational competence. Employees shall not be reassigned or transferred outside the scope of their certificates-and/or major and minor areas of study without their written consent and appropriate action by the Board of Education."

Stay tuned.