Robot joins JCHS classroom (10/26/04)

What stands 6 feet 6 inches tall, is yellow all over and the newest addition to the Jay School Corporation?

The answer is Karel.

Karel is a 4,000-pound robot that was recently added to the electronics department at Jay County High School. It was donated to the school by the Northern Wells Community School Corporation.

JCHS electronics teacher Doug Tipton spoke about Karel to Jay School Board members during their meeting Monday.

“This is a great opportunity for our kids to learn real world applications,” Tipton said Monday night.

The robot, valued at $250,000 new, was donated to Norwell High School by General Motors several years ago, Tipton said. Karel was previously used in Norwell’s electronic classes which are no longer offered. The donation to JCHS was approved in March by the Northern Wells School Board.

Karel is named after Karel Capek, who first coined the name robot in the 1920s.

Students can control Karel by teaching it commands or with programming language, Tipton said.

Also Monday, board members accepted $326,756 in yearly grants recently received by the corporation.

Jay Schools superintendent Barbara Downing reported the corporation received $190,784 in Title II Part A funds from the Indiana Department of Education which is used to improve teacher quality; a $41,664 Indiana Professional Development Grant for professional development of teachers and principals; and a $26,963 Indiana Early Intervention Grant for professional development focused on reading recovery, teacher training and a preschool teacher at Westlawn Elementary School in Dunkirk.

The corporation also received $20,243 in Title V funds for the gifted and talented program, including salary and benefits for the program’s teacher and class materials; a $17,501 Indiana Gifted and Talented Grant for programs in the elementary schools; a $15,215 Title III grant for after school tutoring and to pay teachers and aides for the English is a Second Language program; and a $14,386 Safe Haven Grant to fund after school activities at Redkey, Westlawn and General Shanks Elementary schools.

In other business, Downing reported student enrollment in the school corporation is down.

The official enrollment for the 2004-05 school year is 3,727.5 students. This number is down approximately 15 students from the official count of 3,742.72 students for the 2003-04 school year.

Also Monday, board members:

•Heard that a special meeting will be held in the commons at JCHS on Wednesday, Nov. 17, at 6:30 p.m.

The public is invited to this informal meeting to talk with Downing and school board members about facility needs and renovations at the high school.

Some renovations at the high school are being considered, but the plans are tentative at this time.

•Approved a one-year rehabilitation agreement with Midwest Health Strategies Inc. of Muncie, a subsidiary of Cardinal Health System Inc. for rehabilitation therapy services for students.

The agreement also states that services by a physical therapist will cost $60 an hour, which increased from $57 an hour last school year. Treatment with a physical therapy assistant will cost $36 an hour, which increased from $31 a hour, and an services of an occupational therapist will cost $52 an hour, which increased from $46 an hour last year.

•Recognized East Jay Middle School principal Lee Newman for recently receiving the 2004 Optimist Achievement in Education Award from Optimist clubs in Jay County.[[In-content Ad]]