AnnouncingDPEASingleSeniorCapstoneProject

InformationSheetfortheClassof2016

June26,2015

DearClassof2016StudentsandParents:

Startinginthe20152016schoolyear,theDPEAisunifyingtheseniorlevelcurriculumwithone
Mechatronicscapstoneproject.FIRSTRoboticsTeam1717hasbeenretired.
Thischangehas
beencarefullyconsideredandhasthefullsupportoftheDPEA,DosPueblosHighSchool,the
SantaBarbaraUnifiedSchoolDistrict,andtheSantaBarbaraCountyEducationOffice.

ThePressReleasethatwillbesharedwithlocalnewsoutletstodayregardingthis
announcementiscopiedbelow.

Wearedoingourutmosttobetransparentinourcommunicationwithyouandhopethatyou
knowweareactingingoodfaithonbehalfofallDPEAstudents.Weaskyoutotaketimeto
reflectonthereasonsforthischange,toconsiderthemanybenefitsofthisunifiedcapstone
project,andtojoinusasweembarkonthisnewphaseoftheDPEA.

PleasejoinusforameetingontheeveningofJune30,2015at6:30pmintheDPHScafeteria
tohearfromthosewhowillbeinstrumentalinfacilitatingthischange.

TimingofthisCurricularChange

Thetimingofthischangeisnotidealanditcameaboutunexpectedly.DuringSpringQuarter,
aftertheroboticsseasonhadcometocompletionandtheMechatronicsprojectwas
approachingcompletion,thoughtsoftheDPEAstaffweretrendingtowardtheideaofeventually
movingawayfromFIRSTRoboticsasacapstoneprojectinafewyears.InMay,perspectives
shifted.AfterparticipatingintheBayAreaMakerFaireonthe18thandthencompletingthe
projectonthe28th,itbecamecleartotheDPEA,DosPueblosHighSchool,SantaBarbara
UnifiedSchoolDistrict,andtheSantaBarbaraCountyEducationOfficethatunifyingthesenior
Classof2016aroundasinglecapstoneMechatronicsprojectwasinthebesteducational
interestsofthestudents.

Wehaveworkedquicklyandaresharingthisinformationwithyouattheearliestopportunity.

TheDPHSadministrativeandcounselingstaffarewellawareoftheschedulingchallenges
manyofyouarefacinginlightofthischange.AssistantPrincipalBillWoodardandCounselor
ScottGuttentaghavealreadybeenreviewingeachstudentsscheduletoevaluatehowall
studentscanbeaccommodated.Thisisgoingtobeatransitionyearandwewillneedtowork
togethertonavigateitandtomakethistransitionassmoothaspossible.


WerecognizethattheretirementofFIRSTRoboticsTeam1717isaloss,andthatforsomeof
youitisasignificantlossofadreamthatyouhavelookedforwardtofulfillingforyears.Thiswas
notdiscountedatanypoint.Infact,itwasweighedheavilythroughoutthedecisionmaking
processandstillweighsheavilyonalloftheDPEAstaff.Learningobjectivesandoutcomes
simplymustbeprioritizedoverotherconsiderationsbyaneducationalinstitution,andretaining
theFIRSTRoboticsprogramasacapstoneprojectcannotbejustifiedwhentheMechatronics
projectoffersstudentsasubstantiallymoreenrichingeducationalexperience.

Itisunderstandablethatstudentsandparentswillfeelarangeofemotionsinresponsetothis
news.Wehopethatyouwillhavecompassionforthedifferentreactionsthatyourclassmates
andtheirparentsmaybeexperiencingandthatyouarecircumspectasyouexpressyour
opinionsandfeelings.Effortstosupportoneanotherandcometogetherasacommunitywillbe
themostbeneficialandproductiveasthisdecisionwillnotbereversed.

EvolutionoftheDPEASeniorCapstoneProject

YouandyourstudentshavedirectlyparticipatedinthegrowthoftheDPEAoverthepastthree
yearsandhavebeenthesecondcohorttocompletetheArtofEngineeringinterdisciplinary
curriculum.AshundredsofstudentsmatriculatedthroughtheArtofEngineeringcurriculumin
thelowergrades,itbecameagrowingconcernthattheeducationalopportunitiesavailable
throughparticipationinFIRSTRoboticswouldnotfullyutilizetheskillsandabilitiesthatDPEA
studentswerepreparedtoapplyduringtheirsenioryear.PriortoofferingtheArtof
EngineeringcurriculumintheElingsCenter,therobotwastheonlyseriousengineeringproject
studentsundertookduringtheirinvolvementwiththeDPEAandtheseconcernsdidnotexist.

InordertotakeadvantageofthefullcapacityoftheElingsCenterfacilityandtheskillsstudents
acquiredduringgrades911intheprogram,theDPEAseizedtheopportunitytodevelopand
introduceanewMechatronicsseniorcapstoneproject.Thisprojectwascreatedspecificallyas
theculminationoftheArtofEngineeringcurriculumwithintegratedandinterdisciplinary
educationalgoalsforallparticipants.Itwasdesignedtogivestudentstheopportunitytoapply
theircumulativeeducationalexperienceinengineering,physics,design,andcomputer
programming.

RunningboththeMechatronicsprojectandFIRSTRoboticslastyearwasexperimental.The
primaryvariableswerethestudents.TheClassof2015wasthefirstcohorttocompletetheArt
ofEngineeringcurriculumandtheywerebetterpreparedthananypreviousclassfortheir
seniorproject.Thegoalwastotracktheeducationalopportunities,experiences,andoutcomes
forstudentsparticipatinginbothprojects.Theintentwastoevaluatetheefficacyofboth
projectsupontheircompletionandcontinuewiththistwoprojectmodelforafewyearsuntil
appropriatenextsteps,ifany,becamediscernible.

Itwasneveranticipatedthattakingadifferentpathwouldbecomenecessaryatthispoint,which
iswhyinJanuaryandFebruarytheDPEAaskedyoutochoosebetweenMechatronicsand
FIRSTRoboticsasyouplannedforyoursenioryear.Atthattime,runningbothseniorcapstone
projectswastheplanfornextyear.Afterrunningbothprojectssidebyside,however,wenow
knowthatitisnoteducationallyappropriatetocontinueforwardwiththatplan.

TheeducationalexperiencesandopportunitiesavailablethroughtheFIRSTRoboticsprogram
whileincrediblyuniqueandvaluabledonotappropriatelymeetDPEAseniorswherethey
areintermsoftheirreadinesstoengageinanintegratedandsophisticatedprojectfromconcept
tofabrication.ThefactisthataftercompletingtheArtofEngineeringcurriculum,DPEAseniors
arepreparedtotackleaprojectequivalentincomplexityto15robots,whichispreciselywhat
theMechatronicsprojectwasdesignedtoofferthem.

AsthesecondcohorttocompletetheArtofEngineeringinterdisciplinarycurriculum,theClass
of2016willbeevenmorepreparedthantheClassof2015andwearelookingforwardto
seeingwhattheycandoastheyworkonaunifiedMechatronicsprojectoverthecourseofan
entireschoolyear.

Rationale

TheMechatronicsprojectwascreatedspecificallyastheculminationoftheArtofEngineering
curriculumanditseducationaloutcomesreflecttheuniquemissionoftheDPEA.Whilethe
maidenvoyageoftheMechatronicsprojecthaditsshareofupsanddownslastyear,the
fundamentalstructureoftheprojectanditsextendedtimeframeallowedforeducational
experiencesandopportunitiesthathaveneverbeenpossiblewithintheframeworkoftheFIRST
Roboticsprogram.Someoftheprimarybenefitsincludethefollowing:

1.
TheMechatronicsProjectfullyengagesallstudentsinthedesignprocess.
OneofthemaingoalsoftheArtofEngineeringcurriculumistopreparestudentstoundertake
engineeringdesignworkasseniors.Thereisafundamentalscarcityissueinherentinworking
ononerobot.Theresimplyisnotenoughdesignworktodistributeequitablywithina6week
timeframe,especiallywhenteamsof67studentsareassignedtoasinglemechanism.

BeforetheDPEAofferedTheArtofEngineeringcurriculum,theroboticsexperiencewasvery
different.SincenoneofthestudentshadevermachinedorusedCAD,etc,anyexperiences
theyhadduringbuildseasonwerenovelandeducationalnomatterhowspecializedorniche
andtherewasnotasenseofhierarchyintermsofthework.Forexample,manyprevious
seniorsspenttheirroboticsseasonmachiningspacersfortherobot.FortodaysDPEA
students,however,thenodestheyfabricateduringfreshmanyearfortheirmobilesaremore
sophisticatedthanthespacersrequiredfortherobot.Imaginewhatitwouldbeliketospendan
entireroboticsseasonmakingpartsthatwerelesssophisticatedthanthenodesyoumadeasa
freshman.Thereisamismatchbetweenthecurrentstudentseducationalpreparationinthe
DPEAandtheireducationalopportunitiesforgrowthwithintheFIRSTRoboticsprogram.


TheinauguralMechatronicsprojectusedsmallerteamsof4studentstodesigneachofthe15
sectorsonthecarousel.Eachsectorwascomprisedof4mechanisms.Eachstudentonthe
teamwasresponsibleforoneofthemechanismsonthesectorfromconceptualdesignto
fabrication.Eachstudentwasfullyaccountablefortheirmechanismandwaslearningtheentire
engineeringconception/design/prototype/test/buildcycle.

2.

TheMechatronicsprojectengagesstudentsinarobustandinterdisciplinaryeducational
experience.
Theroboticsbuildseasonformatrequiresstudentstospecializeinasinglearea:programming,
machining,electricalengineering,CADmodeling,etc.Mechatronicsissetupsothatevery
studentcanparticipateinavarietyofdisciplinesfromtheearliestconceptualdesignthroughthe
prototyping,refining,fabrication,andtestingoftheirproject.Thus,itisabetternaturalcapstone
forthethreeyearsthatthestudentsalreadyspentintheDPEA,whichareintegratedand
interdisciplinary.

3.
LearningontheMechatronicsprojectoccursoveralongertimeframe.
TheRoboticsbuildseasonlasts6weeksfollowedbyanadditional810weeksuntiltheWorld
Championships.Thisshorttimeframenecessitateslessthanidealeducationalpracticesinorder
tofinishtheprojectandensurethatitwillbecompetitive.Asmuchaswecanattempttofocus
onprovidingasuperioreducationalexperienceforallstudents,thepressuretocompeteatthe
elitelevelisexpectedand,therefore,prioritized.

Mechatronicsoccursovertheentireschoolyearforthreeperiodsaday.Thereistimetoreflect
andredesign,whichcreatesabetterlearningenvironment.Anadditionalbenefitisthe
opportunityforMechatronicsstudentstoworkyearroundwithprofessionalengineersonadaily
basis.

4.
TheLearningObjectivesoftheMechatronicsProjectarecontrolledbyDPEAteachers.
TheprojectpaceforMechatronicsissetbyDPEAteachersandnotanexternalorganization.If
itlooksliketheprojectscopeistooconservativeortooambitious,DPEAteachershavethe
optiontomodifythescopetobestmeettheeducationalneedsofthestudents.TheFIRST
Roboticsprojectparametersaresetexternallyandarenotnecessarilyalignedwithour
educationalobjectives.

5.
TheMechatronicsprojectbettersupportstheDPEAculturewewanttocreate.
TheintenselycompetitivenatureofFIRSTRoboticsputsapremiumonengineeringsolutions
overteamworkandcollaboration.Inordertobuildawinningrobot,itiseasytoforgetthatthe
journeyisasimportanttothelearningexperienceastheendresult.Mechatronics,bydesign,is
notacompetition.Successisevaluatedagainstaninternallydrivenstandardofexcellence.

Furthermore,theopportunitiesforstudentstoparticipateinmultifacetedexperiencesinthe
scopeoftheMechatronicsprojectareamplewhileinthescopeofFIRSTRoboticstheyare

limited.Forexample,veryfewstudentsontheroboticsteamhadtheopportunitytoengagewith
thejudgesatthecompetitionsandhonetheirpresentationskillsastheydescribedtheir
mechanismortherobotasawhole.Incontrast,everystudentinvolvedwithMechatronicswas
abletobeaspokespersonfortheirownproject,fortheotherprojectsontheirsector,andforthe
projectasawholeastheyinteractedwithhundredsofpeopleattheMakerFaireandwhenthe
projectwaspresentedatDPEA.

Theopportunitiesavailableforafewstudentsontheroboticsteamwereavailabletonearly
everystudentontheMechatronicsteam.AfundamentalaspectoftheDPEAmissionandof
publiceducationistooffereverystudentthebesteducationalexperiencepossible.Itisnot
acceptabletoofferonlysomestudentsopportunitieswhenitispossibletoofferthose
opportunitiestoallstudents.

Finally,havingallseniorsworkononeprojectispositiveandunifying.Thereweredivisive
issuesinherentinseparatingtheseniorclassintotwogroupslastyearwhichunderminedthe
collaborativespiritwetrytocultivateintheDPEA.

BasicInformation

AllseniorswillworkaspartoftheDPEAMechatronicsTeamonaprojectthatwillbeunveiledin
September,2015.TheClassof2016projectwill
not
beaCarouselofPhysics,butwill
incorporateavarietyofskillsandinnovativeapproachesthattheClassof2015learnedduring
theirjourney.

TheMechatronicsProjectwill:
Organizestudentsintoteamstoworktogetherontheirproject.
Befun,exciting,highlychallenging,andinnovative.
Involveextensivetimewithteachers,engineeringstaffmembers,andtalentedlocal
industrymentors.
Teachadvancedleadershipandteamworkskills.
Involveengineering,physics,design,computerprogramming,andelectronics.
Involveworkingonvarioussubteamscomposedofsmallgroupsofstudents(typically
4to7).
Haveaminimumoftwoovernighttripswiththeirteammembers.
Involvepresentationstothepublic.
Havespecializedseniorclassapparelandjumpsuitscustomizedtotheirteam.

ThefollowingclasseswillappearontheofficialDosPueblosHighSchooltranscriptas:
Class#1:AdvancedEngineeringPhysics
Class#2:Mechatronics1
Class#3:Mechatronics2
AllthreeoftheseclasseshaveaUniversityofCaliforniaHonorsdesignationwithaweighted
grade.

ClassSchedule

AdvancedEngineeringPhysics
:Thisclasswillmeetduringfirstperiodeachdayforboth
semesters.Allseniorswillbeenrolledinthisclassandwillparticipateinlearningmodules
throughouttheyeartoacquireandpracticeavarietyofskills.Theformatwillbesimilartothe
rotationsthatstudentsexperiencedingrades911.

Mechatronics1andMechatronics2:

Theseclasseswillbeofferedeveryperiodoftheregular
schoolday(periods26)andafterschoolasperiods7(between34pm)and8(between45
pm).Studentswillworkwiththeircounselorstodeterminetogetherwhichperiodswillbe
compatiblewiththeirothercourseselections.

Duringthesetwoperiods,studentswillworkcloselywithteachersandengineerstodesignand
developindividualprojectsthatintegratewiththeprojectsthatotherstudentscreate.Students
willexperiencetheseclassperiodsaslabs/seminars,whichisdifferentthanatraditional
lecturebasedcourse.Studentswillbeapplyingandpracticingskillslearnedduringfirstperiod
andworkingonprototypes,CADmodels,etc,fortheirindividualprojects.Peermentorshipwill
bebuiltintotheseperiodsandstudentswillhaveopportunitiestoleadoneanotherintheirareas
ofexpertise.

Studentsmayperiodicallychangetheperiodsinwhichtheyareenrolledastheircourse
scheduleandextracurricularcommitmentsshiftthroughouttheyear.Forexample,whena
particularsportisinsessionastudentmayhaveoneschedule,butthenwhenthesportseason
drawstoaclose,thatstudentmayopttohaveadifferentschedule.Manyseniorsfindthatthey
havefreeperiodsduringsecondsemester,andMechatronics1&2canaccommodatethose
scheduleshiftssincebothclassesareofferedeverysingleperiodoftheregularschoolday.

NightClasses

TheDPEAintendstominimizeacademicnightclassesandeveningworkhoursintheinterestof
worklifebalance,educationaleffectiveness,andprogramsustainability.Therefore,theDPEA
willnotbeofferingMondayorTuesdayeveningclassesthisyear(asidefromtheMonday57
pmBusinessTeamandServiceLearningopportunities,whicharenonacademic).Duetothe
natureoftheseniorcapstoneproject,somehoursoutsideofastudent'sregularclasstimewill
benecessarytocompleteit.

StaffforMechatronicsCapstoneProject

ThevolunteerindustrymentormodelthattheDPEAhasutilizedasanintegralpartofthesenior
projectforthepast10yearshasevolved.Volunteerengineeringmentorswhoworkwith
studentsareindispensableandtheDPEAlooksforwardtotheircontinuedinvolvementand
dedication.

Duringthecourseofthe20142015schoolyear,itbecameclearthatthenatureofayearlong
Mechatronicsprojectrequiresadifferentmentorshipmodel.Thesustained,dailycommitmentof
staffengineersinadditiontotheparticipationofvolunteermentorsisneededinorderto
ensurethatstudentshaveaccesstotheengineeringmentorshipnecessarytobringtheir
individualprojectsfromconcepttofabrication.Inadditiontoourtalentedindustrymentor
volunteers,onefulltimeengineerandtwoparttimeengineerscontributedtotheMechatronics
projectin20142015,whichyieldedsignificanteducationalbenefitsforthestudents.

Forthe20152016schoolyear,theDPEAisproudtoannouncethattwofulltimeengineerswill
workwithstudentsfortheentireschoolyear:returningstaffengineersLukeSealeandMarty
Byl.DPEAteachingstaffthatwillbededicatedentirelytotheMechatronicsprojectincludeAmir
AboShaeerandLyleHarlow.AllotherDPEAstaffmemberswillprovideeducationalsupport
andinstructionforvariousaspectsoftheMechatronicsprojectthroughouttheschoolyear.

PleaseemailquestionstoEmilyShaeerat
emily@dpengineering.org
.Responsestogeneral
questionswillbebundledasFAQsandsharedwitheveryoneviaemailinatimelymanner.
Questionsandanswersuniquetoindividualstudentswillnotbepubliclyshared.

WeareexcitedabouttheeducationalopportunitiesweareofferingtheseniorsintheDPEAand
welookforwardtoseeingyouonJune30that6:30pmintheDPHScafeteria.

Sincerely,

ShawnCarey,DPHSPrincipal
AmirAboShaeer,DPEADirector
LyleHarlow,DPEATeacher
DianaHemsley,DPEATeacher
SamRidgeway,DPEATeacher
KristenRitter,DPEATeacher
EmilyShaeer,DPEAAdmissionsandOutreachCoordinator

PRESSRELEASE

TheDosPueblosEngineeringAcademy(DPEA)continuestotransformtheeducational
experience.LongrecognizedforitscuttingedgeSTEAM(science,technology,engineering,
arts,
andmath)program,DPEAhascreatedanewseniorcapstoneprojectthatwillprovidestudents
withinnovativeengineeringopportunities.Thisnewcurriculumdecisionhasbeendevelopedby
DPEAwiththefullsupportofDosPueblosHighSchool,SantaBarbaraUnifiedSchoolDistrict,
andSantaBarbaraCountyEducationOffice.ItwilltakeDPEAtothenextlevel.

Thispastyear,thenewseniorcapstoneproject,Mechatronics2015,ranconcurrentlywiththe
FIRSTTeam1717RoboticsProgram.TheMechatronicsProjectwascreatedspecificallyasthe
culminationoftheArtofEngineeringcurriculumanditseducationaloutcomesreflectthe
uniquemissionofDPEA.Aftercarefulconsideration,FIRSTTeam1717hasbeenretiredand,in
thecomingyear,Mechatronicswillbethesinglecapstoneprojectforseniors.

The2015MechatronicsProjectarotatingdisplayof15studentcreated,oneofakindsectors
withscience/physicsthemeswasnamedCarouselofPhysics.Thecurriculumtransformsthe
educationalexperiencebyprovidingnewchallengesforsmallgroupcollaborationand
creativity.CarouselofPhysicswasexhibitedattheMakerFaireBayArea2015,whereit
receivednumerousawards.Audiencesofallagescontinuetobefascinatedandinspired.DPEA
willcontinuetodesignanddevelopnewandexcitingexhibitionreadyprojectsofthisnature.

Sinceitsinceptionin2002,DPEAhasexpandedtoservemorethan400students.The
MechatronicsProjectprovidesaneffectivemechanismforequitableaccesstoandparticipation
inthecreativeprocess.Mechatronicswillbearobusteducationalexperiencebecause:
thenewcurriculumwillfocusonconsistentrigorandrelevance
everystudentwillberesponsibleforcreatingfromscratchoneormoreofthe
Mechatronicsmechanisms
everystudentwillworkonallfacetsoftheengineeringprocess(design,prototype
development,programming,manufacturing,assembly,andqualitycontrol)
smallteamswillcreatenew,integrateddesignprojectsoverthefullacademicyear,
allowingtimeforreflectionduringthedesignprocess
DPEAeducatorswilldefinethelearningobjectivesand
thefullcapacityoftheElingsCenterwillbeutilizedthroughouttheschoolyear.

WithMechatronics,DPEAlooksforwardtoprovidinganengaging,exciting,andeffective
learningopportunityforourstudents.