They have a need for speed.
In a sunny classroom at Clayton-Bradley STEM Academy, a group of high-schoolers are working on their electric racecar.
The nine-person team is part of Greenpower USA‘s Electric Car Challenge. Students modify and race vehicles, competing with other teams across the Southeast. Last year, in Clayton-Bradley’s first year in the program, they won their division. This year, they’ve moved into a new division, which permits greater innovations to the stock racecar provided by Greenpower.
Barry Lucas, who teaches engineering and entrepreneurship at Clayton-Bradley, said that their first race this season will be in November. The students will race at least four times before the final competition in May.
“It’s so much more than just an engineering opportunity,” Lucas explained. “We have fundraising, we have social media, we have a website, we have PR, we have logistics.” The students drive the car and make up the pit crew, and they manage the real-time communications between drivers and pit. The students even plan travel and lodging for the team’s trips, which generally require an overnight stay.
Students also make a presentation for the race judges, a required component of Greenpower USA competitions. They design the slide show and record their presentation, which will be judged by a rubric. That piece is intimidating for some students, but not at Clayton-Bradley. “We focus as much here on our students’ ability to effectively communicate, as we do with their time in the classroom,” Lucas said.
He chuckled, noting, “By the time a student graduates from here, they will have given more presentations in front of larger audiences than I probably gave in graduate school.”
In the classroom-turned-race studio, the complexity of the students’ work and their absorption in the varied tasks are obvious.
Cole Ivens, a senior and a repeating team member from last year, focuses on fundraising. His capstone project this year is to raise $10,000 for the team. He’s interested in pursuing a career in business and engineering, but he said he also values the “sustainability aspect” of the project. “I like being part of something like this,” he said.
His fellow senior, Jacob Rutherford, loves the hands-on work. “My dad was an engineer; he worked with cars,” he said. His focus right now is on the variable throttle, which allows the car to change speed more efficiently.
Efficiency is key to the Greenpower USA races. Each car must operate on only two 12-volt batteries. The cars race in 90-minute heats, and on hilly tracks, they might not make the whole time on those batteries. So the students use a lot of energy and expertise refining the acceleration mechanics and redesigning the shape of the car.
Ninth-graders James Hardison and Tristan Walker are among the students working on the nose cone. They and their teammates have found that the sharply pointed nose used last year is actually less efficient than a more rounded shape. Hardison also focuses on managing social media for the team.
Gabriel Ioannides specializes for now on preparing the team’s presentation, which has to contain 12 slides and conform to specific requirements. The ninth-grader joined the team this year because, he said, “I just wanted to try something new.”
Bryan Spannaus, also in ninth grade, prefers the hands-on side of the team’s work. “I like making and building things,” he said.
It’s a testament to the Greenpower model and to Clayton-Bradley’s approach that the disparate team members can find their specialties and interests in their collaborative work. “Sort of the school philosophy is we’re not just graduating good students, we’re graduating good citizens,” Lucas said. So working together is key here. The students hope that this year, their working together can bring home another title.
To support the Greenpower USA Electric Car Challenge team at Clayton-Bradley, call the school (865-494-1222) or contact them via social media. Student Cole Ivens is soliciting donations of funds and equipment; he can discuss sponsorship packages. Clayton-Bradley STEM Academy is located at 425 Alcoa Trail, Maryville, 37804.
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