STEMi Mobile Lab Inspires 7th Grade Students

During the week of May 2, Bloomfield Hills Schools hosted the Oakland Schools’ STEMi mobile innovation station. Bloomfield Hills 7th grade students participated in STEM activities utilizing the latest interactive, high-tech, industry level equipment. The engaging and entertaining mobile lab was inspirational: “I liked how STEMi teaches you about engineering and design. I actually thought I might go into a medical field, but designing is fun too!” shares Anjeni Jegasothy, a West Hills 7th grade student.

The STEMi is a 1,000 square foot mobile lab “designed to provide learners with meaningful hands-on experiences with the latest industry technologies.” The goal of the experience is to provide students with insights into STEM careers and help them become more career-ready as they identify those aspects of the experience in which they excelled and found the most joy. Students rotated between five stations: Smart Manufacturing, two Collaborative Robots, Autonomous Vehicles, and Extended Reality.

Students across the 7th grades in BHS shared many favorite aspects of the visit. Mathias Monelli notes, “The thing that I liked the most about the STEMi Assembly was the cars that drove themselves. It was amazing! They drove themselves with cameras, sensors, and AI. We could control which road they went on. They turned and stopped and did everything themselves, like a Tesla!”  Eva VanBolden loved “the robot that could take pictures of things, pick it up, put it back, and also do fun dances! It was pretty big, about arms-length. It copied my motions! I did the floss, I did a wave with my hands, and I rotated my arms like a disco. It was really fun!” Humza Khan explained, “My favorite part about the STEMi program was the VR glasses. I think that these were very cool because whenever you put on the VR glasses, you can see a lot in 3D, and you can even draw! I drew a mustache onto someone’s face! I feel like this was an amazing experience.”

Principal Andy Gignac of West Hills Middle School noted, “We feel very fortunate to have a partnership with Oakland Schools, and for them to have provided this opportunity for our kids. It’s something that the students have been talking about and were really engaged in their learning during the visit.” The Oakland Schools STEMi visits several schools throughout Oakland County. Learn more about STEMi on the Oakland Schools website.