North
Orange County ROP Auto Tech Students Win
Edelbrock Engine
Teardown/Build Competition
North Orange County ROP raced past the
competition to win the fourth annual “Hot Rodders of Tomorrow
Engine Challenge” sponsored by Edelbrock, an automotive
aftermarket supplier headquartered in Torrance. Eight competing
teams disassembled and reassembled identical Chevy 350
cubic-inch engines with simple hand tools. The North Orange
County ROP team finished in 82 minutes and 20 seconds, besting
the second place team by more than 15 minutes. Team members are
Eric Argueta and Taylor Lewis, Loara High School; Kyle Baker,
Cypress High School; Ben Hicks, Irvine High School; and Jesus
Sigala, La Habra High School.
Russ Bacarella and Dave Endo, North Orange County ROP Auto Technician instructors at
Loara and La Habra High Schools, with aide Josué
Paniagua, trained a team of high school
students for the contest.
The competition was held during Edelbrock’s
fourth annual Revved Up For Kidz Car Show and charity
benefit for the Center for Learning Unlimited, a school for
students with learning disabilities and autism. The students
won an Edelbrock all expense-paid trip to Las Vegas to compete
in the "Showdown at SEMA" competition, November 3-6, 2009, at
the SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) Show in Las
Vegas.
|
Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Southern California Competition
Results |
|
School |
Sponsor |
Time |
Position |
|
Loara-Anaheim |
Hedman / TD |
82:20:00 |
1st Place |
|
SCROC Team #3 |
Moroso |
98:00:00 |
2nd Place |
|
Garden Grove |
Fel-Pro |
155:59:00 |
3rd Place |
|
Long Beach |
Energy Suspension |
178:04:00 |
4th Place |
|
SCROC Team #2 |
Be - Cool |
185:00:00 |
5th Place |
|
SCROC Team #1 |
Russell |
245:00:00 |
6th Place |
|
Torrance High Team #2 |
Autometer |
298:33:00 |
7th Place |
|
Torrance High Team #1 |
Edelbrock |
318:00:00 |
8th Place |
ROP
Auto Tech Team 22nd in National Competition
At the
National Automotive Dealership Association Competition held in
New York, New York, the North Orange County ROP team of two from
Russ Bacarella’s class at Loara High School, Eric Argueta and
Luis Loara, finished 22nd in the nation. They qualified for the
national competition by winning the Orange County Automotive
Dealership Association’s (OCADA) contest in January. OCADA paid
all their expenses to participate in the New York contest. In
addition to the competition and a chance to see the New York
Auto Show, the team visited the Statue of Liberty, Central Park,
Time Square, and enjoyed the famous cuisine of New York.
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Western, Anaheim High School ROP Pre-Engineering
Students Win,
Place in VEX Robotics Competition
The air horn screamed through Fullerton College’s
third floor parking structure signaling the high school student
rival teams in the VEX competition to start their
radio-controlled robots. The object was to manipulate the
robots to scoop up and deposit as many sponge balls into their
color-coded goal—a set of five joined blue banded cylinders for
the blue-flagged robots, and red for the opposition. In the
space of the three-minute contests, students sent their mini-machines to shove their rival’s target cylinders, bump each
other’s robots, and do whatever else it took to defend their
goals and accomplish the task. 
First place winners in the VEX robot competition
included Western High School team members (from left) Abishek
Chandra, instructor Steve Heck, Paulino Martinez, and their
first place partners from Los Amigos High School in Fountain
Valley.
The tactics paid off for the Western High School
team, as they took first place along with Los Amigos High School's
team competing against fourteen other teams.
The first place Western team, Paulino
Martinez, Abishek Chandra, and JP Almendaro, are students in
ROP Design and
Fabrication for Engineering Careers with instructor Steve Heck.
Other Western High School participants were Anthony Nevils and
Walter Muchaca. First place students won VEX Robotics kits.
Anaheim High School's team took 3rd
place overall - and won VEX robot bugs.
Anaheim
High School’s team won third place overall under the direction
of instructor Ron Ponce. Students participating were Moises
Torres, Introduction to Engineering Careers; and Alan Almada,
Leonardo Lopez and Ivan Penukoko, students in Design
and Fabrication for Engineering Careers. Third place students
won VEX robot bugs.
The local VEX
competition is sponsored by Vital Link, and Executive Director
Kathy Johnson and her staff were at the Fullerton College
parking structure at 5:00 am setting up the three mini-arenas,
tables, chairs, computers, projectors and sound systems for the
event. Fullerton College student volunteers were on hand to set
up, act as scorekeepers, and clean up after the event.
Thanks to teachers Steve Heck and Ron Ponce for
taking time to mentor student participants and to Vital Link for
their sponsorship.
Assembly Member
Michael Duvall
Visits Katella High School
BITA Program
Assembly member Michael Duvall, his Chief of
Staff, Carolyn Ginno, and ConnectEd’s Director of Community and
External Affairs, José Atilio Hernández, visited Katella High
School on Friday, May 15, to see the ROP BITA (Building Industry
Technology Academy) program taught by John Puckett. The purpose
of the visit was to showcase BITA to ConnectEd and to Assembly
member Duvall as a model program that can be
replicated across the state.
Assembly member Duvall visited with the students
in the program, and asked the
group how they felt about
being in BITA. “Do you have to be here, do you want to be here
or do you get to be here?” He was happy when the majority of
the students raised their hands to signify that they “Get to be
here.” The students gifted the Assemblyman with a tool belt and
hard hat.
Also meeting with the group were North Orange
County ROP Superintendent Michael Worley, Ed.D., Anaheim Union
High School District Assistant Superintendent Fred Navarro, Ed.D.,
Building Industry Association (BIA) Director of Public Affairs,
Jill Cagle; Katella High School Principal Jason Allemann, Ed.D.,
ROP Administrator Instructional Programs, Terri Giamarino;
Career Guidance Specialist Toni Mahoney and ROP Public
Information manager Pat Hansmeyer.
Assembly Member Michael Duvall talks with BITA students about a
miniature project.
ConnectEd, The California Center for College and
Career, was founded by the James Irvine Foundation in 2006, and
is dedicated to “identifying, supporting and expanding pathways
that prepare students for college and career, not one or the
other. By pioneering groundbreaking school programs and
partnering with innovative educators and decision makers,
ConnectEd will provide the next generation of young adults with
the knowledge and skills they need to successfully compete in
California’s growing and dynamic economy.”
BITA, now in six north Orange County high
schools, is just one of ROP’s rigorous pathway
programs.
Two
ROP Classified "Employees of the Year" Honored by Board
Belinda Musick,
administrative assistant, Technology Services, was complimented
on her customer services skills and cheerful attitude. Belinda
has been with ROP since 1993 and started her current position in
2001. She keeps track of technology equipment in the lending
library as well as handling the scheduling for Technology
services.
Victor Hernandez,
instructional technician for Marine Diving, was honored for the
gentle and encouraging manner he uses when helping students in
class and promoting ROP classes to high school students. Victor
has been a vital part of the kelp reforestation project that is
repopulating the waters off Orange County beaches. Victor also
started with ROP in 1993.
Congratulations, Belinda and Victor!
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For
more information about classes and services, call
1-714-502-5858; visit North Orange County ROP on the web at
www.nocrop.us, or come to 385 North
Muller Street, Anaheim, CA 92801 between 8:00 am and 5:00 pm,
Monday through Friday.
