Students' Mapping Project Could Become Model For State
Last updated Tuesday, June 26, 2007 9:14 PM CDT in News
By John Lyon
THE MORNING NEWS
LITTLE ROCK -- A project by three Harrisburg High School students to map school bus routes using satellite technology drew accolades Tuesday from state lawmakers who said the project could serve as a model for the rest of Arkansas.
In testimony before the legislative Academic Facilities Oversight Committee, students Ryan Murphy, Jon Thompson and Morgan Reddmann described their project to use Global Positioning System, or GPS, satellite images to map the bus routes in the Harrisburg School District.
The maps will help the district maximize efficiency, minimize students' travel time and promote safety, the students said.
The students are enrolled in the Environmental And Spatial Technology, or EAST, program, in which students create projects that combine math, science and technology.
Because of the students' work, the school district expects to eliminate one bus route in the coming school year. The students said they compared bus routes and the locations of students' homes and found ways to shorten and consolidate trips.
"These kids have done more to save the taxpayers money than most of us in this room," said the committee chairman, Sen. Shane Broadway, D-Bryant.
EAST facilitator Trent Saracini said while the project was under way, a fatal accident occurred in the district at a railroad crossing. The students then began mapping railroad crossings and gathering information to enhance safety, such as the correct phone numbers to call to report problems at specific crossings and locations where helicopters could land to pick up accident victims.
"It's opened my eyes to all the uses we have for GPS," Reddmann said.
Broadway asked representatives of EAST to come up with a proposal for expanding the project to school districts across the state.
"I think if we could walk away from this having done a bus route study with a program that's in our schools and using students in the state, it would certainly be a first ... that the actual data we received came from our own students. I think it would be pretty cool if we could say that."
Broadway congratulated the students on a project that he said "may influence a change in the landscape of Arkansas."
Reader Comments (No comments posted.)
The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsibility of their authors. The Morning News does not review comments before their publication, nor do we guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by our comment policy. If you see a comment that violates our policy, please notify the web editor.
Not already registered?
