SALAMANCA — A local businessman and community member has issued a challenge to area businessmen and residents to help get the STEM initiative underway at Salamanca High School.

Tim Jackson recently presented a Star Wars Droid Kit to the Robots, Drones and Rovers class, taught by Kim Dry and co-taught by Nick DArienzo and Gene Jankowski. Seniors Braden Siebert and Zach Helms worked together to build the robot from scratch and downloaded the kit’s app to their smartphone to control the robot.

Jackson stated his challenge to businesses and citizens alike is to get involved, either through donations that are technically-advanced or by donating time, knowledge or ideas.

“We can either stand by the wayside of life or we can get involved with our youth programs,” Jackson said. “I am tired of those that complain but offer no alternative choices. Here is my challenge to you, the community: get involved, either through donations to inspire or through acts of selflessness by volunteering at the school to teach our youth what we adults do for a living and how we do it.”

In the Robot, Drones and Rovers class, students learn the basics of constructing and engineering involved with building a drone/robot. The class has been entered into the Finger Lakes Regional FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition. The mission of FIRST is to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders and innovators by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs.

The Warriors Robotics team will travel to Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) to present their robot at the competition. The Star Wars-themed robot recently assembled is not the robot the class will present at the competition, but Jackson said it gives the class a first-hand working knowledge of functional robots and their programming.