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Show 2 Signpost Tuesday, 1 July 1986 f -v 5 ; I : r 1' J : i I! H ' - I ' t. : " """ ; ' r , : ' ,.. ... -r , -, COILED SNAKES, made from modeling clay, fascinate Laurie Coley and her two playmates as they participate in Weber State College's summer day camp during this quarter. (Signpost photos: Jeff Bybee) Day camp students 'play' at learning skills, interests Susan Walker Staff Reporter "Mom, what's there to do? There's nothing fun happening." This is the sentiment echoed by many youngsters in the Ogden area. Once they are out of school, these kids often see summer, as a boring period of time. They are glad that their studies are over, but they often find themselves at a loss for something to do. In contrast, the 80 children enrolled in the Weber State College summer day camp have many activities planned for them. These kids will spend either a week Satellite projects give students experience Susan Fishburn Staff Reporter Gilbert Moore has one, so does President Brady, and several others will be receiving a life-size silver and blue "souvenir" satellite. The replicas of the original NUSAT I satellite were built as senior projects by students in the manufacturing engineering technology program at Weber State College. Nicknamed RESATS, each of the eight satellites represent about 2,000 hours of work. The students were given a year to study drawings, cut the metal parts and assemble the orb, according to Kerry Tobin, senior project instructor at the college. "The satellites have to be done right," he explained. "That's the way it's done in industry. If it's not right, they don't graduate. They come back and do it right. It's a traumatic experience for some," said Tobin. "As a faculty, we defined the end result and then said 'go.' The students had to decide the how, where, and when of it," Tobin said. The students did not have to cover the cost of the project. The replicas were expensive. The college only spent about $100 for each satellite. That amount purchased the odds and ends, simulated solar panels and hardware. The rest of the materials were donated. Affilliated Metals of Salt Lake City contributed the metal for the project, valued at $5,000, according to John Boyer, associate professor of manufacturing engineering technology. This dollar figure represents a fraction of the million dollars plus donated for the original NUSAT I satellite. The money for that project came from many sources, some of the largest donations were from Morton Thiokol, TRW Inc., Rockwell International Corp., Sperry Corp., McDonnei Douglas Astronautics Co.; Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Boeing, and Utah State University, according to Boyer. "We have found some people genuinely interested in helping," Boyer said. "Something like this is impossible to do without industry help," Tobin added. The RESAT project kills two birds with one stone. It will be a way to provide the many who were essential to the success of NUSAT I with a memento. "We thought it would be nice if they had a model--a souvenir," Boyer said. The project also provided the students with an op portunity to manufacture a relatively sophisticated product, according to Boyer. The experience the students get working on a project like this may help them in the job market after graduation. "It gives them a little edge," said Boyer. "It's very worthwhile. The students get an opportunity to become familiar with local industry and the way things are in the business world. It can't help but enhance the students involved and the program," said George Yurick, engineer for Morton Thiokol and advisor to the NUSAT project. Industry and educational institutions have expressed interest in the NUSAT shell. They will be putting their own experiments and software inside. The extent of the demand for the design is not yet known but Boyer does not see the project getting too big for the college. i''y (see NUSAT on page 3) or the entire summer at camp, which will run until August 16, the end of summer quarter at WSC. The main purpose of the camp is to help the children to learn "new skills, new interests, new friends. They'll be looking forward to another year of formal classes because they'll know there's nothing they can't try," said Ruth Knight, director of the WSC summer day camp. The idea for the camp came from the personal enrichment team of the Department of Continuing Education at WSC. This is the camp's first year of operation. A waiting list of children for the day camp exceeds the number that are currently enrolled. The camp has been more successful than was originally expected, according to Knight. Each week features different classes for the children, ranging from clowning to cosmetology, karate to photography, and computers to bicycle maintenance and safety. Kap Lim, a ninth degree black belt karate instructor, has been teaching the children various karate movements this past week. The children are sometimes being taught when they least expect it. "They have fun, and they don't even realize . . . that this stimulates their brain," said Eric Aragon, one of the student teachers. He was referring to the card game "21" used to teach the children mathematical concepts. Aragon asked one of the boys in his group why he came to the day camp. "My Mom told me it was my choice if I wanted to come here or stay home, and I said I wanted to stay here," said Bobby Villarreal. He said he wanted to come " 'cause it's fun. It's better. 'Cause all there is to do at home is watch TV, listen to the radio, eat and drink. You can eat and drink here and PLAY." If the sounds of fun and enjoyment are any indication, it looks like the summer day camp is headed for many future years of success. "We've certainly developed our lungs this summer," commented Knight, and there are still seven fun-filled weeks of camp left to go. |