Four Kaffie Middle School students were selected as state winners in the Presidential AI Challenge. They were inspired by Corpus Christi’s water crisis.
The contest was created through an executive order from President Donald Trump, establishing a competition “to foster interest and expertise in AI technology in America’s youth,” according to the competition guidebook.
“It was a challenge to see kids’ ideas for how we could use AI to solve worldwide problems or problems in our city,” eighth grader Averie Bazan said.
For the group of four Corpus Christi middle schoolers — Bazan, Donaven Mouton, Maxwell Mitchell and Neyvn Braxton — water proved top of mind.
From left, Kaffie Middle School science teacher Cynthia Hopkins submitted eighth grade students Maxwell Mitchell, Nevyn Braxton, Donaven Mouton and Averie Bazan into the Presidential AI Challenge, where they were named state winners.
Their big idea is a ring that could be installed to pipes in order to track water usage and report the data through a phone app. Artificial intelligence would be used to analyze the data and determine if there are leaks in the system or if someone left the water on.
They thought the idea could help their school monitor and reduce water use.
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They began considering how AI could help solve the local crisis back in the fall for their engineering class at Kaffie Middle School. It was a perfect assignment for the class, science teacher Cynthia Hopkins said.
Bazan was the production manager. Mouton was the project engineer. Mitchell was the group’s lead researcher. Braxton was the hydrologist, keeping track of local water supplies and water usage, including water levels at Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon.
Six group projects from Kaffie Middle School participated in an artificial intelligence showcase, an opportunity to practice their speaking skills and to get feedback on their ideas from industry professionals. Bazan, Mouton, Mitchell and Braxton came first in the showcase, and another Kaffie team came in second.
The showcase, a separate competition, occurred before the presidential challenge.
Again Bazan, Mouton, Mitchell and Braxton were successful. They were chosen as the Texas winners for the middle school track.
The team also competed against winners from other states for the regional level of the competition, but did not advance to nationals.
Seeing the ideas from other competitors was educational, Bazan said, particularly in highlighting when AI can be helpful, as well as when it isn’t.
“If a person can do it easily, it seems useless to use AI,” Bazan.
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How middle school students are learning to use AI
When it comes to AI, students in Kaffie Middle School’s engineering class learn how the technology works.
“They’re learning the backside, how AI is formed and used,” Hopkins said.
Lessons highlight self-driving cars, machine learning and how smartphones can understand when users talk to it.
The students said that they chose to take the engineering class because they’d heard from other students that it’s fun. Hopkins leads the class through numerous projects, connecting students with opportunities to compete in challenges and competitions.
“We did a project for kids with cerebral palsy,” Mouton said. “We made a model of a boot that would go on your leg and allow kids with cerebral palsy to keep their foot down on the ground and be comfortable while jumping and walking.”
For another project, they had to design the slowest possible roller coaster.
Now, the eighth graders’ focus is on their state-required science standardized test. But after that, they plan on connecting with one of the judges from the showcase competition — he offered to help make their AI idea a reality.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Kaffie Middle School team earns state win in Presidential AI Challenge