Elyria Youth Chess Club treated to robotics presentation by LCCC rep – Morning Journal
Rashad Reed led an interactive robotics presentation for the Elyria Youth Chess Club May 29. (John Elrod — The Morning Journal)
The Elyria Youth Chess Club was treated to a robotics presentation May 29 from Rashad Reed, an associate in the Lorain County Community College IT Department, at the Elyria Public Library System South Branch, 340 15th St.
Reed brought in a human-like robot standing about a foot tall that responds to commands typed into a separate computer.
He said he has had an interest in robotics for a long time and that he is thankful to be able to work with them through his job at LCCC.
“(My interest) is probably from ‘Star Wars’ honestly,” Reed said. “Any technology can interest me, so robotics are just an extension of my IT background.”
The goal of the program is to spark an interest in robotics in children because it is a technology that is becoming more present in society, he said.
The program is under the leadership of LCCC President Marcia Ballinger and LCCC interim Chief Information Officer Don Huffman.
“They’re trying to involve the kids with STEM and MEMS, so they thought this would be a good opportunity for them to get familiar with friendly robots,” Reed said. “That’s pretty much the summary of the program.”
Programs like the one at LCCC can help students develop an interest that can lead them to a career down the road, he said.
“We’ve been trying to tap into the middle schoolers and high schoolers to let them know there is a need for robotics, and you’re going to be working with robotics in the future,” Reed said.
He said a personal connection was key to the organization of his presentation for the Elyria Youth Chess Club, which is a part of the Elyria Youth Sports Club led by Aric Bowens.
“Of course, everybody knows Aric and I ran track with him back in the day, so I always have seen his leadership and trying to get stuff to our youth,” Reed said. “I talked with Aric and we discussed how chess requires critical thinking and that’s what you need in the technology field.”
During the presentation, Reed explained how the robot responds to commands.
He also had it perform physical movements and speak.
Reed fielded plenty of questions from the young chess players as well.
Reed said he particularly enjoys teaching robotics to children.
“I like watching how well they adapt to things,” he said. “Usually, when I have adults around, they say robots are going to destroy the world or whatever.
“Kids immediately come up to it and speak to it and actually want to work with it. There’s a joy seeing them engage with something I’m passionate about.”
