By Victoria Pike
Great things are happening at Fountain Lake Charter High School (FLCHS), especially in the Cobra EAST department. EAST stands for Environmental and Spatial Technology. In this class, students from grades 9-12 use software programs and technology to help a local business or organization. Most of the projects are important to the community partner, but are usually things they don’t have time to do themselves.
“Drone Commanders” Coleson Simpson and Carson Tillery are partnered with the Hot Springs Village Chamber of Commerce (HSVCOC). One project they worked on involved producing a promotional video for the South Hot Springs Lions Club Gun and Knife show. They flew their drone around the Convention Center to get footage for the show.
They have created a number of other promo videos including one for a car dealership. Another comprehensive project employing the drone is a Hot Springs Village (HSV) aerial tour of the parks and trials, giving others the opportunity to visualize the beauties of the village, and encouraging them to come visit.
Other students have also partnered with the Chamber to make a brochure of the parks and trails of the village. The brochures will offer information about the park or trail, such as location, distance and the difficulty of the trail. This information is currently offered online, but the HSVCOC would like to have something for guests to take with them when they visit, or for those who do not have online access. The Cobra EAST Department is also working on a 3D model of the HSV trails for online access.
Finally, the students of Cobra EAST are also working on Resource Geographic Information System (RGIS) mapping software for the Garland County Water Department. This online software allows students to plot the points where water meters are, giving the Water Department an accurate map of meter locations.
To learn more about Fountain Lake EAST program, visit www.cobraeast.com.
Victoria is a student intern here at The Springs Magazine. As a junior at Fountain Lake Charter High School, she is really getting ahead of the game. Working towards a career in journalism/broadcasting, one day she hopes to appear as the face of Good Morning America. When she is not at school, Victoria enjoys spending her free time on the tennis courts practicing, or hanging out with her friends.
