Queens students build solar | Roaming Spirit Inc.

by: Greg Mocker

Posted: May 18, 2023 / 07:08 PM EDT

Updated: May 18, 2023 / 07:08 PM EDT

ELMHURST, Queens (PIX11) — The sun provided the power for a spin around the parking lot at Cathedral Prep in Elmhurst, Queens.

About 30 high school students spent Thursday converting a gas-powered go-kart and installing an electric motor with solar panels connected to batteries.

Joshua Francisco, of Woodhaven, Queens, is a junior at Cathedral Prep. He said the students will test the vehicles.

"Math isn't my best subject. Science and technology are. It was a cool thing to learn about how to making things and engineering," Francisco said.

It was the final project for a semester of study about solar technology as part of the Flying Classroom.

Meeting once a week, the program focuses on science, technology, engineering and math and includes classroom work and Zoom sessions with people from different fields.

"We want to show kids different industries, from automotive to aviation and technical skills. In this project, they may say they found a new passion, and this could be a career in the future," said Rajeev Brown, program director with Flying Classroom.

The program is based in Miami and was created in 2014. It was founded Captain Barrington Irving, a Jamaican-born pilot who previously held the record for the youngest person to pilot a plane around the world.

Dr. Richie Diaz, the school principal, said the students are building their future.

"I always say, as a graduate of this school myself, just because we’re small doesn't mean we are ‘less than.’ What this represents to me is opportunity, and it's a very hands-on fashion," Diaz said.

This is the second year for the extracurricular program at the school.

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