Local high school students are ‘M’Aiken Magic’ with robots

AIKEN, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - The M’Aiken Magic team is back from a competition ranked first in South Carolina.

We talked to them about the benefits of being involved with this program.

“So many opportunities for these kids to get hands-on experience that they normally wouldn’t until they got a professional job,” said Ambrose Wiering.

He works with robotics and automation at SRNS. Wiering started working with robots in middle school. Now he mentors students on Aiken’s M’Aiken Magic team.

“I know that this program had that impact on my life, and the fact that I get the chance to turn around and change these kid’s futures like that, it’s why I do it,” he said.

Eann Dunbar is a senior at Aiken High School and says this program changed his life.

“If I hadn’t ed the team, I would’ve never known about my love for different machines and tools. I never would’ve considered it,” said Dunbar.

He plans on enlisting in the Navy as a machinist mate. Before he gets there, he here choreographing a robot he built with his teammates.

“We have six weeks to build it from scratch. It’s every hand on deck,” said Dunbar.

Students did all this themselves, and their work paid off. They won a few competitions, went to the world championship in Texas, and beat the defending champs.

“All the time I’ve spent has resulted in something, and I love that,” he said.

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