Danny Canary of Skydio visited ConVal High School Thursday to give a presentation on drones.

Canary works with police officers, fire departments and schools to provide hands-on lessons in drone flying. His hope is to encourage people to get excited about drones and better understand the opportunities the technology can afford professionals in their field. He encouraged all attendees to take hold of the controller and try flying the drone themselves.

“Programs like these open kids to new opportunities and interests,” Canary said.

The Skydio Drone X2 and the Skydio Drone S2+ were flown at Thursday’s program. One of the notable differences between the two models is the X2’s nighttime flying abilities. The S2+ can be flown solely during the daytime. 

The Region 14 Applied Technology Center at ConVal High School provides opportunities for students of the ConVal, Jaffrey-Rindge, and Mascenic school district to acquire technical skills in business, engineering, teacher education, technology, photo and video, website design, computer networking and programming and woodworking. In these programs, students can explore different career pathways by working towards earning certifications and even college credits.

According to ConVal School System Administrator Kevin Carne, the ATC is starting a drone club in the fall and plans to include drones in the curriculum in 2024-2025. The plan is to students to achieve their FAA 107 certifications and be able to use drones in career fields. 

ATC Director Jennifer Kiley hung posters for the presentation that depicted women in their professional fields using drones to supplement their work. One poster showed an earthquake geologist using drones to help with field observations, gather satellite data to study earthquake damage and explore remote parts of the world.

“I want females to see themselves represented in technology-based fields,” she said.