STOCKBRIDGE, Mich. (WILX) – Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams are comprised of high school students, educators, and mentors that receive up to $10,000 each to invent technological solutions to real-world problems of their own choosing. Stockbridge High School is the proud host of one, and they have recently made some important strides.

Stockbridge High School’s InvenTeam is in the middle of applying for a patent for their ocean lander, as well as another application that could make them company owners.

InvenTeam Mentor Robert Richards said, “‘One of the things that was suggested was for us to form our own LLC so we’ll get more on the business side and that way we can protect our patent and work with our, hopefully multiple patents as a separate entity separate from the school as sort of a team environment with all of the students being co-owners if you will.”

That’s big news, but despite being a group largely comprised of high school students they are already somewhat familiar with the world of business. They just received a patent for their first underwater camera and water quality monitoring system.

Of that achievement, InvenTeam Mentor Bailey Heidrich said, “For me that was kind of my last accomplishment before finishing high school because I’m graduating and just to get that in was like a final hurrah before I left.”

That took four years to complete, and now they’re going through a very similar process for their ocean lander.

Mayzie Wright is an InvenTeam Member, “It’s such an achievement because you know we’re from Stockbridge and people have this idea like we only graduate with 120 kids at the most, we’re just a little farm town and i think that we’re showing no matter how big or how small your school is, if you put your time and your effort and your work into it, you can really achieve your goals that you want to achieve and that we can make a difference.”

The Stockbridge InvenTeam was one of 14 schools last year to get a $10,000 grant to work on an ocean lander that will study ocean habitats in the American Samoa. They’re also applying for a provisional patent, and they’ve got another project up their sleeves: improving personal protective equipment to battle COVID-19.

The InvenTeam is still waiting to see about school this fall. They say as soon as they can they’ll get their hands back to work on inventing things to help the world.

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