The Sheridan School District Board of Education recognized the Hydro Rappers at its meeting Monday evening for earning first place overall in the junior stock division at the International SeaPerch Challenge, held in June at the University of Maryland.
The Hydro Rappers – Cooper Henderson, Jackson Knight, Priyesh Laxmi, and Abigail Martin – represent the Sheridan Middle School/Grant County 4-H program.
Sponsors of the program include Tina Melton, Sheridan Middle School teacher; Serena McGinley, Sheridan Intermediate School teacher (not pictured); and Brad McGinley, Grant County Extension Agent. Also pictured with the students at the board meeting is Sheridan Middle School Principal Deborah Mooney.
The Sheridan/Grant County SeaPerch program has established a strong tradition of excellence, producing at least one state champion team for nine consecutive years. This year, Sheridan teams swept every division at the state competition and also secured the wild-card position, allowing four teams to advance to the international challenge – the Hydo Rappers, the Sea-Cret Agents, Deep Water Vanguard, and Aquanauts. All four teams placed in the top 11 of their divisions at the international event.
SeaPerch is an underwater robotics competition that challenges students to apply the engineering design process to build a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) capable of completing complex underwater missions. In addition to building their ROVs, students must submit a technical design report and deliver a presentation explaining their engineering process.
The 2025 International SeaPerch Challenge featured nearly 3,000 teams worldwide, with only about the top 5 percent earning invitations to compete. Participants represented 27 states, six countries, and four continents.