We are the Pastabots
Meet the the Mentors and student leadership team!
Adult Mentors
Ms. Hamel
Head Coach & Mechanical Mentor
Ms. Hamel has been a physics teacher at The Woodlands High school since 2013 and has been mentoring FIRST Robotics teams since 2018. Ms. Hamel leads the robot builds for all of the Pastabots FTC teams, as well as serving as the head team administrator. Ms. Hamel is a graduate of The Woodlands High School and Texas A&M University. Aside from building awesome robots and teaching AP Physics, Ms. Hamel enjoys hanging out with her two dogs, traveling, and restoring antiques.
Mrs. Davies
Assistant Coach & Finance Mentor
Mrs. Davies has taught chemistry and physics since 2002 and has taught at The Woodlands High School since 2005. She has been the finance mentor for the Pastabots since 2020; she is primarily responsible for team finances and travel. Mrs. Davies is a native Houstonian and attended Westbury High School, followed by the University of Texas at Austin. When not at school, she enjoys swimming and traveling with her husband and two daughters. (She also taught Ms. Hamel in high school!)
Mrs. Hughes
Assistant Coach & Inspire Mentor
Mrs. Hughes is a new mentor with the Pastabots for the 2021 - 2022 season. She will focus on the engineering notebooks and portfolios, Inspire presentations and team outreach projects. We are so grateful for her willingness to lend her expertise to our organization!
New mentors wanted!
We are always looking for TWHS staff, parents, and community/industry volunteers willing to lend their time and expertise to our program. Volunteers would help to mentor students directly in their particular area of expertise - areas of interest include mechanical (design & build, CAD), programming (JAVA), and business (finance & marketing). For any inquiries, please contact Ms. Hamel at lhamel@conroeisd.net!
2021 - 2022 student LEADERSHIP
Stone Meng
President & Mechanical Lead
Stone is a senior and will be in his 2nd term as TWHS Robotics president for the 2021 - 2022 season. Stone became a Pastabot his freshman year in 2018, making him one of our most experienced team members. His specialities are mechanical, business and team operations. Stone is always willing to lend a hand!
Rajiv Iyer
Vice President
Rajiv is a senior and will be the TWHS Robotics vice-president for the 2021 - 2022 season. Rajiv became a Pastabot as a sophomore in 2019. His specialties are programming and team operations.
Manan Khandelwal
Business & Outreach Co-Lead
Manan is a new Pastabots recruit - he started working with the team during the summer of 2021. Manan brings a wealth of business/marketing knowledge and fundraising skills, and will be a huge asset towards future team growth and development.
TanishQ moondra
Business & Outreach Co-Lead
Tanishq joined the Pastabots as a junior at the start of the 2020 school year. Tanishq brings the enthusiasm and dedication necessary to implement long-term outreach and fundraising projects. He will be a huge asset towards future team growth and development.
Suhayl Guzman
CAD Lead
Suhayl is a senior and will be the TWHS Robotics CAD lead for the the 2021 - 2022 season. Suhayl became a Pastabot his sophomore year in 2019. He will be responsible for training new members interested in joining the CAD team. The Pastabots use CAD to model robots (and individual components) during the engineering & design process, as well as to design custom parts for 3D printing.
Eric Dunleavy
Underclassmen Liaison
Eric is a relative newcomer - joining in early spring 2021 (about halfway through the Ultimate Goal competition season) - but, in a very short period of time, he has demonstrated a true dedication to the team. He rarely, if ever, misses a meeting, and is always willing to jump in and help wherever he can! Eric's primary responsibility will be to make sure the team's underclassmen (especially freshman and new recruits) stay engaged in team activities.