Drones were something Waukegan High School junior Nehemiah James found entertaining when he was younger. They were toys he flew around his home using a remote control.
Now James is learning how to operate drones as part of his engineering class. Flying them in a part of his classroom, glassed off from where the students and teachers sit, he writes computer code to get them from place to place along a designated course.
“I like the class,” James said. “It’s an entertaining class. It’s not boring. It’s a fun class. We’re not taking notes and writing. We learn by doing. If it doesn’t work right, we figure out how to fix it.”
James is one of the students currently enrolled in one of two Waukegan High School robotics, drone, and mechatronics classes, where he and his classmates learn to program the planes to fly a specific course, among other skills.
David Marks, the academic chair and coordinator of the career and technical education (CTE) department for Waukegan Community Unit School District 60, said the engineering class builds skills for people to join the workforce now and those who will need an advanced college degree.
With the growth of the use of drones — from delivering packages to homes to advanced military warfare — Marks said teaching high school students how to use them was a natural addition to the engineering class, along with robotics and mechatronics.
“The goal this year is to introduce students to something new — drone technology,” Marks said. “The class is in the engineering lab. There is a safe zone room that’s glassed off. The students are on the other side of the room and watch the drones fly that they are controlling.”
Learning to fly drones using computer coding is something new to teens who first flew them as toys with a remote control. Damian Basilio, a junior engineering student, said programming the drone rather than piloting it by hand is a challenge he enjoys.
“I started learning to code with robots,” Basilio said. “Drones move in the air and are more of a challenge. You have to create a code so it stays in the air, goes up and down, and doesn’t crash.”
Juniors like James and Basilio may have an opportunity to spend an entire semester learning more about operating drones. Marks said an interactive course is in the works for the 2026-2027 school year.
Juan Jose Moncunill-Molto teaches the engineering class. He hopes to eventually create a course that will lead to students obtaining a license from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to fly drones.
“I want them to get the skills to pass the test,” Moncunill-Molto said. “They can take the test at the Waukegan (National) Airport. You have to have a license to pilot a drone. We can teach them to fly in the classroom and with a simulator. Careers are developing very fast.”
Just as the state of Illinois designs the test for people to become licensed drivers, Moncunill-Molto said the FAA does the same for pilots, whether they are flying a plane themselves or operating a drone. He would incorporate the FAA guidelines into his curriculum.
“They can go to work for somebody or start their own business,” Moncunill-Molto said.
A class leading to a license is likely two years away. Marks said it is a possibility for the 2027-2028 school year.
Drones may or may not be part of the future for James or Basilio, but it will not be something they do upon graduation from high school. Both said engineering is in their future and a college education is on their horizon.
