HCPSSHoward County Students Make Regional MESA/STEM Day Competition a Success
April 16th, 2015
Students in the Maryland Mathematics Engineering and Science Achievement Program (MESA) from the Howard County Public School System excelled in the Maryland Regional MESA Day competitions. Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland hosted the competitions on April 10, 2015.
The science, technology, engineering, and mathematics competitions involved a variety of events for students at the elementary, middle, and high school grade levels. Students competed in cyber security and computer programming challenges to develop systems to protect against computer viruses. Other students built bridges out of bass and balsa wood under strict guidelines that tested the structural integrity of the bridges. The creative and innovative abilities of students were measured in events such as effective communications and the storybook theme park ride. The construction and racing of a hovercraft was also a part of this year’s competition.
St. Johns Lane Elementary School was the elementary school winner. The overall winner at the middle school level was Lake Elkhorn Middle School. At the high school level, the winner was Long Reach High School. The winning schools will represent Howard County at the Maryland Statewide MESA competition on May 7, 2015, also at the Applied Physics Laboratory.
Lake Elkhorn Middle School and Long Reach High School won the Prosthetic Arm competition at their respective levels and will compete in the state level competition. The Maryland winner of the Prosthetic Arm Challenge will be invited to compete for a chance to represent Maryland in the national event in Ogden, Utah in June.
The public is invited to attend the statewide MESA competition at JHUAPL on May 7, 2015. More information is available at the JHUAPL MESA website