Newswise — Students from Bishop Kelly High School (Boise, ID) claimed the title “Best Overall” during the fifth annual JETS/Ability One National Engineering Design Challenge (NEDC). The NEDC is a competition which educates young people about careers in engineering, raises social awareness, and inspires a spirit of engagement and a willingness to help others. Five teams of high school students from across the country competed in the NEDC Finals at the Westin Arlington Gateway in Arlington, Virginia. The competition included presentations by each team in the morning, a design showcase during lunch and an award ceremony in the afternoon.
The Bishop Kelly High School team presented P.A.W.D, the “Portable Assistive Writing Device," an assistive technology designed to aid a person with tremor to write more legibly using a pen or pencil. Team members included: Dominic Chumich, Yuanhao Ding, Kate Franklin, Samuel Kosydar, Yi Zi Li, Lauren Naughton, Karl Schutz and Nic Wendt, lead by team coaches, Guy Hudson and Larry Neznanski, The team won $3,000 for their school. “The students take away a much deeper appreciation of what people with disabilities go through on a daily basis. The program put on by JETS and NISH, especially the keynote speakers, at the national competition did an excellent job of showing how we all can make a difference, both in small and large ways. The overall impact on their perception and greater understanding of persons with disabilities was invaluable,” said team coach, Guy Hudson. The Bishop Kelly team won $3,000 for their school as well as trophies and various awards.
Awards and a cash prize of $1,500 were also given for “Best Engineering Design” and “Outstanding Assistive Technology Design”. The Education Program for Gifted Youth Online High School at Stanford University won the Best Engineering Design with the “TOP Adapter”, a device that allows a blind person to “see” the lights on their telephone through vibrations in an adapted glove. Gulliver Preparatory School from Miami, Florida, won the Outstanding Assistive Technology Design with the “O.P.E.N” (Operation Portable Entry Device), a device that aids an individual open any door from his or her wheelchair. National Finalist teams also included Walnut Hills High School, Cincinnati, OH with the “Button Up,” a device that aids in buttoning a uniform and Wethersfield High School, Wethersfield, CT with the “Walken,” a walker that is adapted to walk up and down a staircase.
The NEDC is a real-world high school design competition in which teams of students from across the nation design and build an assistive technology device for use by a person with a disability in his or her workplace. Beginning in the Fall 2009, teams first identified a problem to solve and then worked together to design, test and present their device. The top five finalists will be selected this week by a panel of judges to compete in the NEDC Finals competition, February 25, 2010. Finalists will receive a free trip to Washington, DC to present their device in person. The best overall design from a national finalist team wins $3,000 for their school's sponsoring department. Two additional finalists are awarded $1,500 for the school's sponsoring department.
NEDC is a JETS program made possible through a partnership with NISH and the AbilityOne program. For more information, email [email protected] or visit the JETS website at www.jets.org.
JETS JETS is a national non-profit educational organization dedicated to promoting engineering and technology careers to our nation's young people. As a prominent force at the secondary school level, JETS engages students in various engineering education programs that are an essential part of fostering the engineering profession. Students in JETS programs are presented the opportunities to: understand how engineers make a difference in our world (Explore); see how their own talents and skills align to engineering majors and occupations (Assess); and participate in exciting real-world based competitions and activities (Experience). JETS programs touch more than 40,000 students and 10,000 educators from 6,000 high schools across the country every year.
AbilityOne ProgramThe AbilityOne Program provides employment opportunities for nearly 48,000 people through NISH—Creating Employment Opportunities for People with Severe Disabilities, and the National Industries of the Blind. The AbilityOne Program is the largest single source of employment for people who are blind or have other severe disabilities in the United States. More than 600 participating nonprofit organizations employ these individuals and provide quality goods and services to the federal government at a fair market price. To learn more, visit www.abilityone.org
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