Board of Education Honors WTHS T.E.A.M.S. Members at May Meeting
The Washington Township Board of Education recognized the outstanding scholarship of eight Washington Township High School Science League students who combined for a fourth place showing among 51 New Jersey teams at the regional T.E.A.M.S. (Test of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science) competition at Widener University in early March. The competition is structured to allow students to apply knowledge in practical and creative ways to solve real-world engineering challenges. The team of Dylan Adriano, Rachel Carpinelli, James Gallicchio, Billy Myers, Hunter Gogoj, Deven Patel, Grace Robertson and Kimberly Stephens, under the direction of Science League advisors Shannon Hornibrook and May Howard, qualified for the T.E.A.M.S. national competition in Atlanta in June.
Competing under the 2018 theme “Engineering a Greener World,” the students were required to research and study eight topics in preparation for the competition. These topics included:
- Durability of Materials
- Economics of Green Engineering
- Efficiency of Solar Power
- Global Health
- Green Engineering Basics
- Green Building Practices
- Insects and Climate Change
- Reducing Light Pollution
Students were required to submit an essay where they explained how they would a transform a prominent building in their community (WTHS) to be more energy efficient and more ecologically friendly. They also competed in a problem-solving competition and a construction project.
“We are very proud of our students,” Howard said of eight who earlier earned entry as part of the inaugural induction class to the school’s newly formed Science National Honor Society. “These kids took on these challenges in addition to their other academics and extracurricular activities.”
“These students would go and work with their peers in Science League every Friday afternoon, relentlessly,” District science supervisor Dr. Patricia Hughes said in congratulating the team. “They are an example of how work can get you somewhere. A lot of time when you have a person who is very bright, people will look at them and say, ‘oh, you’re just smart.’ It isn’t ‘you’re just smart.’ It’s you taking your ability, applying it and working. And sometimes it doesn’t work out. And sometimes you have to do it many times. But instead of whining about it, you continue to do the work. This achievement is the result of all that collective work, and we are very proud of you for it.”
Pictured: (left to right): WTHS Science League co-advisor Mary Howard, Rachel Carpinelli, James Gallicchio, Deven Patel, Grace Robertson, Dylan Adriano, Billy Myers, Hunter Gogoj, Sciene League co-advisor Shannon Hornibrook and District science supervisor Dr. Patricia Hughes; (missing from photo): Kimberly Stephens.