(May 25, 2018) – The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) and students from Chesapeake Math and IT High School traveled to Franklin, Tennessee to compete in The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) 2018 National TRAC (Transportation and Civil Engineering) Bridge Challenge Finals this week. The all-female Bold and Beautiful Bridges team, Helena Quist, Ogechi Obizuo, and Iman Adem, from Chesapeake Math and IT High School in Laurel, is the first Maryland team to compete in the national competition. The team designed and tested a bridge they named “Bold and Beautiful,” which rated in fifth place overall for the 11/12th grade division nationally.
“The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration is just delighted and proud that, in our inaugural year, one of our founding teams placed as a finalist and earned the privilege of presenting and competing nationally. Like their bridge ‘Bold and Beautiful,’ these students represent the strength, character and skill behind Maryland TRAC program,” said MDOT SHA Administrator Greg Slater. “We are looking forward to bringing this curriculum enhancing program to more schools and getting more youth interested in engineering careers.”
The team, all graduating seniors, were the only East Coast team representing their division. Two other divisions were included for middle school (grades 6-8) and 9-10th grade. Each division was made up of six finalist teams for a total of eighteen. The teams were tasked with designing and constructing a bridge with the best strength-to-weight ratio.
"The Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation (CLF) of public-charter schools wholeheartedly welcomes the TRAC program to its STEM/STEAM academies as it provides a hands-on, project-based learning opportunity focused on real-world problem-solving. TRAC also opens career pathways while instilling vital self-confidence in our STEM students. For a pilot program at our newest CMIT to produce the number five team in the nation for 11th and 12th grade division; this is only the beginning!” said Mark J. Sutherland, Community Partnerships Director for the Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation. “All CLF schools will implement TRAC for 2018-2019 and we are excited to work with our State partners on future win-win projects for our Maryland communities. We believe MDOT's partnership with our CLF schools and students will have an impact on this great State, our families, and this nation in ways we can only just now begin to imagine. If imagination is the power of creation; let's think BOLD & BEAUTIFUL!"
The Bridge Challenge competition is designed to promote an interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The program enhances math and science instruction and introduces students to engineering through hands-on, real-world applications. The competition is open to students in grades seven through twelve within the participating TRAC states.
For this year’s TRAC Bridge Builder Competition the states that were represented in the finals included Michigan, Mississippi, Florida, Virginia, California and New Mexico.
Chesapeake Math and IT Academy is one of Maryland’s inaugural schools to integrate American Association of State Highway and Transportation Official’s (AASHTO) TRAC program into its curriculum. Through TRAC, students apply math and science to solve real-world transportation and civil engineering challenges and work side-by-side with transportation professionals who mentor both teachers and students. Earlier this year, the MDOT SHA officially relaunched the Maryland TRAC program as a way to help generate future transportation leaders, as well as encourage minorities and women to enter the engineering field. MDOT SHA provides educational resources to enhance classroom learning such as: TRAC kits, teacher guides, computer programs, and materials; teacher training; and engineer volunteers to mentor students all free of charge to the schools.
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