Penn Engineering teams sweep top awards

Penn High School’s competitors in the Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science placed first in two divisions in competition at Trine University on Feb. 23.

Penn engineering teams under the direction of sponsor Becky Tagliaferri placed first in the A and B Divisions at the Trine Regional, and await notification in April on state placement and possible national qualification.

Fourteen teams competed at the high school level. Each team consists of eight students working together to solve an engineering problem. The regional competition has two parts, the awards were for part one, and part two is a written/design portion.

“I would like to recognize all seven captains of the engineering teams:  Julia Kwak (her team took this year’s Division A trophy)  Tina Lu (her all-freshman team took this year’s Division B trophy), Megha Devaraj, Alice Kwak, Jewon Oh, Josh Zhao, and Neal Patel.  Their hard work and effort had made it possible for 56 Penn students to learn about what engineers do and what they can do for our future.

“I would also like to thank John Gensic for helping this year,” Tagliaferri said. “Every year, we bring in speakers about our engineering topics, and this year Mr. Gensic led us to some amazing contacts at Notre Dame University.  We now wait excitedly to see all of our Part 2 scores that will determine who places in the state and who qualifies to go to the National competition.”

Penn Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Academy leader Rachel Fry expressed pride at the performance of Penn’s students.

“Goals of the STEM Academy include creating opportunities for authentic and relevant learning experiences,” Fry said. “The TEAMS competition provides just that! 

“The Penn High TEAMS groups compete to solve real-world engineering challenges using integrated approaches,” Fry continued. “The collaborative and competitive nature motivates students; and also gets them thinking about related future career opportunities.  TEAMS sponsor, Becky Tagliaferri, has been working to grow the program by communicating with middle school principals.  I am very proud of the accomplishments of our TEAMS students!”