Local high school students skilled in science, technology, engineering, and math recently competed in a regional STEM competition at the Chester County Intermediate Unit.
Participating teams included Bishop Shanahan, Coatesville, Oxford, and the Technical College High School Pickering Campus.
Bishop Shanahan finished No. 1. Its winning proposal was “DOORA” – a project created to automatically open doors in response to a fire, allowing firefighters the ability to enter a building more quickly.
The team – comprised of Mark Gomba, Jordan Jaramillo, Samuel Johnson, Brendan Manning, and Alana Pappas, as well as IT specialist Michael Gomba – was inspired to invent DOORA after the recent five-alarm blaze at Barclay Friends in West Chester.
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“We saw just how quickly that fire spread throughout the building,” said Manning. “In the event of a fire, even the smallest amount of time can make a life-saving difference.”
Participating teams were asked to select an issue, conduct research, design, construct, and finally present a prototype that would be able to ensure a better quality of life for residents of Pennsylvania. Students were provided with a $500 stipend to aid in their mission. This year’s theme was “Improving Pennsylvania Through STEM.”
During the weeks of preparation for the competition, which aims to help students further their knowledge of STEM concepts, students collaborated with mentors from local companies to aid them in their research and application. The students then presented their prototype and findings to a panel of judges who graded the presentations based on a statewide rubric.
“We worked incredibly well as a team,” said Pappas. “We collaborated and bounced ideas off of each other.”
Bishop Shanahan will advance to the state competition with an additional $750 stipend to improve its prototype.
