SMMHS Students Qualify For Nationals In STEM Events

Both a middle and a high school team from Signal Mountain Middle High School placed first in regional Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science (TEAMS) to qualify them for a national competition. Another SMHS team placed fifth allowing them to advance to nationals as well. 

SMMHS students also excelled in the Technology Student Association state contest held in Chattanooga a couple of weeks ago.

All TEAMS and TSA teams from Signal plan to participate at their respective national competitions that overlap this June in Orlando.

Engineers with the Tennessee Valley Association helped SMMHS teachers prepare students for the school’s third year of competition in the Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science commonly known as TEAMS.  The competition is sponsored by the Technology Student Association (TSA). 

Using math, science and 21st-century learning skills, TEAMS students work together to ‘problem-solve’ real, everyday engineering challenges, according to the TSA website.

This year, the regional competition included two Signal Mountain middle school teams coached by Science teacher Olivia Webb, and two 11th and 12th grade teams coached by Kathy McCormack, who serves as chair of the SMMHS Math Department.

The 11/12 team consisting of students Dana McCormack, Natalie Taggart, Tamjeed Azad, Micah Smith, Jack Dowling, Gaddiel Morales, Angie Church, and Aidan Newton placed first in the state and qualified for nationals.  

The 11/12 team including Adam Siegel, Douglas Dapp, Seth Majic, Elizabeth Ortiz, Alex DeFilippis, and Andrew Thelen earned fifth in the state and also qualified for nationals.  

The middle school team consisting of Caroline Burns, Sophie Burk, Carson Bock, Eleanor Alley, and Karina Perez also earned first in the state and qualified for nationals.

State competitions are held at local colleges or other host schools depending on availability.

SMMHS students were fortunate to participate at their school for the state competition that included design, essay, and problem-solving components, officials said.  

As the acronym also implies, TEAMS members work together, rather than individually, in these competitions.

Each year, TVA engineer Charley Spencer coordinates with school advisors to find engineers to work with students on the competition topics.  The 2017 TEAMS theme was “Engineering the Environment.”

In preparation for this year’s contest, students researched topics and then went to TVA’s downtown office, where engineers Melissa Allen and Jessica Lyon taught students about water treatment and global climate change.  

Next, students were led by engineers Matt Clemmer and Robert Chapman on a tour of TVA’s Raccoon Mountain Pumped-Storage Plant.  

After that, students practiced a design competition, did some problem solving activities, and then researched and submitted an essay as part of the competition prior to the contest day.

"I am very proud of this year's students,” she said. “Our program is really building through the help of TVA mentoring students and Olivia Webb running the competition for middle school."
Signal Mountain was the only Chattanooga-area school among 11 middle school teams that participated in Tennessee’s 2017 competition.

Many states, and even international schools, field teams for the 11/12 division. Tennessee had 12 teams in the 2017 competition with SMHS teams placing first and fifth. Girls Preparatory School was the only other local participant, and its teams placed third, fourth, and ninth.
McCormack has high hopes for Signal’s teams at the national TEAMS competition and hopes they advance the legacy of past teams. 

During the school’s first year of TEAMS competition, it had one 9/10 team that won first in state and progressed to win 10th in the nation overall and first in the nation for Essays. Last year, one of its 11/12 teams placed second in the state and also advanced to nationals.

Signal students, including some who competed in TEAMS, also excelled at the Tennessee State TSA Conference held recently in Chattanooga.

Signal’s group had the highest percentage of awards in the competition, according to Rebecca Cacicedo, a Spanish teacher who also advises Signal’s chapter of the Technology Student Association.  TSA is a national organization of students engaged in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). 

Ms. Cacicedo said students compete in a variety of events which include such skills as research, presentation, interview, collaboration and report writing.

At the state TSA conference, Signal students placed in the Top 3 among 15 different events by racking up seven first-place wins, three 2nd-place wins, and five 3rd-place wins.

“I am extremely proud of the hard work and time the TSA members put into their projects and competition this year,” Ms. Cacicedo said. 

McCormack noted that TSA events are student driven, and students spend many hours in preparation for their events.

“Watching them work together to develop insightful outcomes and solutions is very rewarding for all members involved,” Ms. Cacicedo said. “I am confident they will continue to be leaders as they move through life and into their ultimate careers."

Students who placed first at state will advance to compete at the national TSA conference that overlaps with the TEAMS conference in Orlando.

SMMHS students placed first in the following events for middle school (MS) and high school (HS) TSA divisions:

Catapult Design MS: Brayden Smith, Sarah Vernetti, and Meredith Stafford

Website Design MS: Camilla Mincey, Brayden Smith, Mary Barton West, and Stephanie Xian

Career Prep MS: Benjamin Burns

Environmental Engineering MS: Meredith Stafford and Mary Barton West

Mass Production MS: Carson Bock, Stephanie Xian, Meredith Stafford, Sophie Burk, and Sarah Vernetti

Engineering Design HS: Jack Dowling, Micah Smith, Dana McCormack, Savannah Payne, Ellie Proctor, and Stella Strength

System Control Technology HS: Tamjeed Azad, Gaddiel Morales, and Natalie Taggart

SMMHS students placed second in the following events for middle school (MS) and high school (HS) divisions:

Digital Photography MS: Carson Bock

Prepared Speech MS: Caroline Burns

Leadership Strategies MS: Sophie Burk, Sarah Vernetti, and Stephanie Xian

SMMHS students placed third in the following events for middle school (MS) and high school (HS) divisions:

Problem Solving MS: Stephaine Xian and Micah Smith

Essays on Technology MS: Mary Barton West

Forensic Technology MS: Carson Bock and Cade Miller

Essays on Technology HS: Dana McCormack

Architectural Design: Sarah Kate Bailey, Caroline Cornett, Carla Slabber, Cole Stafford, and Stella Strength

"Congratulations to all students who participated in both TEAMS and TSA competitions," officials said.