Contact: Linda Topoleski, 412-281-2345 or ltopoleski@dymun.com
Or: A.M. Kulp Elementary School Phone, 215-368-3061
-UPDATE-
Hatfield-Area School Students Named as Top Ten Finalists in National Competition—Win Trip to Walt Disney World®
Students Aim to Stop Motorists from Passing Unloading School Buses by Catching Them on Film
AUBURN, NY—April 29, 2003—Bright ideas, solid research and teamwork won three students from A.M. Kulp Elementary in Hatfield, PA, a berth as semifinalists in the Christopher Columbus Awards, a nationwide program that challenges middle-school students to explore opportunities for positive change in their communities. The team had made it to the semifinals earlier this month and now is one of ten teams in the country to compete.
Drivers tempted to pass an unloading school bus would think twice if a new motion-sensing device and camera were installed on the buses. That’s the hope of this team of 6th graders—Nicholas Burkwit, Tracey Hickey and Tyler Schultz, and their teacher Joan Hurd. They developed an idea for mounting motion sensors and cameras similar to those used at highway tollbooths to photograph the license plates of illegally passing cars.
The team met with alarm companies, school bus companies, their state legislators and the PA Department of Transportation to devise their solution. "We hope to prevent an accident by making motorists think before they decide to pass a school bus that is unloading children," they said.
A panel of community leaders, scientists and experts in science education judged this idea as one of the top 10 entries in the U.S. Nearly 2,000 students participated nationwide.
Team Wins a Trip to Walt Disney World®
The team wins an all-expense-paid trip to the Walt Disney World® Resort, where they will compete in the Christopher Columbus Award's National Championship Week, June 20-26.
Rewards include $36,000 in U.S. Savings Bonds for the top three national winners. In addition, one team will bring home the $25,000 Columbus Foundation Community Grant to help bring its idea to life in the community.
The finalists also will attend the Christopher Columbus Academy, a custom-designed educational program. Conducted by scientists, engineers and educators, the program reveals the science and technology behind the thrills and excitement of Epcot® and the Magic Kingdom®.
Positive Community Change
The Christopher Columbus Awards challenge teams of middle-school students to explore and discover opportunities for positive change in their communities using science and technology. Formerly known as the Bayer/NSF Award, the program is now in its seventh year and has attracted more than 12,000 students from diverse backgrounds all across the U.S. The program is sponsored by the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation with support from the National Science Foundation and it is endorsed by the National Middle School Association. Past winners have included a group of Native American girls who built a study hall out of straw on the Crow Indian Reservation in Montana, and a group of students from New Jersey who developed a technology to help deaf athletes communicate with their coaches while on the playing field.
Strong Participation from Girls, Minorities
The program attracts many students who may not typically enter a science competition. More than half of the entrants are girls, and more than a fourth are from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, statistics that are higher than those of most science competitions. Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation believes the teamwork aspect and community focus draw a broader range of students to enter.
For more information, call 1-800-291-6020 or visit www.christophercolumbusawards.com.