Middle School Students Urged to Protect Against the Next Storm Surge By Entering Ideas in Engineering Expo Contest Challenge

Super storm Hurricane Sandy caused extensive damage to the New York City area, mainly due to a larger than normal storm surge. Professional engineers all over the region, U.S. and world are racking their brains to engineer solutions to protect people and property from future storm surges.

Organizers of the upcoming Lower Hudson Valley Engineering Expo on April 7 at White Plains High School are expanding its outreach by asking area middle school students for their ideas. The Expo is sponsoring an engineering contest called the โ€Middle School Expo Challengeโ€ in which students in teams of 10 or less come up with an idea and a design to protect against a storm surge. Students interested in entering the Expo Challenge could find more information at www.beanengineer.org or email ExpoChallenge@beanengineer.org or contact JoAnn Rerek at rerek@optonline.net. There is no entry fee.

Students are encouraged to research the impact of Hurricane Sandy and examine the types of buildings and structures that were damaged and why. Based on a contest-provided rubric, students are asked to present their ideas to design a structure/building to sustain a surge of the same magnitude without damage. Contest submission deadline is March 8. Prizes and trophies will be awarded to the top five teams and all participants will receive a medal. Winnersโ€™ projects will be on display at the Lower Hudson Valley Engineering Expo on April 7 at White Plains High School.

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