The U.S. Army Announces National Winning Teams of the 2014-15 eCYBERMISSION Competition

HUNT VALLEY, Md.

The U.S. Army is proud to announce the 2014-15 national winners of the 13th annual eCYBERMISSION competition.

Sponsored by the U.S. Army, one of several science, technology, engineering and math initiatives offered by the Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP) and administered by the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), the web-based competition cultivates student interest in STEM by encouraging sixth through ninth-graders to develop solutions to real-world challenges in their communities.

“The U.S. Army is committed to providing students with engaging and innovative STEM competitions like eCYBERMISSION,” said Louie R. Lopez, Program Manager for eCYBERMISSION. “The accomplishments and talent of the students in the program is immeasurable. Congratulations to all national winners and STEM-in-Action grant recipients for your hard work and taking the challenge.”

The winning teams, announced today at the National Judging and Educational Event (NJ&EE) awards luncheon in Hunt Valley, Md., were chosen from among 20 finalist teams, which were selected from more than 7,000 teams that entered the competition this year. Since the program’s inception in 2002, eCYBERMISSION has awarded state, regional and national competition winners over $10 million in U.S. Savings Bonds (matured value).

“It’s exciting to see students thinking beyond the science classroom, connecting what they have learned in school to practical applications, while actively engaging their community to make a real difference in the world around them,” said Dr. David Evans, NSTA executive director. “Congratulations to all of the student winners and their advisors for their dedication, collaborative spirit, and outstanding projects. I hope the success of these students will inspire others to follow in their footsteps.”

Each member of the four national winning teams received $5,000 in U.S. E.E. Savings Bonds (matured value), in addition to the $1,000 awarded to each as state winners, $1,000 awarded as regional finalists, and $2,000 as regional first-place winners. The 2014-15 national winning teams are:

Sixth grade:Water Warriors, Whiteface, Texas
Dwayne Scott, Kaden Moses, Kaleb Ruthardt, and Elizabeth Casarez with Science Rocks U worked together with team advisor Laura Wilbanks to develop distillation units to effectively clean hydraulic fracturing wastewater for reuse and for cleaner injection into storage wells underground.

Seventh grade:Hope 2 Others (H2O), Los Angeles, California
Christina Lee, Angela Lee, and Samantha Morris from Mirman School worked together with team advisor Arpa Ghazarian to develop a simple and effective way of purifying water using a plant that is widely grown and easily accessible in developing countries.

Eighth grade:HydroPhysics, Naperville, Illinois
Adarsh Mattu, Prateek Dullur, and Aditya Ramachandran worked together with team advisor Srimani Chakravarthi to create an electricity-free device to prevent basement flooding even during power outages.

Ninth grade:Power Up, Jenks, Oklahoma
Hayden Hilst, Riya Kaul, and Rebecca Mackey from Jenks Freshman Academy worked together with team advisor Manju Kaul to harness the kinetic energy produced from revolving doors to be used as an alternative energy source.

The NJ&EE was a weeklong event that focused on educational opportunities and team building exercises. This year’s event featured a STEM Challenge, where students participated in STEM demonstrations and hands-on activities. Other highlights that took place during the week included a visit to Capitol Hill to meet with members of Congress, sightseeing at the National Mall, and a National Showcase where students displayed and demonstrated their winning ideas.

For more information about the eCYBERMISSION competition, visit www.ecybermission.com or contact Mission Control at 1-866-GO-CYBER (462-9297) or via email at missioncontrol@ecybermission.com.

About Army Educational Outreach Program
The AEOP Cooperative Agreement was formed by the U.S. Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP) and includes Virginia Tech as the lead organization, the Academy of Applied Science, American Society for Engineering Education, the Technology Student Association, the University of New Hampshire and NSTA. AEOP is charged with addressing national needs for a STEM literate citizenry through a portfolio of educational opportunities which includes unique experiences, competitions, and high school internships that aim to spark an interest in STEM and encourage participants to pursue college and careers in STEM fields. The Army is committed to increasing the STEM talent pool in order to ensure our national security and global competitiveness. For more information on AEOP, visit www.usaeop.com.

About RDECOM
RDECOM has the mission to develop technology and engineering solutions for America’s Soldiers. It is a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Materiel Command. AMC is the Army’s premier provider of materiel readiness — technology, acquisition support, materiel development, logistics power projection, and sustainment — to the total force, across the spectrum of joint military operations. If a Soldier shoots it, drives it, flies it, wears it, eats it or communicates with it, AMC provides it. For more information on RDECOM, visit www.army.mil/rdecom.

About NSTA
The Arlington, VA-based National Science Teachers Association is the largest professional organization in the world promoting excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all. NSTA’s current membership includes approximately 55,000 science teachers, science supervisors, administrators, scientists, business and industry representatives, and others involved in science education.

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National Science Teachers Association (NSTA)
Dimetrius Simon, 703-312-9206
dsimon@ecybermission.com