The first CYHS Engineering Design Competition was held in February where students competed to try and create the best and most effective product that could help reduce the spread of the virus. The competition was created and judged by Tech Ed teacher Mr. Sean Blasetti, Workforce Readiness Coordinator Ms. Ellie Lamison, Associate Principal Dr. David Czarnecki and Sean O’Neill, Executive Vice President at St. Onge Supply Chain Engineering Company. 

The goal of the competition was for students to design and test a product that could help reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus and also be safe and easy to use. This process included documenting a blueprint of the product and also 3D-printing a physical prototype to display. 

Five students participated in the competition, with senior Reena Mace coming out on top and winning a $400 cash prize. Mace designed a child-friendly face mask accessory that helped make masks comfortable and easier to wear. Second place was senior Bethany Sauder, who made adjustable clips for masks and won $100 for her efforts. 

The other three participants were freshmen Cole Earling, Brennan Pringle and junior Owen Strickler. 

Earling had the novel idea of creating a sounding chip that could be built into a face mask and allow for people to track their mask if they lose it. The prototype had a tracking range of 200 ft. 

Pringle made an adjustable airhook, which would be attached to the back of a mask and could adjust the fitting of a mask using a twistable knob. 

Strickler created a mask rack, which was an array of plastic poles that could be used to hold up to four masks in a neat and attractive manner. The rack has the ability to be mounted on a table or a wall and is designed to reduce the risk of air contamination for the masks. 

“Despite a school year like no other, the first annual CYHS Engineering Design Competition was a success . . . . All participants did a fantastic job and certainly learned a lot from the experience,” Blasetti said. 

All prize money for the event was donated by St. Onge to the CYHS Tech Ed Department to increase student interest and participation in engineering courses and in future competitions. 

The tech ed courses offered at CYHS include: Drafting & CAD, Process Engineering I, Process Engineering II, Process Engineering III, Engineering Design, Architectural Design, PLTW – Intro to Engineering Design and PLTW – Civil Engineering & Architecture. 

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