The 7th Annual Clean Tech Competition, developed by the Rockville Centre based Center for Science Teaching and Learning, (CSTL), concluded on Wednesday, July 17th at the Great Hall at Cooper Union in New York City. It was the third year Spellman sponsored the competition and the first year it was held at Cooper Union. 

The competition challenged high school students from across the globe to come up with ideas on how to create a greener future – this year’s theme, “Toward a Greener Tomorrow”. The competition required teams of students to identify a specific problem relating to climate change or protecting resources and develop specific solutions, using clean technology, to address the impacts on environment, human health and/or economic conditions.  This year the contest was expanded to include two categories: Mitigating the Effects of Climate Change and Resource Preservation. This year’s finalists include 20 teams from 5 countries, 10 in each category.  

The twenty finalist teams beat out 480 other teams from 40 countries to vie for the top three awards in each category–$10,000 for first place, $7,000 for second and $5,000 for third. In addition to the $10,000 top prize, the winning teams will have the opportunity to expand on their relationship with a professional mentor who advises and assists them in furthering their work and education.

“Our organization is all about encouraging students to study and experiment with science. This competition was developed to challenge young minds to go beyond basic studying of science, and create innovations for the common good,” said Dr. Ray Ann Havasy, Executive Director, Center for Science Teaching and Learning. 

The day before final judging, Spellman hosted the finalists at their Hauppauge headquarters, giving the students and their parents, teachers and guardians the chance to visit manufacturing facilities and see science in action – something high school students rarely get the opportunity to see. Upon arrival, the students had the opportunity to mingle with some of Spellman’s engineers to discuss their projects, Spellman’s work and the realities of engineering careers. Following the welcome reception, the students and their parents enjoyed lunch and personal tours of the Hauppauge facility. The students were extremely engaged, asking a lot of questions on their tours. In fact, some seemed to be inspired with ideas for next years’ Clean Tech Competition!

According to Dr. Loren Skeist, President of Spellman High Voltage and sponsor of the competition, “As main sponsor of CSTL’s Clean Tech Competition, we have had the privilege of seeing the amazing creativity and ingenuity of today’s youth and how their projects can play an instrumental role in addressing global climate change and other environmental challenges,” said Dr. Loren Skeist, President of Spellman HV Electronics. “I am always impressed with the innovation and creativity of these students and this year’s group has once again lived up to the challenge.” 

The day of competition started with the students presenting their projects to the judges. Judging was done according to a rubric evaluation of ten qualification areas. After lunch, the students were invited to a series of presentations as well as a tour of Cooper Union. This was followed by the announcement of the awards. 

In the category of Mitigating the Effects of Climate Change, First Place was awarded to: Team Kyang8093: Kevin Yang from Fairview High School in Boulder, CO, United States. Second Place was awarded to Team Solar Power Rangers: Kristie Eliana Ramli, Natasha Chin Hui Shan and Joanne Chua from National Junior College in Singapore. And Third Place was awarded to Team Proton Pumpers: Tzipora Schein and Bhawan Sandhu from Lawrence High School in Cedarhurst, NY, United States.

In the category of Resource Preservation, First Place was awarded to: Team Clean Dream: Ishita Bhimavarapu from West Windsor Plainsboro High School in North Plainsboro Township, NJ, United States. Second place was awarded to Team Matemba: Gabriel Matemba from Prince Edward School, Harare, Zimbabwe, wearing his country’s flag. Third Place was awarded to Team SRosenstark2019: Steven Rosenstark from Livingston High School in Livingston, NJ, United States.  
Dr. Skeist commented: “We know this invaluable experience of collaboration and teamwork, utilizing scientific methodology, and meeting like-minded students from around the world, will benefit them as they enter their college careers and beyond.”  

About Spellman High Voltage Electronics Corp:
Spellman High Voltage Electronics is the world's leading provider of high performance, custom and standard DC high voltage power converters and Monoblock® X-Ray sources for medical, industrial, semiconductor, security, analytical, laboratory and under-sea cable power-feed applications. As a global supplier with strategically located design and manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia, Spellman is committed to providing best-in-class support to OEM customers and end-users throughout the world. For more information, contact: Suzanne Muller at smuller@spellmanhv.com.

About the Center for Science Teaching & Learning:
The Center for Science Teaching & Learning (CSTL) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to encourage science learning and literacy. CSTL develops programs for people of all ages and utilizes inquiry-based learning as its foundation for program development. For more information, visit www.cleantechcompetition.org, or contact: Dr. Ray Ann Havasy at RayAnn@cstl.org .

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