St. Valentine places in fourth 'Future City' event
Joe Kohn of The Michigan Catholic
Published January 26, 2007
Catholic Schools Supplement
Joe Kohn | The Michigan Catholic
Eighth graders at St. Valentine School in Redford Township won fourth place in an engineering competition for building and presenting their model city for the year 2689 A.D. | Redford Twp. — Talk about Catholic school students being prepared for the future. Eighth graders at St. Valentine School have been commended by professional engineers for designing a city for the year 2689 A.D.
After spending three months working with their teachers and volunteer engineers from their community, 38 students from St. Valentine took home an award for fourth place from the Future City Competition in Detroit. The Jan. 17 competition, sponsored by the Engineering Society of Detroit, requires students to design cities using computer software, then build and present models using real-life engineering concepts.
"It was a great experience, making everything and doing everything as a team," said eighth grader Chelsey Garcia, one of three students elected by her class to present the city to judges.
St. Valentine's city, small enough to fit on a table top, contained real lighting, different zones for commercial, residential and recreational use and a slew of other-worldly-looking buildings (what'd you expect for 2689 A.D.?). Judges especially liked St. Valentine's use of fuel cells and solar power, and its magnet-based mass transit system.
"It looks like fun, but they did a lot of work on the project," said St. Valentine principal Mariann Lupinacci.
Competing with more than 40 schools, public and private, St. Valentine took home the top prize for a Catholic school. Academy of the Sacred Heart in Bloomfield Hills won fifth place in the competition. St. Joseph School in Lake Orion received a prize for best use of material and Shrine Academy in Royal Oak took home the Cool City Award.
Catholic Schools Week Activities | Open Houses
School Locator | School Information
Tuition Assistance | High School Placement Test
|
