Julius West Middle School in Rockville and Hallie Wells Middle School in Clarksburg are among 300 public schools nationwide to be selected as state finalists for the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow STEM competition, Samsung Electronics America said Monday in a statement.
On Tuesday, the company announced the finalists in its 15th annual national competition that asks students in grades six through 12 to create innovative solutions with science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to address “critical issues in their local communities,” according to the statement. Finalists were chosen from among “thousands of applications across all 50 U.S. States and the District of Columbia,” the statement said.
Each state finalist won a $2,500 Samsung technology prize package and will now compete to be among three national winners to be awarded $100,000 for their schools next year.
The competition “engages Gen Z and Gen Alpha students” to “catalyze positive change” through STEM, problem-based learning, environmental stewardship and social impact entrepreneurship to “tackle some of society’s most pressing challenges” in their local communities, the statement said.
According to Samsung, 33% of the contestants’ projects focus on the climate crisis, and other projects tackle mental health and wellness and school safety. Roughly 60% of students participating in the competition utilized emerging technologies including artificial intelligence, 3D printing and robotics.
The statement did not detail the projects submitted by the schools chosen as state finalists.
According to the statement, the next phase of the contest calls for teachers at the state finalist schools to create a focused activity plan that outlines how students will execute their STEM project by defining the community problem, proposing a STEM-based solution and specifying objectives.
In addition to the three national winners, 50 state winners will also receive a video kit with $12,000 worth of Samsung technology to help create their “STEM solution pitch video.” The state winners are expected to be announced in March.
Additionally, one of those 50 state winners will be recognized with a Sustainability Innovation Award and one will be selected for the Rising Entrepreneurship Award, both receiving an additional $25,000 prize package.
