Winners heading to state championship

A middle school team and a high school squad from Polk County will advance to the state finals in April after winning the regional 18th annual Model Bridge Building Competition. The N.C. Department of Transportation sponsors the event.

Polk Early College took top honors in the high school competition with an overall score of 86.5 points. Polk County Middle School won first place in the middle school competition with 52.3 points. A written report, an oral presentation, the design drawing and weight bearing limit all contribute to the score.

The event features teams of students designing and building a model bridge. The bridges are tested by NCDOT engineers. Representatives of engineering companies served as judges.

This competition is designed to give students a hands-on opportunity to apply their science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills to a real-world scenario, and get excited about STEM courses. The hope is that students will pursue engineering careers.

The two winning teams, along with the winners from the three other regional events, held in Raleigh, Asheboro and Morganton, will advance to the state finals in Raleigh on April 28.

To learn more about the competition, check out the Model Bridge Building event video on YouTube, or contact event organizer Sterling Johnson, scjohnson@ncdot.gov

– article submitted by David Uchiyama