TSA chapters take the study of STEM beyond the classroom and give students the chance to pursue academic challenges among friends with similar goals and interests.
CTE teachers serve as chapter advisors, but the student members govern the organization through chapter, state and national level officers. Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools' TSA students hold a legacy of leadership with 12 students holding an NCTSA state officer positions since 2003, with four of those as state presidents.
Along with incubating the leaders of tomorrow, TSA is nurturing tomorrow's scientists, engineers, journalists, trades people and educators. This is evident when one looks at the awards our TSA chapters brought home from the conference. Below you will find a section for each of the five chapters in our district. Students from four of the schools are already making plans to attend the National TSA Conference in Atlanta, June 22-26, and will no doubt continue to represent our district with their talent, integrity and STEM skills on full display. In fact, both McDougle Middle and East Chapel Hill High TSAs will receive the Chapter Excellence Award in NCTSA for their respective school levels. The awards will be announced and received at the upcoming National TSA Conference. The advisors for both schools are extremely proud of all of their chapter members.
_____
Culbreth Middle School TSA - Mike Sharp, Advisor
The Culbreth TSA chapter was new this year, and the level of involvement was amazing. They had 30 members join the team, and 13 were able to compete at the state conference. Under the guidance and leadership of officers, Yash Gupta, Xavier Van Raay, and Sebastian Malhotra, students performed at their personal best and succeeded in bringing home a total of 5 trophies.
The following students won trophies in their events:
1st place in Coding: Sebastian Malhotra and Ben Shoenbill
2nd place in Community Service Video: Sarah Stephens and Xavier Van Raay
2nd place in Promotional Marketing: Daniel Estevez
3rd place in STEM Animation: Daniel Estevez, Miles Prenda, and Yuta Tsuboi
3rd place in Tech Bowl: Xavier Van Raay, Yash Gupta, and Srinivas Iyengar
_____
Phillips Middle School TSA - Ryan Barnes, Advisor
Phillips Middle School TSA placed in a number of events and represented their school, district and chapter in outstanding fashion.
1st Place Structural Engineering: Kabir Grewal, Raymond Zhao
2nd Place Microcontroller Design: Ethan Bartlett, Kabir Grewal, Hanqi Xiao, Jake Boggs, Graham Troy
2nd Place Website Design: Jake Boggs, Anna Finklestein, Meilin Weathington
3nd Place Electrical Applications: Ethan Bartlett
_____
McDougle Middle School TSA - Redmond Grigg and Kate Major, Advisors
These young men and women worked hard, smart ,and with so much heart this year as they prepared for competition. The trophies they earned are but symbols of their consistent and forthright efforts. They resurrected and helped beautify their school's outdoor classroom. They also ran a successful campaign to raise over $1,000 for the American Cancer Society through the Relay For Life at UNC. What an amazing feat for a group that only had three returning members.
1st Place Community Service Video: Amelia Brinson, Lula Caress, Lucas Gutierrez-Arnold, Mateo La Serna, Vincent Paquet, Sophie Ussery Intintolo
1st Place Junior Solar Sprint: Nivas Kolli, Alexis Mead
1st Place Mechanical Engineering: Nora Daley, Nivas Kolli, Katie Randolph, Noah Wegner
1st Place American Cancer Society Fundraising: Raised $1,095 through Relay For Life
2nd Place Essays on Technology: Erin Gottschalk
2nd Place Flight: Ani Yu
2nd Place Inventions & Innovations: Lars Kahn, Gabo Ochoa Samoff, Noah Wegner
2nd Place Leadership Strategies: Amelia Brinson, Lucas Gutierrez-Arnold, Lars Kahn
2nd Place Problem Solving: Diogo Gomes, Noah Wegner
3rd Place Biotechnology: Ryan Atack, Alexis Mead, Gabo Ochoa Samoff, Guillermo Vizuette
3rd Place Career Prep: Nora Daley
3rd Place Forensic Technology: Amelia Brinson, Katie Randolph
3rd Place Technical Design: Daniel Furberg, Ani Yu
_____
Chapel Hill High School TSA - Redmond Grigg, Advisor
While no Chapel Hill High student placed in their competitive events at the state conference, they still did an incredible job representing their chapter, school and district. All of the state officers from our district were Chapel Hill High students, including the previously mentioned four state presidents.
Kyle Halstater first joined TSA as a 6th grader at McDougle Middle School. This was Kyle's third year holding a state office as he just finished his tenure as the 2017-2018 NCTSA State President.
Angel Koshy will carry on the tradition of leadership as the 2018-2019 NCTSA State Reporter. She's held chapter officer positions during middle and high school, frequently serving as a mentor to younger newer members.
Jillian Breithaupt served two years as a state officer, and as the 2016-2017 NCTSA State President, she helped to revive the NCTSA Fall Leadership Rally as a means of cultivating future state officers and leaders in TSA.
_____
East Chapel Hill High School TSA - Pat Pudlo, Advisor
East Chapel Hill's TSA had semifinalists (top 12) in 13 events, and for the first time in this chapter's history, two students, Gabe Valera and Mike Pudlo, ran for state officer positions.
2nd Place Coding: Andy Farkas, Ravi Pitelka, Joseph Ahrendsen
2nd Place CAD 3D: Tarun Goyal
3rd Place Video Game Design: Andy Farkas, Ravi Pitelka
_____
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools TSA wishes to thank CTE DIrector Kathi Breweur for her staunch and unwavering support for TSA in our district! Our TSA chapters grow and flourish as a direct result of Kathi's support and guidance for CTE teachers and students alike. Kathi's belief in the power and opportunities student organizations like TSA provide CTE students, makes her an exemplary leader.
