UMaine Composites Center to host 300 students for STEM challenges
The University of Maine Advanced Structures and Composites Center will host the Windstorm Challenge and the 8th Annual Maine Wind Blade Challenge for middle- and high-school students May 20.
Winning team members of both competitions will be offered internships at the UMaine Composites Center valued at more than $20,000, contingent upon enrollment at the university.
More than 500 people are expected at the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) competitions, including 300 student participants from Maine.
“We are pleased to present Maine students with these two truly hands-on STEM experiences that will immerse them in energy research inside our 100,000-square-foot laboratory to help spark the next generation of engineers, scientists, entrepreneurs and job creators for Maine and for the United States,” said Habib Dagher, executive director of the UMaine Composites Center.
“We’re confident that some of the best future engineers, scientists and entrepreneurial leaders will be on campus on May 20, and our goal is to inspire them with opportunities in our state.”
The fourth Windstorm Challenge — to be held in the center’s Alfond W2 Ocean Engineering Lab — engages students in floating offshore wind technology, innovation and business.
Student teams will design and construct a scale-model floating wind turbine platform and deliver a sales pitch-style presentation to a panel of UMaine and industry judges. The teams’ floating turbine models will be tested under extreme winds and wave conditions. The team that designs and builds the most stable platform and delivers the strongest presentation will be selected the winner.
The 8th Annual Maine Wind Blade Challenge, also being hosted by the center, is a program of the Maine Composites Alliance and the Maine Ocean and Wind Industry Initiative. This challenge connects teams of middle- and high-school students with composites companies to construct and infuse a functional set of wind blades.
Each team’s goal is to manufacture an assembly that will generate the most energy in 3 minutes or fewer. Each team also will do a presentation on its design and innovation processes.
Contact: Josh Plourde, 207.951.5650