Innovation Challenge @ Dahlgren inspires middle school students in STEM

Innovation Challenge @ Dahlgren inspires middle school students in STEM

By Morgan Tabor NSWCDD Corporate Communications

The Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD), in partnership with the University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg Regional Military Affairs Council and SimVentions, hosted the second Middle School Innovation Challenge @ Dahlgren (ICAD) on Nov. 9, bringing together 20 teams from 17 schools across 11 school districts and the Department of Defense Education Activity. The competition, which focused on robotics and STEM engagement, showcased the talents and teamwork of middle school students while building excitement for future careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

This year's challenge revolved around a unique robotics scenario: navigating island chains. Students designed and programmed robots to launch from an aircraft carrier, collect data, conduct reconnaissance and locate wildlife while completing seven distinct missions. Teams also tackled math challenges and participated in team interviews judged by experts from the United States Naval Academy, the Albert Einstein Distinguished Fellowship Program and the Dahlgren Heritage Museum.

"The ICAD's purpose is inspiring, engaging and educating students in STEM fields, ultimately helping to develop the next generation of scientists and engineers," said Todd Graves, NSWCDD Chief Technology Officer. "The competition was fierce, with all teams impressing the judges with their skills and presentations. However, the true success of the event lay in providing a fun and engaging environment for students to explore and learn about STEM."

The top three teams were: A.G. Wright Middle School (first place), Richmond County Elementary/Middle School (second place) and Fredericksburg Academy (third place).

This year marked the eighth innovation challenge hosted by NSWCDD, which has organized competitions for middle school, high school, collegiate and industry participants to build a robust STEM pipeline.

"Our Middle School ICAD has become one of the flagship events for our STEM outreach programs," said Tyler Truslow, NSWCDD STEM Coordinator. "We have an incredible team of STEM advocates who dedicate time to design the competition, mentor educators and students, and guide participants through challenging tasks in robotics, coding and mathematics."

Truslow emphasized the event's focus on fostering an innovative mindset. "It was exciting to see not only the growth in the size of the competition this year but also the huge leaps in the students' ability to solve problems. Last year, students hesitated to try solutions that might fail, but this year we saw innovators embracing failure as part of learning-a mindset that's core to our work as scientists and engineers at NSWCDD."

Participating schools included A.G. Wright, T. Benton Gayle, Montross Middle School, Washington District Elementary School, Chancellor Middle School, Fredericksburg Academy, King George Middle School, Richmond County Elementary School/Middle School, Caroline Middle School, Dahlgren School, Northumberland Middle School, Quantico Middle School/High School, Colonial Beach Middle School and High School, Fredericksburg Christian School, James H. Cary Intermediate School, Culpeper Middle School and Walker-Grant Middle School, representing a wide swath of the region's educational institutions. Judges praised the creativity and technical expertise displayed by the students, while families and mentors cheered on the teams' efforts.

As part of its mission to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers, NSWCDD plans to continue hosting events like the Innovation Challenge, further solidifying its commitment to STEM outreach and community collaboration.