National SAME Awards

by Mark Loes

The Greater Kansas City Post is proud to announce that Jerry Adams of Yaeger Architects and Tom Poer of HNTB were recognized at the 2012 Academy of Fellows Investiture and Golden Eagles Award Dinner held in Bethesda, Md., this past week. Jerry received the Gerald C. Brown Mentoring Award for outstanding mentoring efforts. Jerry is a lifelong mentor whose skills were instilled by his father and applied over 36 years with the Kansas City District of USACE and 10 years in the private sector. Many of the Posts' members and current leaders have experienced the privilege of working with a truly unique and giving individual. Tom Poer was one of 37 SAME members from across the globe honored as a Fellow of the Society. Tom has been a leader in the Post for more than 11 years and has served as president, vice president, historian and director. Some of Tom's accomplishments include: establishing the field chapter at Fort Riley, earning a Distinguished Post award in 2008, updating the Post by-laws, mentoring many of our members, and serving on multiple committees, conferences and community outreach events. Please extend a well-deserved congratulation to two of our distinguished members at your next encounter. 

 

Greater Kansas City Post Hosts Annual Industry Day

by Melissa Kelley

SAVE Coalition

by Jason Davis

Three senior division students do! And their project experiments did the talking.

Greater Kansas City SAME Post Young Members Chair Amy McCurdy, P.E., P.T.O.E.,

presented the SAME Society Silver Medal, Certificate of Excellence, and $100 to winners in each of three categories: Earth/Space Science, Environmental and Renewable Energy, and Engineering.

Engineering Category

Student: Mariah Mathews School: West Platte

Project: Windustry: An Engineering Study to Determine the Power Production of a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine When Grooves Have Been Added at Different Intervals Along the Blades Under Varying Wind Speed Conditions, Sponsors: Janel Coulson and Brad Lynch.

Environmental and Renewable Energy Category

Student: Brett Wagner School: Shawnee Mission South

Project: A Comparative Study of Scenedesmus Dimorphus and Spirogyra Algae Species Growth and Nitrate and Phosphate Removal in Municipal Wastewater

Sponsor: Jan Alderson.

Earth/Space Science Category

Student: Carleigh Douglas School: Blue Valley North

Project: Use of Bio-Char to Immobilize Heavy Metal Contaminants and Improve Cropping Soils

Sponsor: Janet Cyr

Approximately 800 persons observed the presentation at the Awards Ceremony for the 61st Kansas City Science and Engineering Fair at the Sheraton Crown Center on Saturday 24 March 2102 and 195 students received awards.

At zero seven hundred dark hours the Post's Special Award white ribbon judging task begins. Project Book is opened with a 22 Mar 12 logged entry. There are some final instructions from the event leaders about the student's experiments, a gulp of breakfast, some forms and a map. Then into rows and rows of tables top exhibits that covered about half of Kansas City's Union Station railroad terminal's first floor.    

Amy McCurdy led the expedition into the Senior Division area to judge project experiments with SAME Fellow Merrill Watt, II, P.E. assisting.

"It is amazing to see what topics students choose to study," exclaimed Amy upon completing a preliminary reconnaissance walk through.

There were 985 projects, all present and well accounted for; ready for judging and public observation 21 thru 23 Mar. These resulted from 1,302 projects created by students and competed in three grade level divisions: Intermediate 4-6, Junior 7-8, and Senior 9-12. Participation came from 116 public, private, parochial, and home schools in 50 school districts of the seven county Greater Kansa City region of Missouri and Kansas. Approximately 10,000 visitors were estimated to have viewed the projects during public viewing. In total, eleven subject categories exist for students to choose from when deciding their project topic.  And 302 volunteer scientists, engineers, and teachers served as judges.

Along with a teacher sponsor each student, or some cases teams of multiple students, proceed under a scientific approach to make the components of their project or collect data to examine variables that influence results and to what extent. Preparing report text, tables, and graphics to display reference materials and collected data from running several cycles of the experiment challenged each student's communications and marketing skills.  

Mission of Science Pioneers, Inc.

The mission of Science Pioneers is to create innovative and supportive education activities that will encourage the youth of Kansas City to understand and use science and critical thinking in their careers and everyday lives. In today's environment, that mission translates into meeting the challenges of science education and the need to encourage young people into science careers to meet the demands of global competition and skills needed for 21st century careers.

History of Science Pioneers, Inc.

The long and rich history of Science Pioneers dates back to 1956 when it became incorporated as a non-profit organization. At that time, Dr. Charles N. Kimball, president of Midwest Research Institute, Kansas City, Missouri, gathered together a distinguished group of industrialists, educators, and scientists in the Greater Kansas City area who were interested in forming an organization to foster, develop, and encourage youth in the study of science.

Although Science Pioneers was originally organized to direct and manage the Greater Kansas City Science and Engineering Fair, one of the largest in the nation, Science Pioneers has continuously strived to expand its programs to provide unique opportunities to students and teachers alike. Each year approximately 15,000 individuals participate in Science Pioneers activities.

To support student's interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math visit and pass along:

http://www.sciencepioneers.org/