Student News: middle school STEM winners, academic achievements, scholarships and more in the Pine, Richland
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MySTEM Academy team places in top spot
The middle school robotics team NextGen Robotics, hosted by MySTEM Academy, won the first place Director’s Award at the 2021 FIRST LEGO League Western Pennsylvania Championship.
In addition to coming in first place overall among the 16 participating teams, NextGen Robotics also took first place in the Robot Game and the Global Innovation Project Award.
The annual competition judges teams on three aspects: Core Values, Innovation Project and Robot Design.
The team consists of local students Alex Lopez, Andrew Woods, Karthik Palled, Owen McKernan, Prisha Dargan, Sameer Gosalia, Shivum Telang, Sritej Padmanabhan, Ronit Ginde and Zach Manczka.
Team members are from McCandless, Franklin Park, Marshall, Pine and Adams in Butler County.
They each dedicated more than 300 hours since June 2020, meeting remotely and in small groups at MySTEM Academy’s center in Wexford.
Participants had to build and program an autonomous robot to solve 14 missions in 2.5 minutes; design and create a prototype, modular, low-cost weight training system using professional CAD software and 3d printers; and teach robotics and coding to local and international children.
As the region’s first-place champions, the team qualified to attend the World Festival in Detroit, Mich., in August with 70 teams from across the world.
P-R kindergarten registration
The Pine-Richland School District will conduct registration for children entering kindergarten registration online this year. Residents will be able to create a registration application account, complete and upload all registration materials.
Families should complete the registration process by March 31.
Children must be 5 years old before Sept. 1 to enroll in kindergarten, or 6 years old before Sept. 1 to enroll in first grade.
Information about attendance areas, requirements and a link to the application are available online.
Academic achievements
The following students from the North HIlls were recognized for their academic achievement during the fall 2020 semester by being named to the dean’s, president’s or provost’s list at the college or university they attend:
• Grove City College: Madeline Baiely, Katie Baker, David Butler, Haley Dietz, Audrey Eaton, Vienna Howat, Matthew Knauer, Barbara Matthews, Tabitha Morris, Josef Mueller, Tomas Mueller, Lily Novak, Matt VanKirk, Maddie Ware, Isabelle Duran, Kaylee Grieb, Jake Guidas, Jesse Lind, Paige Stitt, Sarah Dawson, Caitlin McDonough, Sophia Melanson, Meghan Walsh and Hannah Werner.
• Villanova University: Austin Smith.
• University of Alabama: Grant Kriege.
Scholarships for P-R seniors
High school seniors in the Pine-Richland School District can begin applying for scholarships awarded by the Pine-Richland Opportunity Fund on March 1.
The first scholarship is the $2,500 Ryan Malady Memorial Scholarship.
More information on the scholarships that are available and how to apply for them is available on the Opportunity Fund’s website.
High school tutoring
Pine Township is offering in-person tutoring sessions every other Tuesday through April 20 for students who attend Pine-Richland High School.
The free sessions will be limited to four students and four tutors in each room while following covid-19 safety precautions.
Sign up online for the various sessions that are available.
La Roche offers Instagram Live admissions event
An Instagram Live event hosted by La Roche University will offer on-the-spot admissions decisions and an inside look at campus March 11.
The live event will be at 5 p.m. and will feature a counselor-guided tour of a private residence hall room and other La Roche facilities, including the Palumbo Science Center, Kerr Fitness & Sports Center and Zappala Campus Center. Users also will hear from current students and have the opportunity to ask questions.
Students are encouraged to submit an application prior to the event with related documents.
Follow @larocheuniv on Instagram to join the live event.
For more information, email admissions@laroche.edu or call 412-536-1272.