Designing inventions that would advance equity by minimizing or eliminating barriers for people was the goal of students participating in the MESA Competition held Tuesday, April 12, at New Mexico Tech. Middle and high school students from across the state competed both virtually and in person in the event that draws teams who employ human-centered design practices to engineer a solution to the inequity challenge.

New Mexico MESA — Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Achievement — competitions aim to empower and motivate New Mexico’s students from culturally diverse backgrounds with science, technology, engineering, and math enrichment to prepare them for college and careers in mathematics, engineering, science or technically related fields, according to Ling Faith-Heuertz, the organization’s executive director. Students also learn “soft skills” by participating in the competitions, such as public speaking and preparing presentations.

NM MESA is part of a larger 10-state MESA consortium called MESA USA. For most of the MESA projects, students work on their inventions during their lunch break or after school, although some do have classroom time to prepare for the competitions. The April 12 competition held at the New Mexico Tech campus determines which teams advance in June to the national competition, where New Mexico has historically fared well. This year and next year New Mexico will be the host for the national competition, which draws students from 10 states.

To prepare for the competition, student teams identify a group or individual who experiences some type of inequity. After brainstorming and research, teams then design a technical solution – a prototype — using a coding component in their project. The competition features four components: design brief, technical presentation and interview, poster and symposium, and prototype pitch, which has also been referred to as an “elevator speech.” Judges evaluate each team’s project for its engineering design and usability, as well as how students present their findings and solution to various audiences.

The MESA competitions draw not only students, but also STEM professionals from throughout the state. Allie Glover and Josh Mueller, engineers from Los Alamos National Labs, take advantage of their employer’s program to promote community volunteering to serve as a judge for the MESA competition.

“We’ve benefitted from programs like this when we were kids,” Glover said. “It’s pretty fun.”

“I like to contribute to STEM education,” Mueller said. “Seeing where things are at as far as high school education” was his motivation for signing up to judge MESA competitions.

Francisco Apadoca, director of science, technology, engineering, math, and humanities at Luna Community College in Las Vegas, New Mexico, and a New Mexico Tech alum, said he serves as a judge because he likes to see students “spread their wings.”

“I like the kids and I like watching them grow and develop – it’s cool to watch,” he said.

According to Sharon Sessions, Ph.D., science and engineering fair director and New Mexico Tech physics professor and outreach director, hosting the MESA competition helps the university build relationships with students and coaches across the state.

“I think it’s important because it gives students the opportunity to discover what they’re passionate about and move out of their comfort zone,” she said.

Results from the April 12 competition held at New Mexico Tech will be posted on the New Mexico MESA website at: www.nmmesa.org

New Mexico Tech press release