The Sura team from Maricopa Wells earned second place in the state with their Future City idea. Submitted photo

Students from Maricopa Wells and Desert Wind Middle Schools 20+1 programs took home 16 awards at the Arizona Regional Future City competition at ASU on Saturday.  Teams from Maricopa Unified School District took second and third place.

The competition gave out a total of 34 student awards, with 16 of those going to MUSD students.

Maricopa Wells Middle School students earned a total of 12 awards. Team Sura finished second place in the state.
Awards also went to teams Purnea, Tiago, Novara, Liyong Kongjian and Schone Stadt.

Robyn Rice, one of the teachers in the 20+1 class at MWMS, said, “I was repeatedly stopped by engineers and Future City directors who told me how impressed they were with our students. The co-director of Future City Arizona said that our students were a ‘class act’ and every one of them impressed him with their intelligence and kindness. I am so proud to be their teacher and watch their success.”

Joseph Szoltysik, one of the teachers in the MWMS 20+1 class, said, “It’s always rewarding to watch your students succeed at something they’ve worked so hard to attain.  I couldn’t be more proud of all MWMS students.”

Desert Wind Middle School students earned a total of four awards. Team Jakarta finished in third place in the state of Arizona. The team of La Perla Renacida also earned an award.

Jennifer Szoltysik, one of the teachers in the 20+1 class at DWMS said, “We are very proud of all of the Future Cities participants from Desert Wind Middle School. They worked extremely hard over the last four months and represented both the school and the district well. It’s always exciting as a teacher to see the students’ work showcased at such a prestigious event.”

Eight teams from Maricopa Wells Middle School and eight teams from Desert Wind Middle School traveled to ASU to compete in the Arizona Regional Future City competition. The teams had to complete a virtual computer model of a city, write a research essay around this year’s theme of Public Spaces, build a scaled model of their city, and create a 5-7 minute presentation about their city. The teams competed at the school level to earn their place in the top 8 that advanced to the state competition at ASU.

Maricopa Wells Middle School Winning Teams
Sura
Presenters: Alyson Bowen, Emma Schrader, Zeah Zimpleman
Project Manager: Kaden Rogers, Alternate: Arianna Vargas
Awards:
2nd Place in Arizona
Innovative Use of Infrastructure

Purnea
Presenters: Anabelle Dayley, Megan Hahn, Erin Hildick
Project Manager: Nicholas Perez, Alternate: Shyanne Price
Awards:
Best Computer Model
Best Team Effort
Walton Sustainable Community Award
Excellence in the Use of Building Materials

Tiago
Presenters: Alondra Garfias, Maverick Miller, Joseline Nowell
Project Manager: Alexander Grace, Alternate: Trenton Redwanc
Awards:
Walton Sustainable Community Award
Architectural Excellence Award

Schone Stadt
Presenters: Brenna Fitzpatrick, Victoria Richardson, Morgan Witte
Project Manager: Charlee Hyde, Alternate: Robert Hahn
Awards:
Best Scaled Model
Rich Goewey Community Awareness

Novara
Presenters: Joseph Abel, Joshua Kulinowski, Rylee Tarcola
Project Manager: Taryn Meyers, Alternate: Savannah Wade
Award:
Best Team Presentation

Liyong Kongjian
Presenters: Elena Antunez, Rori Gosiak, Bailey Rigby
Project Manager: Dylan Hahn, Alternate: James Couts
Award:
Award of Distinction

Desert Wind Middle School Winning Teams
Jakarta
Presenters: Isabella Ebner, Kian Pack, Jaden Pyle
Project Manager: Blake Fullmer, Alternate: Emmy Balgaard
Awards:
3rd Place in Arizona
Best Multimodal Transportation System
Walton Sustainable Community Award

La Perla Renacida
Presenters: Kendahl Belmore, Kylie Myers, Janie Pyle
Project Manager: Ryan Nguyen, Alternate: Nathan Shearer
Award:
Best Use of Water and Environmental Resources.