By Pepper Fisher
PORT ANGELES – We do a lot of school sports reporting here at KONP, but sports aren’t the only competitions in our schools, and the kids at Stevens Middle School deserve some recognition for their huge success at this year’s Annual Washington State TSA Conference.
TSA is the Technology Student Association. It’s a before-and-after-school club at Stevens that gives students the chance to really dig into hands-on projects in science, technology, engineering, and math, or STEM, and develop their skills.
In March, the 22 students in the Stevens TSA chapter traveled to the Doubletree SeaTac Hotel to participate in the 4-day conference, under the direction of their teaching advisors, Brenda Manson and Gunnar Thomason. Out of more than 150 middle schools, they placed first, second and third in 7 competitive categories, including first place in Systems Control Technology, Off the Grid, Biotechnology and the Construction Challenge.
Next for Stevens TSA is the National Conference in Louisville, Kentucky, coming up in June and July. Our Port Angeles students will represent not only their hometown but, now, the state of Washington.
These students are responsible for covering registration fees and lodging, with some support financially from the school district. To help cover costs, students are raising funds. You’ll find donation and support information here.
Below is a list of the Stevens teams who earned awards at the competition. Students who placed in the top three in their divisions also qualified for the National TSA Conference.
WTSA Finalists – 2022-2023
Advisors – Brenda Manson and Gunnar Thomason
1st Place – Systems Control Design
- Peter Schiess
- Brett Manson
- Jacob Oberly
1st Place – Biotechnology
- Miriam Cobb
- Madeline Walton
- Izzy Torgerson
- Teig Carlson
1st Place – Construction Challenge
- Parker Horn
- Audrey Rudd
- Addison Fox
1st Place – Off the Grid
- Kayla Grant
- Olivia Mesen
- Brooklyn McKnight
4th Place – Microcontroller Design
- McHenry Miller
- Brett Manson
- Jacob Oberly
3rd Place – Data Science and Analytics
- Chloe Bruning
- Tieg Carlson
- Aurelio Wilson
- Thomas Jones
3rd Place – Off the Grid
- Lillian Mahaney
- Avery Cammisa
- Charlotte Curran
- Stella Fradkin
- Sarah Butterworth
2nd Place – Medical Technology
- Aurelio Wilson
- Thomas Jones
2nd Place – Electrical Applications
- Izzy Torgerson
- Peter Schiess