The 2021 Abilene/Fort Worth/Lubbock Consolidated Divisional STEM Competition was hosted virtually over Whova and Zoom on Monday, January 25, 2021. More than 135 student competitors from across the region attended the free event.
Texas students from grades 6-12 competed in teams to solve an all-virtual Engineering Design Challenge. Participants were sworn to secrecy about the Challenge – at least until February 28th, when students across the state had their chance to try their skills solving the same problem. This year’s challenge was developed by engineers from ConocoPhillips.
The Texas Alliance for Minorities in Engineering (TAME) is a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring and preparing Texas students to join a strong and diverse STEM workforce. TAME programs encourage students to build skills and explore STEM concepts through hands-on activities, TAME Clubs, and statewide and divisional STEM Competitions.
The top six teams from the Engineering Design Challenge were recognized. Three teams also received a special Judges’ Choice Award for teamwork and creative problem solving. All students on the top two teams will be invited to participate in the Virtual State STEM Competition on April 24, 2021. Invitations will be sent out in March to students who qualify to participate.
Thanks to the support of TAME’s 2021 Statewide STEM Competition sponsor ConocoPhillips, STEM Competitions across Texas are offered free of charge for all participants. TAME thanks our 2021 Awards Sponsor Halliburton, our Regional Presenting Sponsor Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, and our Fort Worth Sponsors Google and PPG.
Rosa Puga, a Lockheed Martin Applications Engineer from Fort Worth, spoke about her STEM career, took questions from students, and shared words of encouragement:
If you know you have some interest in STEM, I guarantee you it’s going to pay off. There is so much opportunity in these fields and the future is really bright. I am the first one in my family to actually get a college degree and for any of you wondering, what does it take to be an engineer? It takes passion, hard work. Just strive to complete all those courses and you will be successful. I want all of you in this room to know with whatever STEM field you want to pursue, it is possible. We want to make sure the engineers and all the different employees coming into the company are from diverse backgrounds. We need that. There are opportunities and there are incredible different programs as well in development also production and just being able to see that firsthand? There’s nothing like it. So I do want to emphasize—everyone here in this room, regardless of your background, you have an opportunity to make a difference to the future. You are the future.
We are especially grateful to our Event Coordinators, Ashley Zamora-Sebesta and Enrique Garza in Birdville ISD in the Fort Worth Chapter, and Ariana Hernandez, Mary Harris, Ashley Cowgill, and Brian Garibay of Texas Tech University in the Lubbock Chapter. We also thank our dedicated TAME Club Sponsors, and the many volunteers from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics and Texas Tech University for celebrating achievement in STEM and making learning fun and exciting for Texas students.
More information on TAME’s annual STEM Competitions can be found here. See more about TAME’s plan for the 2020-21 school year. Want to get involved in planning local and statewide TAME events? Learn more here.
Congratulations to all our hardworking competitors!
A screenshot from the Welcome Ceremony of the 2021 Abilene/Fort Worth/Lubbock STEM Competition.
Rosa Puga, a Lockheed Martin Applications Engineer from Fort Worth, spoke about her STEM career, took questions from students, and shared words of encouragement.
PARTICIPANTS
The following TAME Clubs participated in the event:
| Club Name | TAME Chapter |
| Snyder Junior High | Abilene |
| Haltom High School | Fort Worth |
| Haltom Middle School | Fort Worth |
| Harmony Science Academy – Euless | Fort Worth |
| Southwest Club | Fort Worth |
| Watauga Middle School | Fort Worth |
| Atkins Middle School | Lubbock |
| Lynn County 4-H | Lubbock |
| Margaret Talkington School For Young Women Leaders | Lubbock |
| Roosevelt ISD | Lubbock |
| Shallowater | Lubbock |
ENGINEERING DESIGN CHALLENGE RESULTS
The six top scoring teams were recognized with awards. All students on the top two teams will be invited to participate in the Virtual State STEM Competition on April 24, 2021.
| 1st Place | 2nd Place | 3rd Place | 4th Place | 5th Place | 6th Place |
| Team 16 | Team 6 | Team 10 | Team 14 | Team 8 | Team 12 |
| DEEEEP | Da Vinci | Team 10 | Sherlock Homies | Oily Engineers | Team 12 |
| Aaron Guerrero | Breken Ramos | Cecilia Romero | Addisyn Burrow | Dave Park | Dennis Henriquez |
| Brayson Beck | Isabella Martinez | Chloe Guerrero | Cammi Campos | Elaine Zhu | Hannah Fisher |
| Conner Fortner | Julian Padron | Edgar Maldonado | Jaeda Gilbert | Jaxon Angeley | Irene Liang |
| Kaelah Harris | Laura Garza | Helena Nguyen | Justice Jackson | Joanna Martinez | Jeneysi Segundo |
| Mahim Shrestha | Ojaswee Aryal | Jayton Burrow | Kevin Hernandez | Juliana Salinas | Levi Wood |
| Mary Hernandez | Rosario Magana-Hernandez | Kyndal Grimes | Nidia Solis | Julianne Bullock | Maritza Pulido |
| OriAnna Perez | Royal Say | Patrick Ritz | Patrick Kincaid | Ruby Capps | Raul Guerra |
| Reagen Stokes | Utsawb Lamichhane | Saul Loredo | Pratyush Niraula | Whit Smithson | Shawn Gifford |
| Zachary Ford | Trinity David | Yured Cabrera | |||
| Zachary Azerad |
JUDGES’ CHOICE AWARDS
Because STEM fields rely on creative problem solving, three Judges’ Choice Awards were presented to teams who communicated well to create a strong strategy, and who prioritized creativity and teamwork.
| Judges’ Choice | Judges’ Choice | Judges Choice |
| Team 1 | Team 3 | Team 9 |
| Tech Tigers | Titans | The Excavists |
| Angelina Nguyen | Aiden Hull | Aaron Pena |
| Cristal Camarena | Amarachi Uche-Eboh | Aidan McGaha |
| Damien Konys | Braelyn Lawson | Eyaini Boyd |
| Eyan Washington | Brian Connors | Gladyes Kyobe |
| Mya Gonzales | Finley Miller | Isac Rodriguez |
| Nora Naveen | Grace Kadia | Natalie Reyna |
| Solomon Bunger | Sabra Clifton | Reydyn Sosa |
| Vivian Perez | Riley Laws | |
| Zack Sellers |
Thanks to our Sponsors!
Statewide Sponsor
Statewide Awards Sponsor
Regional Presenting Sponsor
Corporate & Foundation Sponsors
ExxonMobil, Google, Howmet Aerospace, Northrup Grumman, Permian Basin Area Foundation, PPG, Rackspace, Silicon Labs, and Xcel Energy
Higher Education Partners
Angelo State University, Odessa College, Texas Tech University, University of Houston, The University of Texas at Austin, and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
