Students master the crane, command the dock at Engineering Design Challenge
Posted: March 31, 2025
Middle and high school students representing each secondary school in Newport News participated in the school division's Engineering Design Challenge March 28 at Crittenden Middle School.
High & Dry: Master the Crane, Command the Dock was the theme of the problem they were presented to solve for the competition. For the challenge, students do not know what the assignment is until it is given to them with the instructions and materials needed at the start of the time period allowed to complete it.
Competing in groups, students took on the role of maritime professionals to design, budget and build a gantry crane that could lift the most weight possible. This hands-on competition simulated real-world shipyard operations and emphasized engineering, problem-solving and teamwork.
Teams designed and built a functional gantry crane within set guidelines, managed a budget to procure materials efficiently, created digital blueprints to plan their designs and operated their cranes to complete precision tasks in a simulated dry dock.
Success was measured by how well teams balanced innovation, structural integrity, budget discipline and operational skill – mirroring real industry challenges, according to NNPS STEM Instructional Supervisor Tami Byron.
Warwick High School Team 1 was the overall winner.
Place winners in the middle school competition were Passage Middle School 6th Grade Team in first place; Gildersleeve Middle School 8th Grade Team in second place and Ella Fitzgerald Middle School 7th Grade Team in third place. In the high school competition, Warwick High School Team 1 earned first place, Menchville High School Team 2 second place and An Achievable Dream High School Team 1 third place.
Crittenden Middle School's 8th Grade Team and Ella Fitzgerald's 7th Grade Team were honored with the 5 Cs Award for their use of creative thinking, citizenship, critical thinking, collaboration and communication skills during the competition.
Newport News Shipbuilding served as NNPS' community partner for the event. The Engineering Design Challenge is part of the school division's ongoing STEM education initiative emphasizing skills in science, technology, engineering and math.
This school year's first Engineering Design Challenge was for fifth grade students and took place December 6. The final challenge for this school year will be for second and third graders on May 16 at Newsome Park Elementary School.
