STEM Challenge Offers Opportunities for Students and Chapters
AFCEA International is joining the National Science Teachers’ Association (NSTA) to execute the U.S. Army’s eCYBERMISSION Program. It is a free, Web-based science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) competition for students in grades six through nine attending U.S. or Defense Department Education Activity schools. The contest challenges students to identify a problem and find a solution using the scientific method, scientific inquiry or engineering design process.
Student teams choose from one of seven mission challenges: alternative sources of energy; environment; food, health and fitness; forces and motion; national security and safety; robotics; or technology. Participants compete for state-, regional- and national-level awards for up to $8,000 in U.S. Savings Bonds in prizes.
AFCEA chapters also can benefit from this competition. Participants have the opportunity to select an AFCEA chapter from a drop-down menu during initial registration. Chapters then receive points based on the type of registrant, varying from five points for a team adviser or ambassador to one point for students. The value for each point is $1. According to Kent Schneider, AFCEA president and chief executive officer, Team AFCEA—including the chapters and the AFCEA Educational Foundation—could receive up to $50,000 “depending on how successful we are.”
The deadline for teams to register is December 14. Visit AFCEA’s webpage on Chapter eCYBERMISSION Outreach for more details and tips about how to enlist schools in your area.
