TOMS RIVER – Seven Toms River Regional high school students and one former district student participated in the International Space Settlement Design Competition at Disney World in Florida from July 29 through August 3 after qualifying through the East Coast Regional competition held earlier this year at High School East.
Participants included Zach Wistreich, Jack Weber, Cormac Butler, Sydney Cafiero, Isabella Cutillo, Victoria Cutillo and former Toms River student Christian Ntim. They were joined by students from Newark Science Park High School, Old Bridge High School, Holmdel High School, Manalapan High School and the Marine Academy of Science and Technology. Teachers Christine Girtain, Jessica Kurtz and Marybeth Kretz served as chaperones.
The international competition brought together 226 students from 16 countries for an aerospace industry simulation. Students were divided into companies of about 60 participants and assigned roles similar to those found in real-world organizations. Teams were challenged to develop a space settlement proposal addressing construction, power, water, robotics, interior design, costs and completion schedules before presenting their work to a panel of industry professionals.
Toms River students worked with the Rockdonnell and Vulture companies, while Girtain helped lead the East Coast contingent. District alumni Liam Mahon and Logan Figular also held leadership roles in competing companies.
Rockdonnell was selected as the winning company at the conclusion of the competition. Toms River STEAM Academy seniors Jack Weber and Cormac Butler were among the winners, along with MAST students Jason Samuel, Daniel Chiu, Dolan Donigan and Noah Eckert.
