Math Engineering Science Achievement (MESA) teams from Costa Mesa High School (CMHS) and Early College High School (ECHS) placed first in several categories at MESA Day events at the University of California, Irvine, last month. Qualifying first-place winners advance to the next round of competition in Imperial Valley on April 13. 

MESA is a college and career preparation organization that encourages student diversity and achievement in science, technology, engineering, and math. MESA Day events provide students with the opportunity to showcase projects they have spent months creating, bridging classroom knowledge with real-world applications of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). 

“I am super proud of our students’ amazing accomplishments. Every Mesa student who attended walked away with an award,” said CMHS Teacher Quang Nguyen, who, with Teacher Racine Cross, is a MESA advisor for the school. 

Newport-Mesa Unified School District (NMUSD) students competed against their peers from Anaheim Union High School District, Compton Unified School District, Garden Grove Unified School District, Lynwood Unified School District, and Santa Ana Unified School District.

Among the competition’s winners were:

Cargo Glider: Students worked in teams of two to three to design and construct a glider with a payload that, when launched, would fly over an obstacle and land on a target located 34 feet away.  

• Innovative Engineering Design (9-10 Division): First Place - King Baril, Samuel Beckers, and Johncarlo Hernandez (ECHS); Second Place - Brennan Lanz, Brandon Le, and Aidan Marcus (CMHS)
• Innovative Engineering Design (11-12 Division): Second Place - German Leon, Evan Garcia, and Nam Le (CMHS)
• (9-10 Division): First Place - Alexander Cahuantzi, Cameron Gerakos, and Antonio Gonzalez (ECHS); Second Place - King Baril, Samuel Beckers, and Johncarlo Hernandez (ECHS)

Coding Solutions: Students working independently or with a partner participated in a mock interview for a software company, during which they were tested on their knowledge of programming fundamentals and problem-solving using Python 3 (a computer programming language often used to build websites and software, automate tasks, and analyze data).

• (9-12 Division): Second Place - Anthony Lo (ECHS); Third Place - Edgar Sanchez (CMHS)

Crime Scene Science: For this event, teams of two to three students used their knowledge of Punnett squares, blood, and DNA to solve a mystery.  

• (9-10 Division): First Place - Christopher Giraud and Isabella Im (CMHS); Third Place - Parker Hilbert and Erma Jensen (ECHS)

MESA Machine: Students in teams of two to three designed, constructed, and tested vehicles, specifically a bus or car, that would be propelled by wind using four to eight different sequential and dependent actions and stop closest to a target 3 meters from the start. 

• Accuracy (9-10 Division): First Place - Escher Clark and Thuc Nguyen (CMHS)
• Accuracy (11-12 Division): First Place - Chelsea Vilchis-Garcia and Joaquin Bernal (CMHS)
• Innovative Engineering Design (9-10 Division): First Place: Escher Clark and Thuc Nguyen (CMHS)
• Innovative Engineering Design (11-12 Division): First Place: Chelsea Vilchis-Garcia and Joaquin Bernal (CMHS)

Moon Base: In teams of two to three, participants designed and constructed from recycled cardboard an original structure that would serve as a research station on the moon and could withstand the highest amount of impact, was lightweight, and met specific size requirements.

• Impact-to-Mass Ratio (9-10 Division): First Place - Britany Escobedo and Victoria Rios (CMHS); Second Place - Kendall Bees and Evan Quinn (ECHS)
• Impact-to-Mass Ratio (11-12 Division): First Place - Kyle Huynh and Jada Lee (CMHS); Third Place - Jacob Arzate, James Lewicke, and Mitchell Stagman (ECHS)
• Innovative Engineering Design (9-10 Division): First Place - Kendall Bees and Evan Quinn (ECHS); Third Place - Britany Escobedo and Victoria Rios (CMHS)
• Innovative Engineering Design (11-12 Division): Second Place -: Kyle Huynh and Jada Lee (CMHS); Third Place - Jacob Arzate, James Lewicke, and Mitchell Stagman (ECHS)

Math Escape Challenge: Teams of two to three participants competed to be the quickest to navigate through an online escape room using critical thinking skills and grade-level math. 

• (9-12 Division): First Place: Aidan Quintos, Kingston Do, and Anton Grun (CMHS)

Many of the students involved in the MESA Day competition are in the Engineering Design Pathway, part of NMUSD’s Career Technical Education (CTE) program. CMHS offers a variety of engineering courses at both the middle and high school levels. ECHS offers high school-level courses in computer science and engineering for all grades.