YSU's Steel Bridge and Concrete Canoe teams both competed at the 2024 Eastern Great Lakes Student Symposium, hosted by Akron University on April 4-6th. 

Both teams have been researching, designing, building, and preparing for the competition since September and will be representing YSU at the national level this summer.

Steel Bridge

The Steel Bridge team placed 1st in Construction Speed, 1st in Economy, 2nd in Lightness, 3rd in Economy and 2nd Overall. The team will compete at the national competition hosted by Louisiana Tech University May 31st to June 1st. 

The project entails designing and fabricating a scale-model steel bridge that can be efficiently and economically constructed in real-world practices.

Bridge Members (left to right): Tyler Rabenstine, Marshall Sarisky, Klea Shehu, Zach Glavic, Mike Sandora, Nate Chalus (Captain), Mike Gonda, and Jake Huzyak

Concrete Canoe

The Concrete Canoe team placed 1st in Presentation, 1st in Final Product Prototype, and 4th in Project Proposal, leading to 1st Overall. The team will be heading to Brigham Young University to compete in the national competition June 20th-22nd.

"Perennial," the flower-themed canoe, honors both the legacy and growth of Youngstown. The theme was inspired by the old flower shop that was repurposed into the Watson Team Center, the new workspace for the STEM competition teams.

The team designed and built a 20-foot canoe made of concrete. The prototype is judged on durability, usability, and aesthetics. The team also prepared a technical proposal paper and oral presentation.

Canoe Members (left to right of "Canoe 2"): Front: Shelby Palmer, Emily Honthy, Christine Zheng, Morgan Scott (Co-Captain), Elizabeth Williams (Co-Captain), Kayla Mathias, Cassandra Snopik; Back: Liz Harger, Henry Harner, Tyler Rabenstine, Stephon Miller, Mike Sandora, Mike Gonda, Lydia Noble, Jaclyn Kubala (not pictured: Evan Fink and Lucas Ulbricht)

Congratulations to our YSU teams!