Forestville took both first and second place in the “Maker” category at the recent competition. Forestville also took first place individually for efficiency in the design of a bridge replica.

Over 20 schools compete in STEM Wars, a competition designed to judge the implementation of knowledge from a school’s science, technology, engineering and mathematics curriculum. There are nine different events throughout the competition, featuring hundreds of students participating ranging from middle to high school.

Forestville students presented one of the projects — an electric train track designed under the glass cover of a coffee table — at a recent Board of Education meeting. The goal of the project was to design something that was fun, complex, and took a long time to complete. The project took nearly the entire school year to finish.

“We had a lot of fun doing it,” said Technology Instructor James Pratt. “The students had to resolve issues as they arose from the plan. I think that was one of the best things that I saw – ‘What do we do now,’ and then coming up with solutions for it.”

OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen Pictured is an electric train track designed under the glass cover of a coffee table, which took second place at a recent STEM Wars competition.

The train tracks run through a wintry setting with trees, cabins, and bridges designed by in-house software and 3-D printed. The students constructed the table with materials donated by Middle/High School Principal Dan Grande. The table also includes LED lights to illuminate the tracks.

As impressive as the train table was, it earned second place because another group of Forestville students bested it in the competition. The Forestville engineering students designed a system to dry firefighters’ turnout gear.

The project, under direction of instructor Tom Dempsey, earned a perfect score in the competition. It is now being utilized by the Forestville Fire Department. An industrial dryer would have cost several thousand dollars, but the district’s project cost less than $1,000 in total.

“We’re very proud of what they’ve done, and I think you should be very pleased with the effort and the results that the students are getting in STEM,” Pratt said.

Board of Education President Andrea Spengler said, “Your hard work paid off, for sure.”