Golden Elementary students earn top honors for creative inventions in OCDE’s ocMaker Challenge

Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District (PYLUSD) students from Golden Elementary School have been distinguished for their submissions to the annual ocMaker Challenge.

Each year, dozens of students from across Orange County create STEM-based designs that demonstrate creativity and ingenuity as a part of the ocMaker Challenge. Organized by the Orange County Department of Education’s Career Education unit, the annual event draws hundreds of elementary, middle, and high school students each year who are eager to show off their creative inventions and compete for a variety of awards determined by panels of industry professionals. Challenge teams begin as early as October, collaborating, designing, and building prototypes with varying degrees of difficulty.

Below is a list of the award winners from Golden Elementary School

Level 1 / 1st Place (pictured above)
Project Name: Pollution Solution
Students: Jeremy Pineda, Ved Patel, Mathias Tobing
Teacher: Jenner Rasic

Level 1 / 2nd Place
Project Name: Redwood Climate Dome
Students: Brady Porter, Saxon Duncan, Jasmine Martinez, Haasini Manimaran
Teacher: Jenner Rasic

Level 2 / 3rd Place
Project Name: Instant Food Maker
Students: Gavin Chan, Tyler Novotny, Ethan Borja, Nico Angelopoulos, Kian Brenner
Teacher: Jenner Rasic

Most Socially Conscious (2)
Project Name: Chemical Detection
Students: Ella McDonald, Lola Cerda, Molly Morton
Teacher: Jenner Rasic

Project Name: Helping People Experiencing Homelessness
Students: Colin Kim, Nolan Kim, Jacob Shin, Cole Howard, Reuben Pinnasi
Teacher: Jenner Rasic

The goal of the ocMaker Challenge is to provide Orange County PK-12 and post-secondary student populations with an integrated approach to learning. The program’s vision is to harness every student’s talents and show the important interdependencies between Science, Math, Engineering, Technology, English, Art, Invention, and Entrepreneurship by “Igniting Innovation and Creativity in the Classroom!”

Click here to view videos of each project and see additional winners online. Way to go, Golden!