Specifications & Resources

MESA Design Challenge Specifications

MESA Day is our annual statewide competition. Middle and high schools enrolled in MESA will bring teams to present their design in response to the following engineering design challenges. Individual awards are presented to teams that place first through sixth place in each of the design challenges and trophies are presented to the schools that place first through third overall.

MESA Day is a celebration of STEM, and in addition to bringing students together to present their projects and compete ,there are various STEM activities from our industry, non-profit, and higher education partners for student engagement and continued learning.

To ensure a positive experience for everyone our director has drafted the following message about Student Expectations and Mediation Process for MESA Day.

Director's Letter

For this project, student teams will identify an avoidable challenge that affects members of their community. Teams will then interview affected community members to understand how they are affected, and then employ human-centered design practices to engineer a solution. Teams must use a coding element in their design. 

 

Resources:

Students will design and present a Sustainability idea for a site in their community that is centered around an art installation with sustainable renewable energy features, which can include solar, hydro, wind, and biofuels. Teams will create a model and poster to present their idea.

 

Resources:

Teams will design a glider that carries a payload of 2 ping pong balls (middle school) or 4 ping pong balls (high school) that, when launched, will land on a target that is 34 feet away. An obstacle will be placed 10 feet from the launching mechanism. Any team whose glider flies over the obstacle will have their score doubled.

 

Resources

Students will design a remote-controlled robot that mimics a real animal (alive or extinct) in look, shpae, and attack/defense. Teams will also create a design poster to highlight the design, construction, and testing of the project.

 

Resources:

Students will participate in teams to solve beginner and intermediate level cybersecurity puzzles. Subject areas will include Cryptography, Linux Basics, Networking Basics, and OSINT (Open Source Intelligence Gathering). This event will be done live at MESA Day.

 

Resources:

Teams will design highways, using the approved map as a guide, to improve traffic flow in Phoenix to make driving easier. Teams will present their design and address why the highways are needed, how they will improve traffic, and how traffic speeds will improve. Teams will also create a poster to highlight the reasoning they chose, the new map, and a data analysis of traffic.

 

Resources:

Teams will design a boat made of primarily paper that travels a distance of 6 feet in a box gutter as fast as possible while powered by a handheld fan and not making contact with the sides of the gutter
No materials that are waterproof are allowed. Teams will also create a design poster to highlight the design, construction, and testing of the project.

 

Resources

Teams will demonstrate teamwork and creative problem solving skills by working collaboratively to design, construct and test a given objective/device within a specific period of time. The objective/device will be revealed at MESA Day.

 

Resources