After an impressive performance at the regional level of the world’s largest STEM competion, F1 in Schools, Cessnock High School’s all-girl Indigenous team have qualified for a shot at the state titles in their first year competing.
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Representing The Cessnock Academy of STEM Excellence (CAE) and its member school Cessnock High, the four-girl team, going by the name of MKBD Racing will be mixing it with some of the best budding engineers in the country.
The girls – Alexandra Kipp, Jordarna Barber, Jyordi McGaw and Jayde Dunn – were encouraged to form a team and enter the F1 in Schools competition as part of new CASE initiatives to upskill Cessnock primary and high school students.
The competition involves designing and manufacturing a miniature Formula One car to race down a 20-metre track. Teams are also judged on their specifications, engineering, portfolio, marketing and verbal presentation.
Given it was their first year in the competition, the girls said that they were unsure if their inaugural performance would be good enough to qualify.
“We hoped that we would go to state but we weren’t 100 per cent sure because it was our first year,” Jordarna Barber said.
Fellow team member Jayde Dunn added that now regionals were out of the way, they were confident of a good result.
“We will be ready for anything,” she said.
Boeing Defence Australia partnered with CASE to provide the MKBD team with technical advice and mentoring during the design and construction of their F1 prototype.
The team visited Boeing’s RAAF Base Williamtown facility and studied aircraft to better understand aerodynamics, systems engineering and project management.
Deputy principal of STEM and manager of CASE Dr Scott Sleap said the knowledge the girls have gained during their time in the competition had been invaluable.
“Where they’ve come in four months is amazing in terms of their confidence from what they’ve learned from this program,” Dr Sleap said.
“These kids, their aspirations in life are now up here.”
Dr Sleap added that when MKBD racing head down to the University of Western Sydney in early November for the state final, they will be competing with potentially the best in the world.
“Typically a number of the teams that will be at state will be ones that will be national champions and potentially go overseas so at that level they will be exposed to teams that are potentially world champions,” he said.
Two teams from Mount View high will also be vying for an F1 in Schools state title this year.
We will be ready for anything
- MKBD Racing team member Jayde Dunn