Racing into the Future: Pinellas County STEM Students Get Up Close and Personal with Grand Prix Technology
The 20th Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg has kicked off, and this year, a group of lucky students from Pinellas County Schools got to experience the thrill of racing up close. As part of the second annual Team Accelerate Day, 75 students from three middle schools in St. Pete - Johns Hopkins Middle, Bay Point Middle, and Thurgood Marshall Fundamental Middle - spent the morning at USF St. Pete’s STEM lab, learning about the science behind racing.
Students from Pinellas County Schools learn about the technology behind racing at the Grand Prix
The students used 3D modeling software to create a new Grand Prix logo, and later got to see the race cars on the track and meet the drivers. For sixth-grader Jadiel Diaz from Bay Point Middle School, the highlight was meeting driver Christian Brooks and getting his autograph. “It was really cool learning about the race stuff and learning about 3D printers and all of the race stuff,” Diaz said. “We met a driver, Christian Brooks. I got his autograph and stuff. It was really fun. That was my favorite part.”
Students learn about the technology behind racing at the Grand Prix
Cathie Mullins, the secondary STEM instructional staff developer for Pinellas County Schools, emphasized the importance of hands-on experiences for students. “Students need experiences, and they don’t necessarily get those experiences until we go out into the field,” Mullins said. “Once a student sees an experience, they can start to dream a little and think, ‘oh my gosh, this might be something I want to do.’ So, these experiences are essential for our students.”
For Diaz, the experience was life-changing. He used to want to be a baseball player, but after Friday, he wants to be a driver or someone who works on race cars.
Students from Pinellas County Schools learn about the technology behind racing at the Grand Prix
The Team Accelerate Day partnership between Pinellas County Schools, the City of St. Pete, and USF St. Pete aims to inspire students to pursue careers in STEM fields. With experiences like this, who knows what the future holds for these young minds?
