SREB Student Wins Big with Clean Energy Project

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2015 Young Innovator of the YearA high school student from Lexington-Richland District Five in South Carolina was honored with the 2015 Young Innovator of the Year award for his clean energy project. Tyler Wrenn, a senior at Chapin High School, was recognized for the award by InnoVison during a ceremony in September earlier this year. Wrenn is part of the Center for Advanced Technical Studies at his school and enrolled in the Clean Energy Technology program – supported by the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB).

Wrenn’s project aims to advance a clean, renewable source of power. His research uses biomimicry to perfect windmill-like devices, known as underwater turbines. He has received several honors due to his work, including a research grant from the District Five Foundation, placing first in the engineering division of the 2015 South Carolina Junior Science and Humanities Symposium and the Baruch Institute Marine Design Award in 2014.

“It’s an honor to be considered an innovator. I just see myself as a kid who had an idea and a school system that’s provided me with the means to take that idea and turn it into something real. There’s been great support every step of the way,” Wrenn noted. [1]

Wrenn stated that he got the idea for his research from a magazine article on propellers. Using his school’s resources, he was able to fabricate a metal hub and test several propeller shapes with a 3D printer. The Clean Energy Technology program at the Center for Advanced Technical Studies offers Wrenn and his fellow students resources and materials they wouldn’t usually have access to.

SREB’s Clean Energy Technology Program

The Clean Energy Technology Program is one of SREB’s Advanced Career pathways. Advanced Career (AC) fuses technical and academic skills into authentic projects for high school classrooms. AC courses give students a greater depth of knowledge and experienced skill sets that prepare them for more options after they graduate – whether that be college or a career field.

The Clean Energy Program at the Center for Advanced Technical Studies help students learn about solar, wind, biofuels and other forms of renewable energy sources. Students are asked to perform a variety of hands-on tasks, designed to challenge them to create projects and find solutions for real-world obstacles. This is where projects like Tyler Wrenn’s research become particularly relevant and can make a difference in both the student’s future and the renewable energy industry.

Patrick Smallwood, an instructor for the Clean Energy Technology program at the Center, had this to say, “Tyler’s project is a perfect example of what we hope students gain from the program. He really is a an innovator…Most high school students don’t have this opportunity to work on original research projects, experiment with 3D printers and 3D printer programming, and then learn to articulate their findings at competitions and events. For what he’s already accomplished and what he’s learned in the process, he will have a tremendous advantage over his peers as he goes to that next level post-graduation.”

Get Involved with SREB

SREB Advanced CareerSREB’s Advanced Career pathways are built around a comprehensive sequence of four ready-to-implement courses. These pathways also support educators by providing training, access to technology and end-of-course assessment tools. To ensure standards for every school that adopts an AC curriculum, each course has a syllabus that includes instructional philosophy, delivery and support systems and a recommended grading system.

Discover how SREB is making a difference in schools across the United States. Prepare your students for a world beyond the classroom by implementing a program that inspires the same kind of innovation we see from Tyler Wrenn and his instructor Patrick Smallwood at the Center for Advanced Technical Studies.

 

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