Principal John Murray is pleased to share that Medway High School students had the opportunity to showcase their hard work on several projects during an Innovation Showcase before the end of the last school year.

Several Medway Public Schools staff members and guests visited Medway High School Tuesday to view student projects and act as judges. 

A total of eight projects were on display in the high school’s library for judging. Other projects represented by various Medway High School STEM courses were also available for viewing. 

The students who worked on each competing project first pitched their project to the judges through a “Shark Tank” style format, trying to convince the judges in two minutes or less to invest in their project. The pitches were scored on their ability to convince, make the judges want to know more and persuade the judges to want to invest. 

After, judges were able to view each project and ask students questions about their process and final product. The teams were evaluated on how well they defined and researched their problem and developed clear objectives; how well they designed a prototype, communicated the construction process, tested their prototype, acknowledged shortcomings and discussed next steps; and how well they presented their project, used effective visual aids and responded to questions posed by the judges. 

“The project presentations were the culmination of several months of work by each student team, and it was great to see it all come together at the Innovation Showcase,” Medway High School science and engineering teacher Jon Jasinski said. “I would also like to thank our judges who took time out of their day to hear about the teams’ considerations and efforts that led them to their solution, and provided valuable feedback.” 

Allie Eddy, Amy Johnston and Anna Longval created the Medway Menu, an app that helps students with food allergies determine what they can eat for lunch in the Medway Public School system.

Hallie Nisbet, Olivia Killman and Mattie Williamson created a Diabetes Bracelet, a device that masks embarrassment of managing health conditions to help children with diabetes not feel as if they are different from their peers in a school setting.

Caroline Calnan, Paige Dwyer and Rayah Vasko created a Wellness Journal to help individuals struggling with nutrition and lifestyle choices by allowing them to track habits without judgement through a wholistic journal that looks at the big picture rather than just calories. It is designed to aesthetically and encouragingly track the user’s personal progress. 

Paige Diminico and Isabella Fasolino created Communication Cards to help nonverbal children on the autism spectrum communicate in a school setting through the use of real-life pictures. 

Hannah Marsh, Meghan Coakley, Khushboo Patel and Erin Shipos created the Dehydration Dino to help children manage their hydration level by providing an easy way to test dehydration through skin turgor, or the skin’s elasticity.

Jenna Rankin, Tony Morris and Jared Hultstrom created the Vita Ring, helping people living with Sickle Cell Anemia establish a level of comfort by updating them on their blood oxygen levels, reducing response times and helping to quickly get needed medical attention.

Carter Pomponio, Pedro Tose and Ian Khoo created Dextend, a flexible and adjustable desk that gives students a larger space for learning, allowing them to learn comfortably and focus on their tasks.

Addison Thompson and Jake Shaughnessy created the Baking Buddy, helping professionals and home bakers optimize prep times and reduce mess by providing a more efficient way of measuring ingredients.

Following the presentations, the judges submitted their scores on the students’ pitches and project presentations. Dextend was awarded first place, the Diabetes Bracelet second and the Wellness Journal third. Dextend also won the pitch contest. The winning teams were each awarded medals.

“It was great to see the Innovation Showcase expanded this year to include more teams and projects that also covered English-Language Arts, government and wellness,” Principal Murray said. “It’s exciting to see what real-world problems the teams choose to pursue each year and the unique solutions they develop.”