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Published: Friday, Apr. 15, 2011

Paso middle school students produce winning wind turbine design

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By Joe Johnston | jjohnston@thetribunenews.com | purchase prints

Technology teacher Whit Donaldson, center, and several of his students watch as Brad Steveson, foreground, tests out his team’s turbine design Thursday during the KidWind Challenge at Daniel Lewis Middle School in Paso Robles.

By Tribune staff report

Twenty eighth-graders at Daniel Lewis Middle School in Paso Robles took part in the KidWind Challenge on Thursday, with three teams walking away with cash prizes and entry into a national competition next month.

Students in Whit Donaldson’s technology class broke into eight teams of two and three members each to test the designs of turbine blades in a portable wind tunnel to determine which design produced the most electricity.

After the final gust blew, Robert Hopkins and Nathaniel Weatherly took first place and a $100 prize; Chris Heinlein and Carlos Morgado earned second-place honors and a $75 reward; and third place went to Brady Finlayson and Tyler Cassidy, who earned $50 for their efforts.

All three teams now advance to the national finals May 23-25 in Anaheim. The students have been working on their four-blade designs since February as part of the STEM curriculum — science, technology, engineering and math.

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