Scecina junior explores engineering Rose-Hulman STEM camp
Teddy Waninger was voted Most Outstanding Citizen at Operation Catapult, a STEM summer camp at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.
Eying a career in engineering, Scecina junior Teddy Waninger learned about a great opportunity: a selective science, engineering, and math summer camp at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute.
Teddy not only was chosen for Operation Catapult for summer 2021, but he was also voted Most Outstanding Citizen by the other campers.
Students chosen for Operation Catapult:
• live on campus for nearly two weeks
• can earn college credit if they attend Rose-Hulman
• meet students from around the state and country
• work with Rose-Hulman professors on advanced experiments and projects.
Besides the obvious educational benefits, Teddy said, “I learned how well I do surrounded by new people. I met a lot of people, most of them were from here in Indiana, but there were also several from Texas, Colorado, and many other states.”
His STEM project, working with other students, was turning algae into biodiesel.
“We started with some algae and had to design a bioreactor for it to grow,” he said. “Then we harvested the algae and turned it into oil, which could be turned into biodiesel, but we did not make it to that step.
“I learned a lot about growing, harvesting, and using algae, and also a method of turning oil into biodiesel.”
Teddy said his favorite subject has always been math. He also recently was recognized as one of Scecina’s three Rising Stars of Indiana, a program of the Indiana Association of High School Principals that recognizes academic achievements of high school juniors.
Teddy currently takes Physics I Honors with Mr. Tim Riley. He plays on the tennis team and also is a Student Ambassador and in the gaming club and the archery club. He wants to attend Rose-Hulman or another school of engineering.
Operation Catapult is open to students during the summers after their sophomore or junior year. To be considered, you need to have taken a year of chemistry or physics to be considered for admission, which is selective.
