Wednesday - It's Hot in Dallas!

We are at the end of our first full day here at the Technology Student Association National Conference and our students have been working hard in their competitive events. The weather is hot, and so are the competitions. Almost 4000 students from across the country are here to compete for top honors.

For some, the day was about making sure everything was right about their entry before turning it in for judging. Su-Ah and Daniel had to complete a few details before turning in their notebook and plans for the Kenya-Trickya Game, but it is a beautiful game, much more fully realized then the version entered at states where they won a top prize. There was excitement across our whole team when our team showed up on the list of finalists for this event, called Inventions & Innovations.

Matthew had a very busy day, turning in his entry for Go Green Manufacturing and working with Conrad to set up the display for their awesome Medical Technology Issues entry, entitled "Organ on a Chip." But, before he did that, he spent thee hours writing in the "Write Now" competition and taking the preliminary test for the "Zap It- Electronics Applications" challenge. His hard work is paying off: he is an announced finalist in the electronics challenge. Late tonight, we'll look to see if the finalists have been posted for his other two events as well.

Three students (Shanmuka, Conrad and Su-ah) spent the late afternoon working together in the Leadership Strategies competition. Conrad had been part of the award winning team at our state competitions for this event and he was joined today by Shanmuka and Su-Ah.

All of the students were excited to make the trip, and though the school year ended yesterday, these kids weren't done. Tomorrow, Thursday, will be the biggest day for all of the students- they have a lot to do. I'll be reporting with details of their participation and news (we hope)of their success!

Marty Farmer, Chapter Advisor