922 teams from 45 states entered the 2024 American Rocketry Challenge at the start of the year, each with hopes of earning the title of national champion.
From those, the top 100 scoring teams advanced to the finals of the American Rocketry Challenge, held last weekend at Great Meadow in The Plains, Va., just outside Washington, D.C.
When the final rocket landed Sunday afternoon, the national championship belonged to one of the smallest schools in the entire competition—Tharptown High School.
After finishing second place in 2023, Tharptown had some 'unfinished business' to take care of this time around, and team members Kylee Beard, Angie Chavez, Shyla Martinez, Angel Franco, Adrionna Ashley, Jessie Mitchell, Isabella Hall and Frank Gutierrez took care of business, returning to Franklin County as national champs with a pending, all-expenses paid trip to England for the International Rocketry Challenge where they will compete for the world title in July at the Farnborough International Air Show.
Now in its 22nd year, the American Rocketry Challenge is a fun and challenging way to expose students to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, or STEM, not only learning about those important subjects, but looking at them as a possible career.
Tharptown's rocketry team has four coaches and sponsors, Marsha Inmon, Arreanna Orozco, Darrel Baker and Julie Madden, whose time and dedication was a major part of the team's success.
Additionally, the team was mentored by Andrew Heath, a member of the 2015 Russellville High School Rocketry Team that won the International Rocketry Challenge.
The American Rocketry Challenge is open to students in middle and high school and involves them designing, building and launching model rockets while using STEM skills to navigate the engineering challenges they face in competition. Their rockets carry one raw hen egg and are scored by how close they fly to the target flight duration and altitude, and whether the egg remains unbroken.
The preliminary events saw teams shoot for a flight duration of 43-46 seconds with an altitude of 820 feet. Those criteria are modified for the National Finals, which had an 850 foot altitude goal.
After the 100 finalists made their first launch, the top 24 advanced to the finals where the second launch had a 800 foot altitude goal.
As national champs, the team will receive $20,000 and an invitation to compete for the international title. Additionally, the school received $1,000.
And a word of caution for the other 921 teams who took part in this year's American Rocketry Challenge: You'll likely see Tharptown again, as the team has only one senior on its roster, along with one sophomore and six juniors.
Beard, who serves as team captain, told tournament officials the team doesn't plan on taking the summer off just waiting for the London competition.
“We're looking forward to success in the years ahead. To prepare for the Farnborough Air Show (in London), we plan to launch more during the summer, but we need a lot more supplies. At the end of the day, it's going to be YOLO (you only live once), because that's what we do best,” Beard said.
Tharptown High School, along with Russellville High School, has become a American Rocketry Challenge dynasty. The school has been to the finals every year since its rocketry program began in 2018, with four Top 10 finishes.
Russellville High School has also seen more than its share of success in the competition. Russellville finished 39th in this year's national finals, but RHS team coach Gabe Willis was one of the first to congratulate Tharptown's team Sunday afternoon.
“Tharptown won the national title with the best score in at least 10 years. The kids built an absolutely amazing rocket. Their coaches Julie Beard and Marsha Inmon with mentor Andrew Heath have done an amazing job preparing the kids,” Willis said. “Their score was absolutely amazing. Now, Tharptown, go out and win the World Championship!”
Tharptown's team also won the best design award for its rocket used in the finals.
The team, along with its coaches, sponsors and mentor, was honored at a Tuesday morning reception at THS Gymnasium. It will be the first of many honors the group will receive as the International Rocketry Challenge draws closer.
“I would like to congratulate Mrs. Inmon and the entire THS Rocketry Team,” said Franklin County Superintendent of Education Greg Hamilton. “Winning a national championship is a remarkable achievement. I can't say enough good things about this team and this program at Tharptown High School.”
Commenting on this story has been disabled.
