Christopher Columbus High School

A Catholic School for Young Men in the Marist Tradition since 1958

News Detail

STEM Club Members Win 1st Place at Global Innovation Summit

Members of the Columbus STEM Club became First Place Winners at the prestigious Conrad Innovation Challenge, an innovation and entrepreneurial competition which aims to develop extraordinary and viable solutions to benefit our world.  

Jesus Capo, David Perez, Chris Perez, Alex Cordero, and Hans Rueckschnat are the brilliant students that, as Team TIER, competed against high school teams from around the world at the Kennedy Space Center and brought home first place in the Cybertechnology and Security Category for their innovative product - the Mini BlackBox (a rugged casing for high performance computers, supercomputers and servers which implements a modular design).
 
The team won the competition through a multi-phase process:
  • They became semifinalists when their video submission won from over 600 students globally.
  • Their excellent business plan (ranked 1st in the competition) advanced them to Finalists.
  • The 6-minute Power Pitch given by Hans Rueckschnat and Alexander Cordero clinched their win out of 40 teams, many from different parts of the world including China, Australia, and India. TIER shocked the judges and the audience by making their presentation with the working prototype of theMini BlackBox on the stage (something that no other team in the category had done).
All of the team members were also named "Pete Conrad Scholars," the highest honor possible in the competition, and were awarded with a gold medal.  We congratulate these outstanding students on this huge accomplishment.  Special thanks to Mrs. Sanchez, Dr. Mederos, Mr. Corazon, Mr. Diaz, and Mr. Oses for helping Team TIER achieve this incredible feat! 
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Christopher Columbus High School | 3000 SW 87 Avenue | Miami, FL 33165 | (305) 223-5650
Brotherhood, Faith, and Scholarship define the Marist Brothers Catholic education at Christopher Columbus High School.  By making Jesus Christ known and loved and creating an inspiring academic and extracurricular environment, we prepare young men for higher learning and a life-long commitment to leadership and service through Gospel and Marist values.

Columbus is fully accredited by Cognia and is a member of the Marist Association of Secondary schools, the National Catholic Education Association and the Independent Schools of South Florida.