Spring 2003 - Fenwick High School

Secrets of Success
4
SPRING 2003
“ ”
Nothing succeeds like…PRACTICE… INGENUITY.. .PATIENCE… DETERMINATION…
Finish the quote any way you like. Throughout the Fenwick community, examples are easy
to find. People who define success in more than a material way.
SEEKING KNOWLEDGE
P
Ramzi has the experience to do the job
well; he’s been coaching JETS and
WYSE (Worldwide Youth in Science
and Engineering) for 23 years. (The two
competitions used to be the same, but
split into separate events in 1996.) The
Friars have enjoyed many successful
seasons, and for the past four years,
Fenwick has taken home the WYSE
state championship in Division 1500, in
which more than 300 schools compete.
RACTICE FOR JETS (JUNIOR ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL SOCIETY) COMPETITION BEGINS IN NOVEMBER. APPROXIMATELY
80 STUDENTS ARE INVOLVED IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, AND IT IS UP TO THEIR COACH,RAMZI FARRAN TO TURN THIS YOUNG MASS
OF RAW BRAINPOWER AND EDUCATED ENERGY INTO A COHESIVE AND WELL-PREPARED TEAM.
When competition begins in February,
the WYSE team is tested in seven areas:
math, English, biology, chemistry,
physics, computers, and engineering
graphics. Scores of the test are tallied
and winners are determined in each
category as well as an overall category. In this most recent state
championship, Fenwick’s team scored 485 out of a possible 500.
JETS competition takes a different form. As individuals and as a
team, they face the challenge of solving complex engineering
problems. One of the 2003 questions focuses on satellites in orbit:
“Space-based navigation satellites are becoming vital
Dr. Joseph Kerwin ’49
2003 WYSE individual state champions
(left to right) Damian Kozbur '04, first in physics;
Taso Giannopoulos '03, first in computers; Patrick
Lange '04, first in English; and coach Ramzi Farran.
components to the world’s technological
existence. Your team has been hired
to design a new navigation satellite to
complement the Global Positioning
System (GPS). The satellite has been
allocated an orbital radius, and you are
to investigate various system parameters
to assess the suitability of this
orbital radius.”
Another of this year’s problems was:
“Your team has been tasked with
designing a building to house a laboratory
engaged in critical national
security research in the United States.
Your work will include: selecting one of
three locations, assessing the vulnerability
to natural hazards for each location,
and reflecting knowledge gained in order to reduce the
potential for damage from the impact of natural hazards.”
The months of preparation include researching the subject matter,
and also learning to work together as a problem-solving team.
Finals in JETS competition are scheduled for April 29, (after the
magazine has gone to press). Results will be posted on the web
site: fenwickfriars.com
Seeking Knowledge in Space
Back in the 1930s, there was a young
boy who loved stories about
imaginary space vehicles and
traveling to other planets. In fact, his family
and friends would say, “Look there’s Joey
with his science fiction again; he probably
wants to go to the moon.” And that’s
exactly what he did several decades later.
Dr. Joseph Kerwin ’49 was one of NASA’s
first scientist astronauts – his field of
science being medicine. He made history
aboard Skylab in 1973 when he went
outside the craft to make repairs. During the
Apollo 13 mission, Joe was “capcom”
(short for capsule communication), and it
was his job to communicate instructions to
the crew as they returned to Earth. He also
authored the official report on the 1986
Challenger disaster.
He was with the space program through its
ups and downs. In 1992, when the space
station was facing harsh scrutiny in