A group of students at Briarhill Middle School is one of 100 State Winners in the 10th annual Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest, a program that encourages 6th– 12th grade students to solve real-world issues in their community using classroom skills in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Briarhill Middle School Teacher Susie Mickle and her students entered the contest attempting to address the issue of falls being the leading cause of death for people over 65. About 80% of these falls happen in the bathroom, so the students’ proposed project was to develop a high-technology bathmat that will notify an emergency contact if an elderly person has fallen. When weight is placed on the mat for a certain amount of time, a text message will be sent.
Briarhill is one of five Texas schools to receive $15,000 in technology for being named State Winners. working on their projects and submitting a three-minute video to showcase their project development, according to a news release. The video will be used for the chance to advance to to the next phase of the contest and win additional prizes and educational opportunities. Twenty National Finalist schools will be awarded $50,000 in technology and classroom materials and will travel to the final event. Five grand prize National Winner schools will receive $100,000 in tech and classroom materials, and they will be able to go to Washington D.C. to present their projects to members of Congress.
 GIF.gif)
