Washington Students Take Top Honors in National Mapping Competition
On their first attempt, Washington students have received national and statewide recognition in a national mapping competition.
The competition, called the ArcGIS Online Competition for U.S. High School and Middle School Students, offers students a chance to learn and use the ArcGIS geospatial software to map important events in their communities.
Owen Robertson, a sixth grader from OASIS K–8 in Orcas Island, received the National Honorable Mention Award for his project, “Measles Epidemic in Clark County, Washington State.”
ArcGIS is a mapping program that helps users better visualize data by associating it with a particular location. ArcGIS was created by competition organizer Esri.
Led in Washington by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), as well as geospatial professionals from other state and local agencies, colleges, and Esri, the team received six entries in total from across the state.
Daniel Rashevsky, from Tesla STEM High School in Lake Washington, received the Washington State High School award with his project “The State of Seattle’s Homeless Population.”
Check out the other four entries, all in the high school category, and all submitted by students from Tesla STEM High School in Lake Washington:
Twenty-eight states submitted entries to the competition, with one winner being selected from the high school and middle school categories. Entries were judged in Washington by the Washington Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (WAURISA), a group for GIS professionals.
Are you interested in entering or putting a team together for 2020? The competition launches in early June, and interested teams can enter on the state competition website. Questions can also be sent to the state leadership team.
