Mack Lyon Students Set Their Sites On The Future

By MAGGIE MCMURRAY

Moapa Valley Progress

Mack Lyon Middle School students once again made their mark on the annual Future Cities competition held Jan. 20 in Las Vegas.

In past years, the school has consistently placed highly in the annual event against very stiff competition. Last year’s Lyon team ended up winning the state title and went on to compete at the national level.
This year, a brand new set of three teams competed in the event. All ended up going home with at least one award. One team even securing a coveted Top 5 finals spot.

This year the students were assigned to design an “age-friendly” city: one that had innovative solutions for serving an urban area’s older population. The competition pitted teams together from 23 schools from all over Nevada; each one vying for a total of nine special awards in addition to the top awards.

The presentations consisted of several components. Each team develops its own original city set in the future, give it a name and then construct a model of that city. In addition to their design and model, teams must also construct a virtual civilization using SIM-City software, as well as write and submit an essay. Finally the teams must prepare a presentation about their city for the Future Cities competition and make sure they can answer any questions a judge may have.

This year’s Mack Lyon teams had some great ideas and it paid off for them at the competition.
The first team, Hikima, located their city along the cape coast in Africa. They felt that the biggest problem facing an older population is loneliness. Their solution to the problem was to establish an organization called Connecting Hands.

This organization was built into the infrastructure of the city in a way that would help citizens be connected. For example, in the agriculture department, older experienced farmers felt value by being able to help those younger and less experienced. The city also allowed for rooftop gardens that were shared by the families living in a building, helping them to get to know the neighbors better.

Hikima team members were Ethan Witter, Clay Whipple, and Joey Boss, with alternates Kaitlyn Ransome and Tanner Hall. The team made it into the top five, where they ended up winning fourth place overall, as well as getting the award for Best Model and tied for Best Virtual City. The team also wore special T-shirts that they designed themselves and had printed by the Pirate T-shirt Company.

The second team called their city Etman Bay and located it on the coast of Florida in what is modern-day Dixie County. Due to the location of their city, they had to come up with creative ways to deal with hurricanes, which they did.

They felt that the biggest problem facing the elderly was immobility, which caused the elderly to feel isolated. Their solution to that problem was to have smart homes made of brick in their city. The homes were equipped with holographic interfaces that allowed for things such as in-home tutoring, doctor visits, reminders to take medication and so forth.

Etman Bay team members were Adam MacFarlane, Marcus Shambaugh, and Noah Leavitt, with Tayton Alfonso as an alternate. Etman Bay also won their share of the 9 special awards presented, taking home the award for Best Use of Recycled Materials and also tieing for Best Virtual City.

The third team to compete was Sol Rico. Sol Rico is located where Rosarito Beach, Mexico is today.
This group identified four problems that aging people may have and found a solution for each one. To help the elderly remember things, a wristband would provide reminders. All who needed one, received a unique invention called a “Nanny-bot” to be their companion and provide care. The solution to the mobility problem was a new type of clothing called an exoskeleton that helped seniors move easily due to technology woven directly into the clothing itself.

Members of this team were Gracie Leavitt, Shaylee Adams, and Romeo Elenes, with Aubrey Wolfley and Kash Burris as alternates. Sol Rico scored high enough in the preliminary competition to make it into the top five. However, only one team per school was allowed in the finals. Since Hikima scored higher, Sol Rico was bumped to 6th place.
Sol Rico did, however, win the award for Best Age-Friendly City, which came with a cash award from the American Legion.

At the end of the day, Mack Lyon students took home four of the nine special awards given.
“I love seeing the kids get excited about learning,” said team adviser Crystal Blackwell. “When we go to competition, I love seeing how proud my students are of what they have accomplished.”

Mentor Jacquelyn Pray was proud of how all the teams did and the work they put in. “One of the greatest moments for me as a mentor is to see students on the day of competition,” she said. “I am always blown away at how much the students grow, mature and learn.”