Integrating various disciplines for a common cause, El Paso Community College's STEM departments showcased innovative lunar living solutions at their STEMFuerte Project Presentations. The event, a blend of scientific fields, took place at the Valle Verde Flexitorium and highlighted the imaginative work of students, including those enrolled in Dual Credit, Early College High School, and P-TECH programs.
The presentations culminated with awards, recognizing an outstanding project titled "Sustainable Energy for Your Home…on the Moon." The winning team, composed of students Xavier Contreras, Lionel Silerio, Brandon Avila, Jorge Gallardo, Zahara Grendahl, and Karla Hidalgo, was applauded for their multidisciplinary approach. As noted by EPCC News, this marked the first occasion on which Architecture, Biology, Physics, and Engineering students united their expertise for a single endeavor within the STEMFuerte initiative.
Clark Myers, EPCC Architecture Co-Principal Investigator, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating, "It's very exciting that these disciplines have come together, to build teamwork, expertise from different perspectives is vital to the success of a complex project like this," as per EPCC News. Other projects presented included visionary concepts such as "Growing Life on the Moon: A Solar Powered Greenhouse Vision" and "Bio-Insulated Origami Habitats: Thermophilic Microbe Films for Lunar Thermal Protection."
The interdisciplinary cooperation extended beyond the traditional STEM boundaries, eliciting positive reactions from the students involved. Humberto Flores, an EPCC Industrial and Systems Engineering major, acknowledged the value of such collaboration, saying, "It was interesting to collaborate with other disciplines." Similarly, Diego Felix, an Electrical Engineering major at EPCC, discovered unexpected connections in the project, "It was interesting working with Architecture and Biology," he revealed, "I wasn't expecting Biology to be a huge part of this, but it was very interesting finding what they researched and topics that we are not well versed in, it was definitely fun," as obtained by EPCC News.
