Synopsys Championship (Santa Clara Valley Science & Engineering Fair)
Students design and present independent research projects in categories including Environmental Science at this regional fair for Santa Clara County middle/high schoolers.
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California Envirothon
Teams study soils, wildlife, forestry, aquatic ecosystems, and a current issue topic, then compete in a day-long field and knowledge competition; state winner advances to nationals.
American Rocketry Challenge
World's largest student rocket competition; teams hit precise altitude/duration targets.
ASHRAE High School Design Competition
A free, international virtual competition in which teams of 1-5 students ages 13-18 use SketchUp to design the HVAC system for an assigned building (2026: a fitness center in Cairo, Egypt), addressing heating/cooling loads, equipment selection, ductwork, and indoor air quality, judged by ASHRAE professionals for cash prizes.
Bridge Design Contest (Engineering Encounters)
Free online contest designing a virtual steel truss bridge, local to national rounds.
Build A CubeSat Challenge (MIT Beaver Works)
A national MIT Beaver Works Summer Institute challenge in which teams of up to five U.S. high school students, guided by a coach, complete an online course and build hardware kits into satellite subsystems (power, optical payload, data analysis, wireless transmission) for a simulated Lunar Terrain Survey CubeSat mission, presenting via video to a panel in a live online final event.
Colonial Williamsburg Public Archaeology Institute
A free, highly selective one-week summer program (two sessions, 10 students each) for students entering grades 9-12, working alongside Colonial Williamsburg archaeologists excavating Custis Square, learning artifact identification, site recording, and interpretation, and concluding with a guided public site tour.