Students hope to win NASA's contest to name new Mars rover after hero classmate killed in May 2019 school shooting.
Students at the STEM School Highlands Ranch are hoping to get their fallen classmate, Kendrick Castillo, honored in a very touching way. Students and staff alike are hoping to have NASA's new Mars Rover named after him.
Kendrick, 18, was killed during a school shooting when he and two classmates acted quickly to subdue the shooter and prevent further loss of life.
"It seems really fitting because I feel like eventually he would be designing something that would go to Mars so might as well get his name there now," said Henry Shallenberger, Kendrick’s friend.
Students at STEM Highlands Ranch will be writing essays for the contest that detail why they think Kendrick Castillo's name should be picked. The school will be holding various workshops for those students interested in participating in the contest. The workshops will be held every day during 10th-period classes, from October 7-11.
NASA is running the contest until November 1, 2019, and it's open to students from Kindergarten through 12th grade. Names can be a maximum of 50 characters and essays can be up to 150 words in length. Once the contest closes, there will be a judging period to pick the finalists. A public poll will be conducted in January 2020, then the winning name will be announced in February 2020.
Artist rendering of Mars 202 Rover, courtesy of NASA
The Mars Rover 2020 mission is part of NASA’s long-term Mars Exploration program, which is an exploration of the planet through robotics. The mission is expected to launch in July 2020.
"The Mars 2020 mission addresses high-priority science goals for Mars exploration, including key questions about the potential for life on Mars. The mission takes the next step by not only seeking signs of habitable conditions on Mars in the ancient past, but also searching for signs of past microbial life itself."
Students and staff at STEM School Highlands Ranch remember Kendrick Castillo as a bright and friendly student, a member of the varsity robotics team, who had a gift for engineering and loved robotics and space. He was a big part of the school community, and sending a rover into space named after him is a perfect way to remember him.
"You know you could name a planet after him and it still wouldn’t be enough. When you meet people who are truly larger than life, that was him. His impact on everyone here is immense," said engineering teacher Mike Shallenberger.
If you know a Kindergarten through 12th-grade student who might want to enter the contest, check out all the rules and guidelines here. And don't forget to share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
