Loudoun County Public Schools students took cover as dozens of ping pong balls were catapulted across an Enterprise Hall classroom on Thursday afternoon. “Your angle is too high,” shouted one student to his teammate, who was testing out their handmade projectile launcher. “Lift the rubber band up so you can pull it farther back.”
The students were participating in one of the 12 workshops at the eighth annual Science, Technology and Engineering (STE) Day at the George Washington University Virginia Science and Technology Campus (VSTC). The campus hosted 130 students from 11 Loudoun County high schools, who were chosen by their teachers because of their interest and achievements in the applied sciences.
The VSTC campus also welcomed Virginia Secretary of Education Anne Holton on Thursday, as she attended a student workshop and spoke to the students on the importance of science, technology and engineering education.