California Student Wins ACTE National Student Trophy Design Contest
Student at Westview High School Wins National Award
Alexandria, VA – Today, the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) announced that Alex Tang from Westview High School in San Diego, CA. as the national student trophy design winner in its tenth annual student trophy design contest. He is taught by Xin Mathers, an instructor at Westview High School. The contest is sponsored by ACTE and Stratasys, Ltd., a manufacturer of 3D printers and production systems.
Since 1954, ACTE has awarded those who have made exemplary contributions in the field of career and technical education (CTE). The student trophy design contest is a competition for students to design the 3D trophy for the ACTE Excellence Awards. The winning trophy design will be 3D-printed by Stratasys and presented to the 11 national award winners at the 2025 ACTE Awards Gala in conjunction with ACTE’s CareerTech VISION. This year’s gala will be held December 9 at 7 p.m. at the Gaylord Opryland, In Nashville, TN. Alex’s submission was selected by ACTE’s Board of Directors out of entries from students across the country. In addition to having his design used to create this year’s trophies, Alex will receive a $1,000 scholarship and Westview High School will receive a free one-year lease of a 3D printer, courtesy of Stratasys, Ltd.
Alex Tang, a 10th grader at Westview High School in San Diego, California, is a passionate STEM student whose journey began with Legos and grew into a love for robotics. He first explored this interest through the First Lego League, where his team won the 2023 Southern California Championship. Since then, Alex has advanced his software and hardware skills through coursework and extracurricular projects, while also giving back to his community.
Over the past three years, he has moved from Lego robotics to building and programming real robots with his team, which has been active in outreach efforts such as teaching CAD classes at nonprofit summer camps and presenting demonstrations at science and engineering festivals, particularly in San Diego’s border communities with new immigrant families and underserved students.
At Westview, Alex is a member of the Engineering Club, where he collaborates on hands-on projects and problem-solving challenges. He plans to use the one-year free access to a 3D printer and materials from his recent recognition to encourage more classmates to explore engineering.
Beyond robotics, Alex has cultivated his creativity in architecture and design, applying his CAD skills to merge artistic vision with technical precision. That passion led him to design a trophy for ACTE, an experience that further sharpened his skills and expanded his design perspective. His coding abilities have also earned recognition in the Congressional App Challenge, and he continues to work with peers on initiatives that connect trilingual students from different cultural backgrounds.
Inspired by this competition, Alex is more motivated than ever to pursue a future in mechanical engineering, where he hopes to apply his technical expertise and creativity to make a meaningful difference.
“The Student Trophy Design Contest shines a spotlight on the imagination and skill that thrive in CTE classrooms nationwide,” said ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Curry. “Alex’s outstanding accomplishment reflects both his dedication to CTE and the power of these programs to equip students to become tomorrow’s leaders and innovators. We are thrilled to celebrate Alex’s success and grateful to have him represent the excellence and opportunity that CTE provides.”
Jesse Roitenberg, Stratasys Americas Director of Education shared his thoughts on the contest over the years, “Stratasys is pleased to partner with ACTE to create this contest for the students. The educators are doing an outstanding job immersing the students in Additive Manufacturing and Computer Aided Drafting. The trophy entries we have judged over the past ten years are phenomenally designed and could not be created by any other manufacturing process.”
Alex, ACTE and Stratasys are available for interviews upon request. Alex’s trophy design and headshot are included.
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About ACTE
The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is the nation’s largest not-for-profit association committed to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for successful careers. ACTE represents the community of CTE professionals, including educators, administrators, researchers, school counselors, guidance and career development professionals and others at all levels of education. ACTE is committed to excellence in providing advocacy, public awareness and access to resources, professional development and leadership opportunities.
