Virginia Beach Students Wins ACTE National Student Trophy Design Contest

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 19, 2016

Media Contact: Jarrod Nagurka
703-683-9312; jnagurka@acteonline.org  

Virginia Beach Student Wins ACTE National Student Trophy Design Contest

Alexandria, VA – Today, the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) announced Virginia Beach student Matthew Gump as the national student trophy design winner in its inaugural student trophy design contest. Matthew is a senior at Landstown High School in the Governor’s STEM Academy. His technology instructor at Landstown is Jennifer Renne. The contest was sponsored by 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). This year, ACTE created a competition for students to design the 3D trophy to be used to award the national winners at the association’s annual VISION conference. The 2016 conference will be held in Las Vegas with roughly 4,000 educators, administrators and CTE industry stakeholders in attendance. Matthew’s submission was selected by ACTE’s Board of Directors, who received 75 entries from students all across the country. In addition to having his design used to create this year’s trophies, Matthew will receive a $1,000 scholarship.

In his application, Matthew outlined his new interests and goals in the fields of architecture and rendering. According to Matthew, “3D modeling and computer aided design (CAD) have given me a form of expression I could have never imagined… an opportunity to express myself and actually see those forms of expression become reality.” Calling himself “grateful” for the competition, Matthew said, “The ACTE trophy design contest has given me an opportunity to expand my skillset beyond everyday objects and into something abstract, something made purely from human thought…”

“CTE is critical to helping students develop the tools necessary to prepare them for the high-skill, high-wage, high-demand jobs of the 21st century,” said ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Wilson. “Matthew’s outstanding design is evidence that rigorous, robust and comprehensive CTE allows students to establish, advance and utilize their talents and interests in a variety of different ways. We are so proud of Matthew and his accomplishments, and congratulate him on his trophy design and involvement in CTE.”

“Stratasys Education believes in the power of learning by making,” said Gina Scala, Director of Global Education for Stratasys. “Students like Matthew continue to amaze us as they translate ideas into physical objects exercising the principles of design thinking along the way. We congratulate Matthew on winning the contest, we are excited for him and are proud that he is the future of additive manufacturing and innovation.”

Matthew, ACTE and Stratasys are available for interviews upon request. Matthew’s trophy design and headshot (courtesy Matthew Gump) can be found below.

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About ACTE:
The Association for Career and Technical Education 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, guidance counselors 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.