Middle and Upper School Spartans now have the chance to compete for $1,000 prize money for projects that could influence real-world impact.

Four St. Stephen’s teams recently qualified for state at the Speak Up! Speak Out! Austin Regional Civics Fair held at St. Stephen’s Episcopal School. The University of Texas at Austin will host the state competition in late April.

Middle School history instructor Drew Smith, who serves as the event’s Austin regional coordinator, says he was inspired by this year’s diversity of ideas and said the experience builds practical civic skills.

“Students learn networking skills, interviewing skills, research skills, how to send an email, how to talk on the phone — all of the necessary skills to be civically engaged,” said Smith.

Smith wanted students to think outside of their school boundaries which is why he first introduced the annual 7th grade St. Stephen’s Civics Fair during the 2023-24 school year, requiring all students to create a project. As 8th graders, students can voluntarily choose to compete at regionals. The model has produced collaborative teams that work largely independently, with some continuing 7th grade projects and others starting fresh. And it gave students preparation and confidence to compete at a higher level at regionals propelling them to a win.

Three Middle School teams and one Upper School team earned their spots by impressing a panel of judges with their thoughtful and practical problem-solving ideas.

Aleta Kavcic ’30, a St. Stephen’s tennis player, noticed old tennis balls collecting in wooded areas near the courts.

“I did more research and found out they were terrible for the environment,” said Kavcic. “I started talking to people about it and recruited my friends who play tennis to help come up with a solution.”

The group identified a company that recycles tennis balls and provides collection boxes for courts. Once filled, teams print prepaid shipping labels and send the balls to the recycling facility. Now, they’re doing their part to cut down on the 125 million used tennis balls that wind up in America’s landfills every year.

The students were among 16 teams representing five public school districts and a charter school: Austin ISD, Eanes ISD, Bastrop ISD, Round Rock ISD, Leander ISD and Harmony Science Academy.

Each team delivered a 10-minute presentation to what some described as ‘an intimidating panel of judges,’ similar to the show “Shark Tank.” Students spent months identifying a local issue and developing solutions, with some already putting their ideas into action. Judges asked questions and offered feedback to help strengthen projects ahead of the state competition.

Isha Goel ’30 and Krish Nath ’30 combined forces to focus on helping immigrant children experiencing isolation in foreign countries. Their initial research revealed isolation is one of the main causes of mental health issues among immigrant children. Their proposal includes biweekly support groups for middle and high school students centered on arts and crafts activities.

“The goal is creating a place where everyone can feel welcome,” said Nath.

The regional competition gave them worthwhile feedback which they were grateful for. They’re incorporating that feedback into more elevated and informative infographics in their slide deck.

In the weeks leading up to state, Smith’s advice to Spartans is simple: be prepared, calm and confident — and clearly communicate their passion for the project.

St. Stephen’s Results:

MIDDLE SCHOOL

2nd place | Tennis Ball Recycling

• Aleta Kavcic ’30
• Sophie Grossman ’30
• Surina Shahani ’30
• Aria Ali ’30

3rd place | Immigrant Children Isolation in the USA

• Krish Nath ’30
• Isha Goel ’30

4th place | AI Affects Teen Health

• Maya Quiroz-Ibanez Spindler ’30
• Asher Bae ’30

HIGH SCHOOL

3rd place | RAFT Tutoring

• Athena Toba-Keith ’29
• Audrey Sileo ’29
• Anna Yang ’29
• Ellie de Montfort Walker ’29