Hampton University Engineering Students Win AMIE Design Challenge for the Third Consecutive Year

HAMPTON, Va. (February 28, 2020) – Hampton University students from the School of Engineering and Technology competed in the 3^rd Annual Advancing Minorities Interest in Engineering (AMIE) Design Challenge at the Black Engineering of the Year Award (BEYA) STEM Symposium. For the 3^rd consecutive year, Hampton University Students won the competition.

“Congratulations to the School of Engineering and Technology on this great accomplishment. This is the type of success that Hamptonians continue to achieve. We are proud of our students for setting the Standard of Excellence at this STEM competition,” said Hampton University President, Dr. William R. Harvey.

The team of eight Hampton University engineering students included one member from the University of Bahamas, who is attending Hampton due to Hurricane Dorian. The team focused on emergency preparedness and more specifically on a platform that would have ease human suffering during Hurricane Dorian. They used the skills learned from their Hampton University engineering courses and workshops to execute a plan. The team interviewed a group of displaced University of Bahamas students who were also impacted by Hurricane Dorian. Of the many unmet needs discovered during this interview process, the team focused on one innovative problem statement: “How might we aide those susceptible to connectivity failures during a hurricane contact first responders and loved ones?” To help answer their problem statement, the team designed FlyComm, a drone and buoy based system to maintain cellular communications from air to sea during service interruptions (e.g., during/after major storms).  

“My trip to Washington, D.C. for the 2020 BEYA STEM Conference was amazing. The trip was really a learning experience for me because I did not know what to expect. This year’s Design Team felt that we had some big shoes to fill, especially because the previous Hampton University Design Team won the competition last year and the year before. My team and I spent countless hours preparing for the Conference, and we encouraged each other to do our endeavor best and also to have fun,” said Anthony Stubbs, freshman, chemical engineering major from The Bahamas. “As we sat down and waited for the judge’s decision, there was huge tension in the atmosphere. Everyone had their fingers and toes crossed. Fortunately, we were able to come out on top once again giving Hampton University the three-peat title for the competition. I am just delighted to be a part of the Hampton University Design Team this year, being able to repeat history and win the competition for a third time.”

Hampton University was announced as the first place winner of the Annual AMIE Design Challenge and remains the only first place winner in the history of the engineering design challenge. The winners received monetary awards for their accomplishment.  “I am excited and honored to have served as the 2020 Hampton University AMIE Design Challenge team faculty advisor.  It was a great challenge to win first place for the third year in a row, but this year’s team was extremely motivated and eager to advance their design to the next level.  Further, I was thrilled to have a student from the University of Bahamas on the team as he has provided great insight,” said AMIE design team faculty advisor and Hampton University associate professor, Dr. Jerald Dumas.       

“Our students continue to win because they display the technical skills and the character instilled in them at Hampton University. Hampton University is truly a value-added institution and our students never fail to show this value to the world. They worked closely with their faculty advisor, Dr. Jerald Dumas, as well as their Net App advisors, Mr. Rodney Scurlock and Mr. Joseph Brown. Moreover, they convened several times per week over a three-week period to perfect the accuracy of their design. Lastly, they had the confidence to convey it to the judges and the crowd of hundreds in Washington, D.C.,” said Dean of the School of Engineering and Technology, Dr. Joyce Shirazi.

The judges of this competition were executives from IBM Corporation, The MITRE Corporation, Optimum, Apple, Boston Scientific, Lockheed Martin Corporation, NetApp, The Boeing Company, Corning Incorporated, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Abbott, General Motors Company, National Security Agency, and Raytheon Company.

The 2020 AMIE Design Challenge Hampton University Team Members as follows:

 * University of Bahamas 

This year’s field of challengers expanded to fourteen programs, to include the following universities:

• Alabama A&M                      
• Florida A&M                                     
• Howard
• Jackson State                         
• Morgan State                                     
• North Carolina A&T
• Norfolk State                         
• Prairie View A&M                            
• Tennessee State
• Tuskegee                                
• University of Maryland Eastern Shore
• University of the District of Columbia                                              
• Virginia State