Letter To The Editor: Casper Kids Should Be Celebrated For Engineering Success

Dear editor:

Something incredible happened this year that most people in our community haven’t heard about — and probably won’t.

I had the privilege of mentoring a group of junior high students from CY Junior High School in Casper who participated in an elite nationwide engineering competition called Future City.

Competing alongside schools in North Dakota, these students worked tirelessly, won first place at regionals, and earned their way to Washington, D.C., to go head-to-head with some of the brightest young minds in the country.

Future City isn’t just another science fair. It’s a rigorous challenge where middle school students design and build a futuristic city set 50–100 years ahead, solving real-world problems like climate resilience, infrastructure innovation, and sustainability. It’s more than just STEM — it’s a deep dive into engineering, economics, government, and technology, pushing students to think critically about the future.

Wyoming doesn’t have its own Future City regional chapter because each chapter requires at least 20 teams competing— a tough hurdle in a state with our population.

But that hasn’t stopped CY Junior High School. They entered the North Dakota regional competition this year, and since 2020, I’ve had the honor of serving as their unofficial mentor.

This year, they designed Sitnalta (Atlantis spelled backward), a floating city inspired by Oceanix, a real-world company working on sustainable modular cities.

Their vision, effort, and innovation earned them a well-deserved spot at the National Competition, held at the Aerospace Museum in Washington, D.C.

You’d think an achievement like this would be celebrated. Yet, despite their hard work and success, these students have received little recognition — barely a mention from the school district and silence from local media.

This isn’t just disappointing; it’s a missed opportunity. When we fail to recognize these accomplishments, we fail to inspire more Wyoming students to explore engineering and problem-solving at a high level.

If we truly want to support the next generation of engineers and leaders, we need to celebrate these kinds of achievements.

These students didn’t just complete a class project — they tackled real-world challenges, competed at a high level, and proved that Wyoming students can innovate and excel just as well as anyone else.

I would love to see more schools in Wyoming take on this challenge. There’s interest out there — if only the school district’s communication director would actually communicate.

Sometimes I wonder if it would be easier to give a root canal to an angry cat than to talk to a school principal. But I digress.

Whether it’s helping connect educators with mentors, promoting the competition, or simply recognizing the students who have already achieved so much, every bit of support matters in raising awareness for Future City.

At the very least, I wanted to ensure that this accomplishment didn’t go unnoticed. These students earned their moment in the spotlight, and I couldn’t be prouder to have been part of their journey.

Sincerely,

Alan Corey, Casper