Brampton’s Central Peel Secondary School’s (CPSS) Space Club has won multiple awards in a major NASA-founded competition with over 23,000 participants from 31 countries. Grade 10, 11, and 12 students from Central Peel took home a combined 16 awards, including the grand prize, the first for Canada.
“CPSS you won it all! I am so proud of the outstanding achievements of these students and their mentors. You are all an inspiration and reflect who we are in Brampton. Your hard work, innovation, and dedication have highlighted yet again how incredibly talented and bright our youth are. Congratulations to the students, staff, and families on this amazing achievement, representing Brampton as grand prize winners and making history as the first-ever Canadian team to win. This is a generational building block in a city that is already flourishing in aerospace and advanced manufacturing.”
– Rowena Santos, Regional Councillor Wards 1 & 5, Chair, Community Services, Vice-Chair, Economic Development, City of Brampton
Video: Councillor Santos and students from Central Peel Secondary School celebrating their achievements.
Students from CPSS dominated the global competition, taking home 7 awards (including four first-place finishes) in the National Space Society (NSS) Live in a Healthy Space Competition, and an honourable mention and grand prize for the NSS Gerard K. O’Neill Space Settlement Contest.
CPSS’s winning project, “Project Saoirse”, was a detailed proposal by Grade 11 and 12 students for a settlement in space between Mars and the Sun. Demonstrating highly sophisticated problem-solving and forward-thinking engineering, the project beat out 23,919 other students from 31 countries.
Students specifically highlighted the mentorship from Ms. Simona Matei for consistently challenging and encouraging them to their fullest potential.
Video: Ms. Matei’s speech during a Committee of Council about her students’ achievements.
“Over four years, I watched these students work relentlessly toward the goal of winning the grand prize. I saw the late nights, the intense effort, and the setbacks along the way. They aren’t superheroes but they do have superpowers, and that’s in their ability to persevere, to push forward through challenges. Their achievement is proof that hard work truly pays off.”
– Ms. Matei, Teacher Advisor of the Central Peel Secondary School Space Club
The dedication, talent, and ingenuity shown by these students and their results reflect the creativity and passion of students fostered within Brampton. When given the tools for success, young people thrive and continue to put Brampton on the map internationally as a city that helps to solve problems and cultivate excellence.
