High Schoolers Compete at Lewis and Clark's Annual Trebuchet Competition

GODFREY - Lewis and Clark hosted their 2024 Trebuchet Competition on Friday, April 19, 2024.

High school students competed to see whose trebuchet was the most effective. Daniel Nosce, a recruiter at LCCC, noted that the competition included “multiple schools and a lot of excitement.”

“The students have been working on their trebuchets all week, and it’s really great to see everyone come together in the spirit of competitiveness,” Nosce explained. “While this competition is really important to everyone here at Lewis and Clark and everybody competing today, we also want to show the students that there’s more to Lewis and Clark than this competition. A lot of these students will be exposed to these different opportunities and they can learn about different careers in fields that they can pursue.”

The students competed against each other in what was described by teacher Jessica Heidemann as “a stressful competition that everybody loves.” Heidemann, who teaches at Father McGivney Catholic High School, helped her students prepare for the contest.

“It's a lot of fun getting the kids to collaborate and work hard and get out of their comfort zone,” she said. “I think the kids had a blast. I love coaching the kids and helping them and watching them think through everything to make those critical thinking skills come to use. We love it.”

Heidemann said this was Father McGivney’s second year competing at the Trebuchet Competition, and it definitely won’t be their last. She noted that the students represented the school “with grace and dignity” and put “a lot of prep work” into building their trebuchet.

In addition to the competition, students spoke with representatives from LCCC programs and other nearby schools. These representatives shared information about their programs and encouraged students to apply to their colleges.

Randy Stark, a representative from the SIUE School of Engineering, said he enjoys answering students’ questions and showing them what SIUE can offer, from computer engineering to industrial engineering and surveying programs.

“We’re trying to expand our offerings and get students interested in the possibility of obtaining a good, solid understanding of the field and get them working in great places,” Stark said. “I really like coming out here and getting to see these young, enthusiastic people start to think about their potential academic and even professional careers in that way, and I love getting to answer questions and fill them in on what we offer and what we can do for them.”

Nosce said that the competition went well and he is already looking forward to next year, when he hopes to see even more teams come out to show off their trebuchets. He emphasized that LCCC is focused on community, and they enjoy holding community-wide events like the Trebuchet Competition

“The number one thing that we love to see is smiles on everybody’s faces,” Nosce added. “Since we are a community college, we are all about the community, and we want to make sure that everyone’s having a great time. During our competition today, we have seen trial and error with their different trebuchets as well as different experiences both happy and sad. But these students are experiencing something that they might not usually be able to experience, here at Lewis and Clark.”

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