Students from John F. Kennedy High School has been selected as winners of NASA’s TechRise Student Challenge, joining 60 other teams from across the nation. As one of the winning TechRise teams, NASA is supporting the development and demonstration of the JFK High School payload, including a test flight on a high-altitude balloon operated by World View Enterprises.

The JFKHS team includes junior Jonathan Bakani, and seniors Raeka Blanco, Keant Dela Cruz, Changmin Lee, Christopher Mantanona, Stephen Medrano, Dayonara Jade Mendoza, Alyssa-Faith Togawa, Ryder Torres, and Jonas Wallace, under the guidance of instructor Ms. Colette Beausoliel. 

Their experiment will fly on a high-altitude balloon in summer 2026, providing several hours of exposure to Earth’s upper atmosphere at altitudes between 70,000 and 95,000 feet. This flight will allow the students to collect valuable scientific data and gain firsthand experience in aerospace research.

Now in its fifth year, the TechRise Student Challenge invites middle and high school students to design experiments that will autonomously operate and collect data during NASA-sponsored flight tests. 

This year’s winning teams include more than 370 students representing 52 states and territories.

Each winning team receives $1,500 to build their experiment, a starter kit including a flight box, and technical support from Future Engineers advisors. Students will use sensors and hardware to study scientific phenomena such as radiation, electricity and magnetism, particle behavior, and more.

“The team did their research and worked together to develop payload ideas to test their scientific questions,” said Ms. Beausoliel. “This outstanding opportunity allows students to conduct a real-world experiment while receiving professional engineering mentorship to assist them in developing their payload.

“This achievement highlights the creativity and dedication of our students, as well as the expertise of Ms. Beausoliel,” said Dr. Barbara Adamos, Principal. “We are proud to see JFK High School represented among the winning teams and look forward to the exciting discoveries our students will make.”