Amanda Gutierrez of Lincoln Pius X was announced in May as a grand-prize winner of the NASA Artemis Moon Pod Essay Contest, in the Ninth through 12the Grade category, for her creative vision of a pioneering journey to the Moon. A story in the Lincoln Journal Star is here: https://journalstar.com/news/local/education/lincoln-pius-x-student-shoots-for-the-moon-with-essay-earns-trip-to-historic-nasa/article_9f230c2a-c3d1-5bf1-8308-d44926f2cd4a.html
NASA also selected Austin Pritts of Wolcott, Indiana, and Taia Saurer of Laguna Beach, California, as winners in the other two categories, Kindergarten through fourth grade and Fifth-Eighth grade, respectively.
Gutierrez is a ninth-grader at Lincoln Pius X. Gutierrez’s composition, “Dream Big Moon Pod,” follows the adventure of a three-person crew of a chemist, hydrologist, and astronautical engineer as they install an Endothermic Electrolysis Reactor (EER), designed to provide fuel and oxygen for future crews at the Moon’s Shackleton Crater. Her essay can be accessed by following the link at the bottom of this article.
Approximately 14,000 essay submissions were received from K-12 students across the country and over 1,000 eligible judge volunteers comprised of educators, professionals, and space enthusiasts helped review essays, and chose 155 semifinalists.
As a semifinalist, Gutierrez received an Artemis Prize Pack filled with space-themed prizes plus the opportunity to attend a series of virtual Artemis Explorer Sessions with NASA experts. In April, the contest was narrowed to nine national finalists, and Gutierrez was announced as a grand-prize winner in May. Her family won a trip to attend NASA’s Artemis I launch at Kennedy Space Center.
Read more at:
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/3-students-named-winners-of-artemis-moon-pod-essay-contest
More details at: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/3-students-named-winners-of-artemis-moon-pod-essay-contest