Mission Team #12
United States of America
Mission Team #12, USA
“Houston, incoming Mission Team onboarding!” Introducing Mission Team #12, USA! The students of Booker T. Washington of the Houston Independent School District and the High School for the Engineering Professions work year-round to develop STEAM thinkers. The faculty focuses on the learning process as they guide their students’ studies. Kameron, Paris, Elizabeth, and Ethan earned their place on the team through their study of water purification. The students presented a 3D-printed solution to creating clean water for families in Africa, particularly those served in the Rydings College region in Zimbabwe. BTWHS has a close connection with this college and will send students and faculty there this summer to support their shared mission in education and global connectivity.
Meet the team!
Students
ELIZABETH Crescensio
Hello, my name is Elizabeth Crescenciano, and I am a freshman student here at Booker T Washington High School. This is my first year in high school and I’m having the best year so far. I’m part of a program called NJORTC, which helps cadets become better citizens, a Color Guard team after school and have attended a few school events and outside school events. My career path in life is to be an astronaut, and I’m really hoping to one day go to space. I am not sure of what college to attend in the future, but I am hoping that I attend a college that will help me pursue my career of becoming an astronaut.
ETHAN HURTADO
My name is Ethan Hurtado, and I am glad to be chosen to be part of the Endeavor project and can’t wait to uncover many different opportunities. I go to Booker T. Washington High School and the High School for the Engineering Professions where I participate in after school activities such as NJROTC and the engineering team. I am a member of the NJROTC Color Guard and have been since the beginning of my 9th grade year. I joined the engineering program near the end of my 8th grade summer. I really want to major in either electrical or a mechanical engineering, but I have not decided what college I will go when I finish high school.
KAMERON LAVALAIS
I am Kameron Lavalais, a freshman at Booker T Washington High School and the High School for the Engineering Professions (HSEP).
At Booker T, I have dedicated my time to various after school activities, which includes participating in football, basketball, projects in the engineering program, and the NJROTC Drone Team; I am the leader of the engineering and the NJROTC teams. While doing these activities, I have maintained a 4.444 GPA throughout this school year and have recently joined the Leadership Academy group.
Outside of school, I spend my time in organizations like Top Teens of America (TTA) as well as participating in charity events that help the elderly and children in need. My daily activities provide me with the opportunities to achieve my ultimate goal, from night to day. Whether it be physically or mentally, I am always at work. My goal in life is to be important. To be important means to stand out, and in order to do that I will pursue everything I do to with maximum effort. To ensure I can go to college and pursue a degree in mechanical, biomedical or chemical engineering. To go to college for free, I explore all of my opportunities in education and in sports. I am a tenacious, competitive and focused person who will do a lot to lead a great life.
PARIS MAYFIELD
My name is Paris Mayfield, a freshman at Booker T Washington High School. As it relates to involvement I am in ROTC, in which I’m the commander of my platoon, a member of the Vision Community Statue Project since September of 2022 and was recently inducted into the BTW Leadership Academy. Currently, I’m tied with three other students for valedictorian. I don’t really know what I want to major in, but I do know that I want to go to a college in Texas.
“Our students are willing to learn, willing to help, and that’s consistent with our philosophy that we try to use what we know in engineering to make life better for those around us. That’s our belief, and these students respond to that.”
- Dr. Nghia Le
Educator
Dr. Nghia Le is a motivated and driven project manager and instructor with over 19 years of experience in training students and teachers to promote Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields, creating and managing of various educational projects and in facilitating team-based learning. He has a demonstrated ability to develop projects, methods, and training programs to achieve continuous improvement and on-time delivery.
His responsibilities include supervising, developing and training teachers in project-based learning for the Engineering Department. He manages and executes engineering projects and programs with local, state-wide, national, and international scope. He has written and implemented STEM training programs for teachers in middle schools and high schools. But most importantly Dr. Le’s passion for promoting thinking and curiosity in all his students is palpable; he allows students to grow through their personal learning process, understanding that failing and setbacks are critical for growth. His passion for his students is contagious!
Learn more about the initiatives of Mr. Le and BTWHS below:
– Washington students, teachers using 3D printers to help community
– High school students build prosthetic hand for girl
– Booker T Washington High School for Engineering Professions
– Zimbabwe STEM Students at Booker T. Washington High School
– Engineering Magnet
