TITLE: Congratulating the Graham High School Rocketeer Steers team on placing third in the 2017 StellarXplorers III National High School Space Challenge.

SUMMARY: Congratulating the Graham High School Rocketeer Steers team on placing third in the 2017 StellarXplorers III National High School Space Challenge.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, The members of the Graham High School Rocketeer Steers team distinguished themselves by placing third in the StellarXplorers III National High School Space Challenge held in Colorado April 6-8, 2017; and WHEREAS, Established by the Air Force Association, StellarXplorers helps promote student engagement in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics through a challenging space-system design competition; the contest began in October 2016 with more than 130 teams registered from 30 states and 2 overseas locations, and Graham High School advanced to the national event after outstanding showings in the qualifying and semifinals rounds; and WHEREAS, In the finals, the squad faced off against nine other teams, completing an exercise that involved meeting a set of space-mission requirements; the Rocketeer Steers had eight hours to define an optimal satellite orbit, select spacecraft components, and choose rocket boosters, and the next day, they presented a briefing about their solution to a panel of expert judges; with their third-place finish, the members each received an educational grant sponsored by the U.S. Air Force STEM Program and the United Launch Alliance; and WHEREAS, Benefiting from the guidance of team director Michelle Lowery, the members of the Rocketeer Steers are Connor Wolfe, Nicholas Saunders, Jonah Qualls, Smith Graham, and Garrett Gatlin; and WHEREAS, With their fine performance on the national stage, these notable young Texans have garnered the respect of their classmates and fellow competitors, and the confidence, skills, and experience they have gained through the StellarXplorers program will be of great use to them in their future endeavors; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas Legislature hereby congratulate the members of the Graham High School Rocketeer Steers on their third-place finish in the 2017 StellarXplorers III National High School Space Challenge and extend to the squad's members and director sincere best wishes for the future; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for the team as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Springer Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 2105 was adopted by the House on May 25, 2017, by a non-record vote. Chief Clerk of the House