Adler, ComEd Award West Side Student Top Prize in Space Exploration-Themed Essay Contest
CHICAGO, May 10 /PRNewswire/ — ComEd and the Adler Planetarium today announced eighth grader, Kayla Ladner, is the grand-prize winner in the Shoot for the Moon Essay Contest, which sought to encourage middle school students to pursue space exploration-related careers. Ladner’s winning essay was selected from more than 1,000 entries, and received a perfect score from astronaut and contest judge, Captain James A. Lovell, Jr. Ladner, a student at St. Angela School in the Austin community on the city’s West Side, will spend a week at Space Camp in Alabama this summer courtesy of ComEd.
This contest was created as part of the Adler Planetarium’s new permanent exhibition, Shoot for the Moon, which opened last November. Shoot for the Moon highlights the thrilling stories of space exploration and America’s bold plans to return to the Moon. Shoot for the Moon is powered by ComEd. NBC 5 Chicago is the Shoot for the Moon media sponsor.
“We hosted this essay contest, along with the Adler Planetarium, to promote careers in math and science among young people — that goal was achieved with more than 1,000 students participating,” said Frank M. Clark, ComEd chairman and CEO. “We are extremely pleased at the quantity and quality of essays submitted by students from all over Northern Illinois, and we are very proud of the winners’ accomplishments.”
“When we opened Shoot for the Moon, the Adler’s goal was to educate young people about space exploration and encourage them to imagine what part they will play in future missions,” said Dr. Paul H. Knappenberger, Jr., president, Adler Planetarium. “The tremendous response by these students is very gratifying and makes us committed to our mission — inspiring the next generation of explorers. We are grateful to our sponsor ComEd and our outstanding panel of judges for their dedication to and support of our mission.”
The Shoot for the Moon Essay Contest challenged middle school students to identify the variety of jobs it takes to complete a space mission and draft a 200-word essay about which job they would aspire to have, why that job is important and why they would be ideal for the position. The winning essays were selected by a panel of judges, including Lovell, Clark, Knappenberger, Lula Ford, Illinois Commerce Commission commissioner, Dr. Raymond Dagenais, Illinois Science Teachers Association president, Tamara L. O’Shaughnessy, Chicago Parent magazine editor and Phil Rogers NBC 5 Chicago reporter.
In addition to Ladner’s grand prize-winning essay, which focused on a career as a space nutritionist, the following students won first and second runner-up in the contest:
— First Runner-Up Sixth Grade: Nicole Garza, Immaculate Conception School, Chicago — First Runner-Up Seventh Grade: Kyle Pekosh, Altea Middle School, Glenview — First Runner-Up Eighth Grade: Vincent Kenny, St. Jerome School, Chicago — Second Runner-Up Sixth Grade: Jingfei Li, Lenard Regional Gifted Center, Chicago — Second Runner-Up Seventh Grade: Emily Williams, Richland Grade School, Crest Hill — Second Runner-Up Eighth Grade: Bryn O’Donnell, Marlowe Middle School, Lake in the Hills
First runners-up will receive a special VIP tour of the Adler — including a sky show and lunch — for their science class. Second runners-up will receive a one-year family membership to the Adler.
Following is Kayla Ladner’s essay: ABCDEFG for nutrients and vegetables – just call me! The nutritionist. If I worked in the space center, I would be the nutritionist. This job is very important because foods need to be safe for astronauts in space. I learned that astronauts have sticker codes to identify their foods. I learned this from Paul Richards, ST3-102, the astronaut who visited my school this year to share his space travel experience. He told us that some foods taste different in space, that his food had green stickers, and they can’t salt food the way we do. I think the job of nutritionist is important. Without me, how would astronauts survive? My job finds what they like, and avoids foods they dislike or are allergic to. For instance, I can’t feed them anything with crumbs. With no gravity in the cabin, I learned that crumbs and salt crystals fly around and can get in the space system, mess up the machinery, or even get into their lungs and kill them. I think the nutritionist’s job is a very good one for me. I am very observant. I can easily learn what they are allergic to. I am very organized, so I am able to keep up with the system to make sure that sticker codes won’t be tampered with. I am very creative. When there is a problem, I can come up with a way to solve it. ABCDEFG for nutrients and vegetables, just call me! The nutritionist.
Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd) is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation , one of the nation’s largest electric utilities with approximately 5.4 million customers and more than $15 billion in annual revenues. ComEd provides service to approximately 3.8 million customers across Northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the state’s population.
The Adler Planetarium — America’s First Planetarium — was founded in 1930 by Chicago business leader Max Adler. The museum has announced a new vision to be the world’s leading space science center. The museum will inspire the next generation of explorers by sharing the stories of human space exploration and America’s space heroes. The Adler is a recognized leader in science education, with a focus on inspiring young people, particularly women and minorities, to pursue careers in science.
ComEd
CONTACT: Arlana Johnson, ComEd Media Relations, +1-312-394-3500; orLaura Oppenheimer, Adler Planetarium – Communications, +1-312-322-0512