CHARLESTON — A team of students from Huff Consolidated Elementary and Middle School in Wyoming County placed among the top three nationally in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition and won the Community Choice Vote, earning their school $110,000 in classroom technology and resources.
State Superintendent of Schools Michele L. Blatt congratulated the team, which tackled a problem they live with every day. Abandoned coal mines in Wyoming County have polluted creeks, aquifers and other water systems with acid mine drainage — highly acidic water heavy with metals and sulfates — and the students, led by science and social studies teacher Brittany Miller-Baker, set out to design an affordable filtration system for their community.
“When we were selected, we didn’t really know what to do, and we had tested some bottled water. We thought about it, and then we decided we were going to try to design some kind of system,” said Kaden Thomas, an eighth-grade student at Huff Consolidated. “People are suffering daily. I think that it opens our eyes to our future and what we can do as part of the community, and what we can influence the community to do.”
The prototype uses charcoal, limestone, sand and UV lights — materials already available in most communities — and costs about $300 to build. The students hope the accessible design can offer short-term relief to neighbors who need clean water now.
“Seeing students rise to the challenge of addressing a real issue in their community through classroom learning is inspiring. These students are passionate about STEM and dedicated to making a difference, both of which are paving the way for actionable change,” Blatt said. “I’m grateful that Ms. Miller-Baker is bringing this to life in her classroom by inspiring a future generation of leaders, scientists, chemists and geologists, and I am proud of how well these students represented the Mountain State. Congratulations to everyone involved on a job well done.”
The Huff Consolidated team was among the youngest in the national competition. A recording of the team’s pitch and the award ceremony is available on Samsung U.S. Newsroom’s YouTube channel.
