LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. – The American Rocketry Challenge is a yearly competition for middle and high school students across the nation to gain engineering and aerospace experience and knowledge. Each year, the top 100 schools nationally are invited to compete in Virginia. Winners receive prize money, and the first place team will advance to compete internationally.
The Los Alamitos High School team has done very well in this year’s competition despite only beginning this school year. Sophomore Alicia Stein founded the club and serves as the club president. Aside from Alicia Stein, most of the other members have little to no experience with rocketry.
“I competed in ARC for three years and I’ve gotten into semifinals twice,” Alicia Stein said. “ I had to teach the others from scratch.”
Alicia Stein created, expanded and managed the club with the help of the club supervisor and engineering teacher Mr. Valenzuela.
“I think Alicia did an awesome job organizing the team members, getting them here during the weekly meets, discussing the priorities that they needed to accomplish and even organizing the field trips that they needed to take to the desert so that they can test fly the rocket,” Mr. Valenzuela said.
Alicia Stein’s father, Ethan Stein, has also been vital to the club. Ethan Stein serves as the team advisor. He organizes launches, secures materials and offers guidance when needed.
“I built model rockets as a kid, but not in a competitive setting,” Ethan Stein said. “My experience is fairly similar to my daughter Alicia’s—she had supported other teams before starting this club, but this was our first time building something like this from the ground up. I’m incredibly proud of what the team has accomplished.”
This year, rockets must reach a height of 750 feet and safely return to the ground with a flight time between 36-39 seconds. Rockets also need to protect a large egg that must remain intact throughout the flight and landing. The club’s rocket underwent numerous design and testing phases. Its final version uses the bottom of the rocket for the motor and the top for the egg and the altimeter. The nose cone and drag cones of the rocket are 3D printed, which proved challenging.
“I believe that the rocketry club has done an excellent job in the progress that they’ve made to not only design the rocket, but also to prototype it and test it,” Mr. Valenzuela said. “In the prototyping phase I remember helping them with the 3D prints that they needed. There were some huge prints, and we were successful at that. We had a couple of fails, not because of their design, but because of the printer itself. But they pulled through, they were able to put the rockets together and they succeeded.”
The Model Rocketry Club receives no school funding, instead relying on grants, sponsorships and donations. If you would like to support them, visit their fundraising page here.
“Donations help cover travel costs for Nationals, including flights and lodging,” Ethan Stein said. “As a student-funded club, every contribution—no matter the size—makes a meaningful difference.”
