After entering its final competition, senior Architecture, Construction and Engineering member Tess McQuillan said the club performed well, scoring third place.

“It went really well,” McQuillan said. “We got third place. Our board was nominated to go to nationals at D.C., so I am really happy with the progress we made this year. Additionally, I won a scholarship from the ACE mentor program for $2000.”

Senior Architecture, Construction and Engineering (ACE) club member Jerry Somaiah said he feels grateful for the new knowledge he gained during the ACE program.

“I think it’s been a great experience,” Somaiah said. “I’ve learned a lot about the process of building. A lot of it is processes, not a lot of hard data. It’s a good preliminary experience.”

Senior ACE member Madison Vignes said this year’s project felt more natural compared to last year’s project.

“(This year went) a lot smoother,” Vignes said. “I think last year we were still in the phase of trying to comprehend what exactly the competition entailed. This year we got a feel of what we needed to accomplish and then we were able to delegate different positions to different people.”

ACE club adviser Al Wachutka said proper organization helped the project run smoothly.

“It was a lot more organized this year and because of that I believe we progressed better,” Wachutka said. “This year, we have a lot more physical work to make a model. Last year there was no model; it was only on paper. I also think people had a better idea of what needed to be accomplished this year.”

Wachutka said he hopes participation in ACE will increase in future years.

“We are really in need of people to join us,” Wachutka said. “Especially those who have an interest in the fields of architecture, construction and engineering. Since we’re graduating most of our team and we have only one returning, we could use a new set of folks to take up this project.”

McQuillan said she encourages students to join ACE next year.

“Join ACE,” McQuillan said. “You get free pizza, and if you apply for it, you can also get free money too.”

Students who wish to join ACE next year should look at the ACE website.