Three sixth-form students will soon embark on the trip of a lifetime when they fly to Houston, Texas to join peers from around the world at the annual United Space School.
Leo Crowe, Charlie Needham, and William Shooter were this year’s winners of the scholarships awarded by River Advisers (formerly the ManSat Group), which has been sponsoring Isle of Man sixth-form students to attend the Space School since 2000.
The year 12 students won an essay competition and follow in the footsteps of previous scholars, the
first of which was Dr Jennifer Stone, who is now Chief Technical Officer at River Advisers.
This year’s Space School runs from July 14 to July 29. Joining Leo, Charlie, and William in Houston will be Ciara Sowerby, who won a Space School scholarship in 2017, and returns as a student mentor, the second year running she has been chosen for a leadership role.
The Space School is organised by the Foundation for International Space Education and Leo, Charlie, and William will work with peers from around 20 countries worldwide to plan a simulated crewed mission to Mars, supported by NASA astronauts, engineers and scientists.
To help them prepare, the students are completing assignments set by the Space School, which
involve solving problems covering all aspects of space flight, including habitat design, sustainability, legal issues, budgeting, and orbital mechanics.
Leo, who attends Ramsey Grammar School, is studying maths, further maths, physics, and chemistry at A-level.
“I'm most looking forward to meeting all the like-minded people who are brought together by the
space school,” said Leo. “I can't thank River Advisers enough for providing us with the opportunity to be part of it. Speaking to all the experienced teachers at Space School will be a fascinating
experience as well."
“The Space School has recommended us lots of films to learn how space programs are run, my
favourite of which is The Spacewalker, which highlights the many difficulties that Russian
cosmonauts had to solve on the spot. I knew space missions were hard, but I never really
appreciated the sheer amount of stuff that can go wrong.”
Leo has his heart set on a career in engineering. He explained: “I love the problem-solving aspect and I think it's awesome how much work and ingenuity goes into developing complicated machines like rockets. I think being able to help design these for a living would be cool. I think that by planning our mission to Mars, we'll all gain valuable insights into the problem solving that defines what engineering is. I hope that by going to the Space School I'll be able to decide on what field of
engineering I want to pursue.”
Fellow Ramsey Grammar School student Charlie Needham is studying A-levels in physics, computer
science, information technology, and core mathematics.
“I am looking forward to meeting people from all over the world and getting involved in the
teamwork and tasks required,” said Charlie. “In preparation, I have been researching experiences of
former scholars and what I should expect during the two-week trip."
“I hope to one day pursue a career in robotics, specifically in the realm of space exploration. To
achieve this, I aim to study either computer science or mechanical engineering at university.
I believe that the mentors I meet during my time at Space School will be able to give me an insight
into the space industry, which should be invaluable in making future decisions in regard to university
and career. I'm very excited about the trip and the opportunity River Advisers has given me.”
William, who attends St Ninian’s High School, is studying maths, further maths, and physics at A-
level. He said: “I’m excited to meet other people from around the world with an interest in space and
space exploration, and to share ideas, enthusiasm, and curiosity. I'm also looking forward to
travelling to the USA, as it’s a country I've never been to before, and I hope upon returning home to
share my experience of attending Space School with people at my school, so that they can be
inspired to apply for this program in the future."
“To prepare for attending the USS, I am completing the assignments that have been set and reading
books including Big Bang by Simon Singh, and Back to Earth by Nicole Stott, an astronaut who is
married to ManSat/River Advisers founder Chris Stott, and undertaking internet research. I’m
hoping to study maths or physics at university, with a view to working in the aerospace industry, and
I think attending Space School will give me more of an idea what it is like to work in the aerospace
industry and what opportunities there are within this field. I am very grateful to River Advisers and
the Space School for this amazing opportunity, and I cannot wait to make the most of it.”
The scholarships are awarded by River Advisers in cooperation with the Department of Education,
Sport and Culture (DESC).
Dr Stone said: “We are very grateful to DESC, the Island’s secondary schools, and King William’s
College for their excellent support of our scholarship competition over the last 25 years. The
standard of entries each year is exceptional, and we are proud of all the scholarship recipients who
have flown the Manx flag at Space School. This is a fantastic opportunity for Leo, Charlie, and
William, both in terms of the experience they will gain and contacts they will make, and we are
excited to hear about their adventures on their return from Houston.”
Daphne Caine, Minister for Education, Sport and Culture, said: “This is my first year as Minister, but
I’ve followed the stories of the previous scholarship winners over the years. I look forward to
meeting Leo, Charlie, and William on their return from Houston and hearing about their experiences.
The scholarships are such a wonderful opportunity for our sixth-form students, and we are grateful
to River Advisers for continuing such a long-running initiative.”
Please visit www.unitedspaceschool.org for more information about the Space School and
www.riveradvisers.com/scholarships for details of the company’s scholarships.
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