Two students from the Ottumwa Community School District participated in the annual State Invent Iowa Competition hosted by the University of Iowa’s Belin-Blank Center in Iowa City on April 15.
Around 150 students from across the State of Iowa in grades K-8 selected through an online and mailed application process participated. Ottumwa participants included: Charles Smith, kindergarten, Eisenhower, with his “Benge Beacon” invention; and Jocelyn Davis, 4th grade, Wilson, with her “J’s Kitchen Helper” invention. All participants received a medal.
Out of 49 inventions in the K-5 division, Smith received third place for his invention. As a result, Smith received a certificate, a $50 Amazon gift card, and qualified for the National Invention Convention. He will be one of several students representing Iowa in the 2019 National Invention Convention in Dearborn, Michigan at The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in May.
Jocelyn Davis