Rocketry Team Soars in Competition

The Upper School Rocketry Team soared to third place in the Rockets for Schools competition on May 9, 2026, in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. The team, named The Flyin' Hawaiians, designed and built the rocket and devised its payload experiment. In a picture-perfect launch from the shores of Lake Michigan, their rocket, Aloha Spirit, soared over 5000 feet. The payload experiment—a system designed to measure the vibrational oscillation of the rocket using both an accelerometer and a test of a new system, a laser and a laser diode in opposition—was a success, and crucially, the waterproofing held throughout its splashdown and recovery from the lake.

With this finish, the team is eligible to apply for the NASA Student Launch Initiative, a college-level competition open only to select high school teams each year. US also successfully competed in the NASA Student Launch in the 2024-25 and 2023-24 school years, traveling to Huntsville, Alabama, both years to launch their NASA-approved rockets and payload experiments. 

The team was featured in a local news story about the Rockets for Schools competition. See the photos and read the article in the Sheboygan Press here. 

The team is already planning for their next NASA competition! 

 

The Upper School Rocketry Team is led by Mr. Jim Seibyl ’83, Hunting Valley Help Desk Coordinator. The Rocket for Schools team members are: Tim Baker ’28, Leo DiSanto ’28, Anton Iskra ’27, Jackson Melreit ’28, Finn Monaghan ’27, Griffin Quigley ’27, Stone Rambert ’27, and Theo Walter ’27.