Josh Porter ’24

Builder and Coach

Sophomore Josh Porter has always liked building things. So, when he heard Middle School science teacher Janice Palmer talk about Science Olympiad at a morning meeting when he was in fifth grade, he knew that was something that might interest him. After the first meeting, he was hooked.

“Of the events Mrs. Palmer gave us, I was really intrigued by the idea of building a plane out of wood and tissue paper that could fly for a few minutes,” says Josh. Since then, not only has Josh placed in the state competition for flying balsa wood planes, but he is also sharing his expertise as a coach for the current Middle School team.

Science Olympiad is a team competition in which students compete in up to two dozen events pertaining to various fields of science. Wright Stuff is an event in which teams design, construct, and test free-flight, rubber-powered monoplanes to achieve maximum time aloft.

“When you wind the propeller, it gives you the power to release, but the wings have to be built and angled correctly so you get the right loft,” explains Josh. “It’s flown in a gym, so you want your plane to be able to climb, circle, and come back down. It requires a lot of mathematical calculations to get the right weight and angle. The experience has definitely helped me develop problem-solving skills and logical ways to find a solution.”

Josh competed all four years in Middle School in the category. Even though he admits that his first plane was not very good (it flew for eight seconds), it was good enough for him to compete on the “varsity” team as a fifth grader. In sixth grade, Josh and his teammates faced a challenge when they realized their plane was going to be too heavy. Josh enjoys figuring things out by researching online, reading articles, and watching instructional YouTube videos. So, he found a plane that used carbon fiber and was more aerodynamic. With that plane, the team placed third regionally and tenth in the state.

Mrs. Palmer has always been there to support me with whatever I needed,” says Josh. “If she doesn’t know, she says ‘let me find out.’ She’s always been happy to see my success... sometimes even happier than I am to see the plane fly! She has had a big impact on me.

When Josh reached out to Mrs. Palmer this year to see if she needed any help with Science Olympiad, she recognized that since Josh knows more about building and flying competition planes than she does, he could do more than just help—she asked him to be a coach. So, now Josh continues to share his love of flying and competing as coach for the current Wright Stuff team, sixth-graders Khloe McIntosh-Jordan and Selah French. Every Wednesday afternoon, he drives down to Bissell Campus and spends about two hours helping the younger students learn to build and fly their planes.

“It’s been interesting because I get to see the other side,” he says. “For me, it’s easy to read something online and know what to do. It’s more challenging to articulate the skills on how to do this to someone else. I’ve enjoyed helping this new team make their first plane...it’s definitely better than the first plane I ever made.”

Josh adds that Science Olympiad Coach David Sanders has also been very influential. “He has been very helpful to me in developing my leadership skills and how to problem-solve.”

“I am so proud of Josh for sharing his passion and expertise to help others find their passion,” says Mrs. Palmer. “I remember the all-thumbs little fifth-grade boy getting super glue on my lab tables and himself. And now I see the soft-spoken young man effortlessly demonstrating how to cut and glue balsa wood wing ribs. His enthusiasm is contagious and is more than inspiring. My former student is soaring and is now the teacher!”