National Technical University «Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute» organizes unique STEM championship for school children

The team from Kholodnohirsk district of Lyceum No. 18 (#18_Kittens) took first place in the final of the STEM Championship of Kharkiv among high school students in natural and mathematical sciences. The final intellectual battle took place on December 23 in the bomb shelter of Kharkiv Polytechnic. During the month, the selection rounds were held with 164 teams from 140 Kharkiv lyceums. Nine winning teams went to the final. The competition was held in the form of Kahoot quizzes on the following topics: chemistry, physics, mathematics, IT, and the history of Kharkiv. The questions were made up by scientists of Kharkiv Polytechnic. The STEM Championship, which was attended by more than a thousand schoolchildren, was held for the first time in the history of Kharkiv. Its organizers: NTU «KhPI» with the support of the Kharkiv City Administration.

The final competition of the STEM Championship of Kharkiv among high school pupils in natural and mathematical sciences brought together pupils of grades 10-11, teachers, representatives of the Kharkiv City Administration, scientists and teachers of the National Technical University «KhPI». The participants of the tournament have become the winning teams from 9 districts of Kharkiv.

Before the start of the competition, the organizers of the STEM championship welcomed the participants: Professor Yevgen Sokol, Rector of NTU «KhPI», and Valeriy Shepel, deputy director of the department of education of the Kharkiv City Administration. They wished the players good luck and victory.

The competition consisted of 5 blocks of tasks and was held in the form of Kahoot quizzes on the following topics: chemistry, physics, mathematics, IT, and the history of Kharkiv. The questions for the quizzes were developed by a team of young scientists from NTU «KhPI». The leaders from Kharkiv Polytechnic were: Serhii Petrov, professor of the department of organic synthesis and pharmaceutical technologies, executive secretary of the admission committee (CHEMISTRY); Kseniia Minakova, associate professor of the department of physics, finalist of the L’Oréal-UNESCO award «For Women in Science» in 2023 (PHYSICS); Oleksii Larin, professor, director of the Institute of Computer Modeling of Applied Physics and Mathematics (MATHEMATICS); Andrii Kopp, associate professor of the department of software engineering and intelligent management technologies (IT). A fifth set of questions about Kharkiv was compiled especially for the STEM Championship final, hosted by members of the Kharkiv City Administration: Gabriel Mikhailov and Alisa Panova.

During the breaks between the competitions, the participants of the intellectual tournament were supported by the vocal show band «Suzirya», a collective of the NTU «KhPI» Students’ Palace.

Following the results of the Kharkiv STEM Championship, the team from Kholodnohirskyi district #18_Kittens (KhL No18) won the title, ІМПУЛЬС161 (KhL No161) from Nemyshlianskyi district took second place, and One for all (KhL #82) from Slobidskyi district won third place. All participants received diplomas, and the winners also received interesting gifts: power banks and memorable books about Kharkiv. In addition, 10 teachers of NTU «KhPI» – the organizers of the STEM Championship – received the Mayor’s Acknowledgments. And the leaders of the intellectual tournament, the #18_Kittens team, won the Winner’s Cup. The awards were presented by first deputy mayor of Kharkiv Oleksandr Novak and Rector of NTU «KhPI» Professor Yevgen Sokol.

The participants and organizers of the intellectual tournament noted that the competition was a unique event not only for Kharkiv, but also for the whole of Ukraine. Support and popularization of natural and mathematical subjects and technical specialties is extremely important today, although these specialties are not popular among graduates and applicants. After all, this generation will be responsible for the revival of the Ukrainian economy and industry! Therefore, the introduction of gamification, along with the popularization of STEM education and the development of Soft skills, is among the most important components of the educational process.

Note:

The STEM Championship of Kharkiv in natural and mathematical sciences among pupils of grades 10-11 was held from 22.11.2023 to 23.12.2023. The competition was attended by 164 teams from 140 lyceums. The selection stage took place on 11/30/2023. The semifinals were held on 2 December, 2023, 9 December, 2023 and 16 December, 2023. In total, more than 1000 high school pupils from Kharkiv took part in the championship.

National Technical University «Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute» opens Starry project for development of university

National Technical University «Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute» held the grand opening of a new project for the restoration and innovative development of Kharkiv Polytechnic – «Starry Sky of NTU «KhPI». Its main «stars» became the creators of the university: prominent scientists, teachers, public figures, and its continuation became the virtual space of the thematic website. Currently, everyone can become a participant of the project and light own star on the «Starry Sky of KhPI» by transferring funds to support the university. Kharkiv Polytechnic’s «Skyline» is located on the wall of the Scientific and Technical Library and on the interactive map of the Internet space. The event was attended by representatives of the Supervisory Board of NTU «KhPI», who gathered for a meeting that day. The event was dedicated to the World Science Day for Peace and Development, which is celebrated on the 10th of November.

«Starry Sky of NTU «KhPI» is a very important project for our university, said the rector of NTU «KhPI», professor Yevgen Sokol, at the opening ceremony. «One of its strategic goals is to give the opportunity to future generations of polytechnics to learn about those who have written their names into the «golden pages» of NTU «KhPI». Each institute in our «sky» is represented by its own constellation, the main stars of which are prominent scientists and teachers who have created the almost 140-year history of Kharkiv Polytechnic. The second important goal of the project is its continuity. We continue to develop and restore the university, which has suffered significant damage due to russian aggression. And, despite the difficult wartime, today everyone who is not indifferent to the fate of NTU «KhPI» can contribute and light their own star in the «Starry Sky of NTU «KhPI».

«Life goes on, and we have to build Ukraine. I will definitely not leave the country. I am sure that we need to return our people. We need to prepare to introduce modern state-of-the-art technologies for the powerful development of the university,» noted Vasyl Khmelnytsky, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of NTU «KhPI» and First Vice President of the Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.

Rector of Kharkiv Polytechnic Yevgen Sokol and Chairman of the Supervisory Board Vasyl Khmelnytsky cut the ribbons, launching a new project for the restoration and development of Kharkiv Polytechnic «Starry Sky of NTU «KhPI».

In addition, on this day, a meeting of the Supervisory Board of NTU «KhPI» was held, where changes in its structure were announced, as well as the report for 2021-2022 of the rector of the university was heard. The participants of the meeting were shown the performance indicators of NTU «KhPI» during this time, as well as plans and perspectives for the development of the university. After the meeting, Volodymyr Semynozhenko, a member of the Supervisory Board and Head of the North-Eastern Scientific Centre of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, presented to rector Yevgen Sokol a letter of gratitude to the Kharkiv Polytechnic staff from the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. «You have not only survived, but are developing and have plans. And if there are plans, there is also optimism, which means that there will be a Victory – a mandatory Victory in all the things that we have started together,» said Volodymyr Semynozhenko at the ceremony.

Scientists of National Technical University «Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute» took part in a study tour and conference in Finland

Scientists of NTU «KhPI» took part in a study tour to Aalto University (Helsinki) and in the annual conference «Nordeep Deep Tech Business Summi» (Espoo) in Finland. The first delegation of Ukrainian representatives included Ruslan Kryvobok, Head of Scientific and Research Part NTU «KhPI», and Natalia Shmatko, Professor of the Management Department and Director of the Spark Start-up Centre of Kharkiv Polytechnic. Together with their Ukrainian colleagues, they presented the national ecosystem of innovations and technological achievements of our country. These events were a unique opportunity to establish contacts and discuss further cooperation between the academic, private and public sectors of Ukraine and the European scientific and business community.

This year’s study tour to Aalto University was dedicated to the development of innovations in the academic environment and the commercialization of university research. And the «Nordeep Deep Tech Business Summit» conference has become the first and only European scientific forum with a focus on deep-tech. Every year, it brings together more than one thousand five hundred entrepreneurs, researchers, investors, representatives of various institutions and media interested in the current tandem of science and business. Participants of the 2023 conference presented their practical cases of scientific developments and discussed important topics for further cooperation at panel discussions. Foreign experts were particularly interested in the presentation of the Ukrainian ecosystem and programs of scientific research and technological achievements that took place during the facilitated sessions. Thus, cooperation and partnership with Aalto University will allow Ukrainian and European experts to combine innovative research in an interdisciplinary environment of cooperation between science, business and art.

We should note that the study tour and the «Nordeep Deep Tech Business Summit» conference were held in cooperation with the Finnish university’s innovation department and ArcticStartup Events, an organization that brings together startup entrepreneurs, investors, corporate representatives and media from more than 60 countries.