Congratulations to VistasLeadership Academy student Justin Gaitens, 13, who took first place in the Arizona Student Solar Competition, held at the Tucson Earth Day Festival April 17th. Gaitens, a student at Vista Leadership’s Mesa campus, was one of more than 70 students across Arizona who took part. Competing students each ordered a solar car kit from the Women in Engineering Program months ago, then began learning how solar cells generate electricity and how to design their car to capture the rays of the sun to increase the velocity of their vehicles. The kits contained solar cells, motors, batteries, lights, and other optional parts; the design and construction was “left to the ingenuity of the student.” Steven Conn, 14, a student at Vista Grove’s Apache Junction campus, took second place. It was the first year the school competed in the event.