Artworks by K-12 Students Sound the Alarm on the Climate Crisis

07/24/2023

Contacts for media: Emily Gowdey-Backus and Nancy Cicco

Rayne Valentine, an East Boston sixth-grader whose art is teaching people about rising sea levels, is the top winner in the Massachusetts division of the annual Cool Science contest. Co-founded by UMass Lowell, the competition asks K-12 students to create illustrations that depict the science behind extreme weather, then shares the artwork on local transit buses to educate the public. 

Valentine, who attends Mario Umana Academy, is the 2023 recipient of the university’s David Lustick Award, presented to the contest’s top climate educator in the Bay State. During the past three months, the illustrations created by Valentine and fellow contest winners were displayed in and on Merrimack Valley and Worcester Regional transit authority buses, where passengers and passersby could learn about the science behind extreme weather patterns and conditions. 

A celebration of the competition’s Massachusetts honorees was held Friday, July 21, at the Chelmsford Center for the Arts. Additional contest honorees were acknowledged at a similar award ceremony in the Midwest, where student artwork was also exhibited on transit buses traveling throughout Kansas and Missouri. 

More than 4,600 students from around the world have participated in Cool Science since the annual program began in 2012. 

“Youth learning about science, and then using that knowledge to create art others can learn from, is the essence of the Cool Science project. Our research consistently indicates students learn a lot, and adults that see their artwork on buses also learn from them. It has become a profound intergenerational learning opportunity,” said UMass Lowell’s Jill Lohmeier, School of Education chair, associate professor of curriculum and instruction, and co-director of UMass Lowell’s Center for Program Evaluation. 

Cool Science is just one example of UMass Lowell’s commitment to the environment. The university is recognized as a gold-status campus and the highest ranked school in Massachusetts for sustainability, according to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. These achievements underscore the work of UMass Lowell’s Rist Institute for Sustainability and Energy, which advances research in these sectors and promotes community action in solving environmental challenges.

The contest’s top award is named in memory of the late David Lustick, a former Nashua, New Hampshire, resident, UMass Lowell professor, and nationally recognized champion of environmental education. Lustick and Lohmeier co-founded Cool Science to study how people learn new information outside of the classroom. Partnering with UMass Lowell in the initiative are UMass Boston, Massachusetts College of Art & Design, University of Kansas, and Kansas City Art Institute. The program is supported by the National Science Foundation.

In addition to Valentine, contest winners from these hometowns had their artwork appear on Merrimack Valley Transit (MeVa) bus lines: 

• Mika Tokifuji and Megan Morgan of Westford, both sixth-graders at the Stony Brook School
• Nahyun Chang, of Seoul, South Korea, a ninth-grader at the Rumsey Hall School in Washington, Connecticut
• Madeline Agyapong and Caoilinn Quealy of Lowell, both juniors at Greater Lowell Technical High School
• Yujia Wang of Arlington, a ninth-grader at Arlington High School

Runners-up also honored include:

• Zoya Pathan of Chelmsford, a fifth-grader at Parker Middle School
• Sidrah Azmi, Arya Gokhale and Rhea Mather of Westford, sixth-graders at Stony Brook School
• Dylan Chen of New York City, a junior at the Baccalaureate School for Global Education
• Supanun Tuntijarukorn of Phitsanuloki, Thailand, a senior at Aberdeen Hall Preparatory School

Contest winners from these hometowns had their artwork appear on Worcester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA) buses: 

• Margaret Deglialberti of Boylston, a fourth-grader at Boylston Elementary School
• Nick Santospago of Arlington, a third-grader at Dallin Elementary School
• Charlotte Ball of Chicopee, a sixth-grader at Hampden Charter School of Science
• Rayne Valentine of East Boston, a sixth-grader at Maria Umana Academy
• Jada Fernandes Mensah of Swampscott, a senior at Swampscott High School
• Isabella Ciarlet of Arlington, a junior at The Cambridge Matignon School

Runners-up from the following hometowns were also honored:

• Jonathan Lopez Ramos of East Boston, a fifth-grader at Mario Umana Academy
• Luca Shoaf Kozak of Boston, a fifth-grader at Mario Umana Academy
• Olivia Lai and Etta Perkins of Arlington, fourth-graders at Dallin Elementary School
• Oscar Navarro Salmeron of East Boston, a sixth-grader at Mario Umana Academy
• Albert Jiang of Brookline, a junior at Brookline High School
• Chesney Cronin of Swampscott, a freshman at Swampscott High School