[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 146 (Monday, October 3, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1745]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


TRIBUTE TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND TEAM WHO WON THE SOLAR DECATHLON 
                                  2011

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 3, 2011

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate a talented team 
of students from my alma mater, the University of Maryland, who this 
weekend won first place at the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar 
Decathlon 2011 here in Washington.
  The U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon is a competition 
among collegiate teams to design and build solar-powered houses that 
combine affordability and appeal to consumers with energy-efficiency 
and design excellence. The University of Maryland team's house, 
WaterShed, was awarded first place in recognition of its innovative use 
of solar energy and water conservation, excellent design, and strong 
performance in daily competitions. In addition to winning the overall 
competition, the Maryland team also proved victorious in the 
Architecture Contest and tied for first with perfect scores in both the 
Hot Water and Energy Balance contests.
  Over 200 students, representing a wide variety of disciplines 
including architecture, engineering, environmental science and plant 
sciences, contributed to WaterShed, making Maryland's victory a truly 
collaborative effort. By blending innovation and technology with 
sustainability and conservation, these students demonstrated the 
creativity, teamwork, technical knowledge, and determination that are 
essential as we work to revive our economy and regain our nation's 
place as a leader in high tech and sustainable manufacturing.
  The hard work of the Maryland team, and the work of the 19 other 
teams involved in the competition, illustrate the goals of the Make It 
In America plan that my Democratic colleagues and I are pursuing. The 
Make It In America plan emphasizes support for American firms 
developing new clean energy technologies, creating jobs while investing 
in a more sustainable future. This competition, with its focus on both 
cost-effectiveness and energy-efficiency, is an excellent example of 
the approach we need to pursue to achieve our economic and 
sustainability goals.
  I would like to recognize the work of student leaders Jay Chmilewski, 
David Daily, Leah Davies, Steve Emling, Isabel Enerson, Tamir Ezzat, 
Michael Feldman, David Gavin, Jeff Gipson, Newton Gorrell, Joseph 
Ijjas, Moshe Katz, Yehuda Katz, Lynn Khuu, Zachary Klipstein, Parlin 
Meyer, Jeff Rappaport, Matt Sickle, Evan Smith, Scott Tjaden, Kevin 
Vandeman, Nick Weadock, Allison Wilson, and Veronika Zhiteneva and 
faculty team members Mike Binder, Patricia Kosco Cossard, Amy Gardner, 
Brian Grieb, Dr. Keith Herold, Madlen Simon, Dr. David Tilley and 
Brittany Williams.
  The University of Maryland team--including students, faculty, and 
professional mentors--should be congratulated for their impressive 
accomplishments, and I am proud to honor these exceptional individuals. 
I urge my colleagues to join with me in applauding this impressive 
feat, and I ask unanimous consent that the names of the team members, 
the extended team and the mentors be included in the Record following 
my statement.

  Team Members: Ali Alaswadi, Benjamin Bates, Amy Chen, Brennan Clark, 
Linda Clark Michael Craton, Natalya Dikhanov, Eric Gellman, James Han, 
Justin Heil, Justin Huang, Erik Kornfeld, John Kucia, Allen Meizlish, 
Jeffrey Sze and Andrew Taverner.
  Extended Team: Sahin Arikoglu, Alex Atahua, Rishi Banerjee, Justin 
Bare, Katherine Beisler, Jacob Bialek, Paul Bilger, Christoper Binkley, 
Ian Black, Andrew Bruno, Victoria Chang, Wen-Hui Chen, Ethan Cowan, 
Justin Cullen, Diana Daisey, Adam Davies, Aleron Dsilva, Mariam Eshete, 
Eric Faughnan, Ryan Fitch, Meredith Friedman, Holman Gao, Louis Gbone, 
Philip Geilman, Phil Geiman, Marisa Gomez; Karen Hillis, Ananya 
Hiremath, Vanessa Hoffman, Amy Hudson, Phil Jacks, Peter James, Eric 
Joerdens, Christine Kandigian, Jacob Kunken, Christopher Leung, Arik 
Lubkin, Christopher Luther, Ryan Maisel, Bracha Mandel, Maria Martello, 
Zachary Martinez, Abe Massad, Mark Matovich, Shakira Mccall, Kenneth 
Morgan, Christopher Myers, Zachary Nerenberg, Matthew Newman, Yuchen 
Nie, Albert Palmer, Daniel Perdomo, Robert Pettit, Chau Pham, Georgina 
Pinnock, Kaitlin Pless, Olga Pushkareva, James Ramil, Mark Reese, 
Raheena Rehman, Nicolas Roldos, Boateng Rosemond, Michele Rubenstein, 
Michael Satoh, Charles Schupler, Juliet Serem, Valerie Smith, Jacob 
Steinberg, Michael Taylor, Alexander Tonetti, Marcela Trice, Katherine 
Vocke, Nader Wallerich, Luxi Wang, Amy Weber, Sofia Weller, Christine 
Wertz, Kiley Wilfong, Christine Wirth, Fawna Xiao, Diane Ye, and Jesse 
Yurow.
  Mentors: Deborah Bauer, Grant Baxter, Charlie Berliner, Dan 
Blankfeld, Joe Bolewski, Brian Borak, Erin Carlisle, John Cartagirone, 
Chris Cobb, John Coventry, Adam Eurich, Taz Ezzat, George Fritz, Julie 
Gabrielli, Aditya Gaddam, Jennifer Gilmer, Anne Hicks Harney, Maggie 
Haslam, Ray Hayleck, Joan Honeyman, Ming Hu, Adam Keith, Peter Kelley, 
Benson Kwong, Mike Lawrence, Dale Leidich, John Love, Kristen Markham, 
Evan Merkel, John Morris, Frank Plummer, Don Posson, Kristin Potterton, 
Tyler Sines, Niklas Vigener, Dan Vlacich, Fred Werth, Bill Wiley, Jay 
Williams, and Dan Zimmerman.

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