Greensprings students win Conrad Challenge $60,000 scholarship

For their dexterity in innovation and entrepreneurship, five students of Greensprings School, Ibeju-Lekki campus, have received a scholarship worth $60,000 (₦21 million), at Clarkson University, New York, United States of America.

The four-year scholarship for each finalist was awarded by the Conrad Foundation through the Conrad Challenge, a competition that was formed in 2008 in honour of the legacy of Charles “Pete” Conrad Jr.

Secondary School Principal of the Lekki campus, Mrs. Feyisara Ojugo, said the Conrad Challenge is a yearly competition that “brings together a dynamic community of innovators and entrepreneurs driving a collaborative movement to develop extraordinary and viable solutions that benefit our world in the areas of Aerospace & Aviation, Cyber-Technology & Security, Energy & Environment, Health & Nutrition, and Smoke-Free World.

“The aim of the Foundation’s partnership with schools is to help develop talents and drive entrepreneurship in Africa. Several top-league secondary schools participated in this annual competition.

Our school presented three teams for the challenge and two of the three teams qualified for the final stage. At the grand finale of the challenge held on Saturday, 19 January at Lekki Peninsula Hotel, a team from Greensprings School (the Five Ions) emerged the first runner up out of 13 teams from schools all over Nigeria.”

Ojugo said for attaining the feat, all the students in the team (the Five Ions) received scholarships worth over $60,000 for four years at Clarkson University, New York.

“Our students’ participation in the Conrad Challenge has helped to strengthen their minds, and also, the experience has assisted to further motivate and inspire the spirit of innovation in our students. Being able to see prototyping machines, firsthand, in operation and meeting innovation experts was a rare experience beyond the theories in classroom,” she said.

She added, that winning the scholarship is an exciting news for the school, as we continue to redefine education in Africa, by consistently molding students to become global citizens and leaders in various fields.