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Chicago Area High School Students to Present Their 'Dream' Vehicles

8 March 1999

Chicago Area High School Students to Present Their 'Dream' Vehicles During Finals Competition

    CHICAGO, March 5 --  Student teams from three area high
schools have been selected as finalists in "Build Your Dream Vehicle," an
automotive design competition sponsored by DaimlerChrysler.
    A total of eight teams, selected from 26 entries, will present their
vehicles to a panel of DaimlerChrysler judges at the Museum of Science &
Industry on Tuesday, March 9, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.  They have the opportunity
to join past Chicago winners from H.L. Richards High School, St. Charles High
School, William Fremd High School, Glenbard North High School, and Maine
Township South High School.
    Created in 1994, "Build Your Dream Vehicle" exposes high school students
to career opportunities in the automotive industry and teaches them basic
employment skills for any job.  Students were challenged to conceive of,
design, and present a futuristic, environment-friendly automobile -- complete
with a three-dimensional model and marketing plans.  The program's integrated
curriculum helps students polish work skills such as the application of
science, technology, and design; time management; creativity; teamwork; giving
presentations; and developing marketing strategies and financial statements.
    Dr. Valerie Becker, DaimlerChrysler's National Education Programs
Administrator, said, "The primary goal of the 'Build Your Dream Vehicle'
program is to help high school students learn to work in teams to make
decisions -- just as they would in the real world of business."
    The three finalist schools include:  H.L. Richards High School in Oak
Lawn, St. Charles High School, and William Fremd High School in Palatine.
Twenty-six Chicago area teams participated in "Build Your Dream Vehicle" by
sending their entries to Detroit in February; eight teams were chosen to
compete in Chicago's area finals.   Student teams have been working on their
"dream" vehicles since the beginning of the school year.  Chicago is the first
"Build Your Dream Vehicle" competition for 1999; six others will follow over
the next two months.