02/25/2026
2026 Tower of Power Recap!
Yesterday we had such a great time celebrating National Engineers Week with the Whiting School of Engineering’s Dean Schlesinger and 10 teams from local middle schools competing in SWE’s annual Tower of Power competition. Teams worked to build the tallest free-standing structure using only marshmallows, raw pasta, teamwork, and their budding engineering skills.
After a riveting 30-minute build where several teams were neck and neck, this year’s winning team was the Waldorf Wolves. Their structure not only reached impressive heights but was also sturdy enough to stand on its own long after teams had to step away. The winners received goodie bags filled with Hopkins merch and, most notably, took home a trophy modeled after our very own Gilman Clock Tower. A huge thank you to SWE’s Darby for designing and 3D printing this year’s trophy.
We also want to extend a big thank you to all of the schools who participated. We love engaging with the Baltimore community in this way each year and are so grateful that these middle schoolers chose to spend their free time engineering with us. Thank you as well to all of our SWE volunteers who helped set up, judge and measure towers, and clean up afterward. We truly appreciate your time and energy.
Finally, a special thank you to Dean Schlesinger for taking the time to join us and participate in judging. We are incredibly grateful for his support and for celebrating the next generation of engineers alongside us.