Advanced Math Classes Participate in International Competition

Students in Episcopal’s advanced math classes recently took on the challenge of real-world problem-solving in the MathWorks Math Modeling Challenge (M3 Challenge). This prestigious international competition tasks high school juniors and seniors with applying mathematical modeling to pressing global issues. This year’s topic, “Hot Button Issue: Staying Cool as the World Heats Up,” challenged teams to analyze heat transfer on a hot summer day when air conditioning fails and to develop a method for determining which neighborhoods are most vulnerable in a heat wave. Working under the pressure of a 14-hour time limit, students collaborated to make assumptions, analyze data, and construct mathematical models to address this critical issue.

Episcopal’s participation in this annual event has grown significantly, with four teams competing this year. Upperclassmen in high-level calculus and statistics courses put their skills to the test, gaining valuable experience in teamwork, problem-solving, and real-world math applications. Their final reports will be evaluated by professional applied mathematicians, offering valuable feedback on their models and methodologies.

Team 2, including Ella-Jane Eddy ’25, Stella Herford ’26, Chad Himes ’25, Tate Lueck ’25, and Eric Monti ’25, has already moved on to round two, where less than 20% of submissions will have an opportunity to win scholarships.

“M3 was such a great opportunity. I really enjoyed using math and research to solve a real world problem!” said Susanna Ball ’25.

Teams included: