See How Students Approached the Challenge of Creating Water Tower Models

Filling the void created by retiring water professionals is a nationwide challenge. So is the question of how to expose young people to rewarding water industry careers. The Florida Section of the American Water Works Association has an answer — and it’s fun. It’s a competition in which elementary to high school students build model water towers that fill, hold, and drain water without leaking or collapsing. They’re visually interesting, too. Conceived in 2004 by Tod Phinney, former Bradenton water engineer, the Model Water Tower Competition has expanded to eight of the 12 Florida AWWA regions and into Virginia, Georgia and