The “Best in Show” presentation by The Sakura Bridge student Team from Carlmont High School
It was another wonderful, amazing, and successful Bridge Showcase & Awards Event, held on Saturday, April 26, 2025 in Stanley Hall at UC Berkeley. We are always impressed with the unique and creative designs that students bring to life each year using only the limited materials within the scope of the project. Participating students spent nine weeks developing designs for a vehicular bridge across the Buffalo Bayou River in Houston, Texas requiring a movable span component, OR for a multi-function bridge across the Katsura River in Kyoto, Japan incorporating deck porosity. The Teams presented a variety of unique designs and structural solutions to meet the scenario requirements. The overall “Best In Show” award was presented to The Sakura Bridge from Carlmont High School! The bridge featured a suspension upper deck and a cable-stayed lower deck creating unique flexibility and an earthquake resistant structure. Additionally, perforations lined the bridge deck allowing filtered sunlight to reach the river water below and support aquatic life. The Carlmont Team received high scores from the Judges for their design, bridge construction, essay, and oral presentation, making them stand out from the competition and take the top prize for the 2025 program.
Congratulations to The Sakura Bridge Team, and congratulations to all the students for completing the Student Impact Project!
EAA would like to thank Professor Nicholas Sitar and the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at UC Berkeley for hosting the 24th Annual Bridge Showcase & Awards Event.
In-School Program
There were 123 student teams from 8 San Francisco, 9 East Bay and two Peninsula classes that participated in EAA’s program. Bay Area Firms provided more than 45 volunteer structural engineers and architects to teach the weekly curriculum.
Event Highlights
A festive atmosphere percolated through the event as Engineers Alliance for the Arts celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Student Impact Project.
The Keynote Address by the UC Berkeley Steel Bridge Team included information about the complex building and design competition. The presentation also featured interesting competition anecdotes and inspirational personal growth stories by the Team members. A video of the Keynote Address can be found below.
Winning Teams
Every student on a winning team received a trophy or medal. The awards and the program were made possible by the generous support of our donors.
Kyoto Scenario:
1st Place AND Best In Show
The Sakura Bridge
Carlmont High School
Class 1
Kyoto Scenario:
2nd Place
Aka Amadai
Lowell High School
Class 2
Kyoto Scenario:
3rd Place
Kazenomichi Bridge
Carlmont High School
Class 2
Houston Scenario:
1st Place
Lone Star Bridge
Abraham Lincoln High School
Class 3
Houston Scenario:
2nd Place
Banana Split Bridge
Lowell High School
Class 2
Houston Scenario:
3rd Place
Apollo Gateway
Carlmont High School
Class 2
Founder’s Award:
Hashi Bridge
San Francisco Hilltop High School
Class 1
President’s Award:
Orion Bridge
Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory
Class 1
Karen Melander Design Award:
Torii Bridge
Alameda Community Learning Center
Class 2
Nancy Bonneville Communication Award:
Wave Bridge
Carlmont High School
Class 1
People’s Choice Award:
ZMZ Bridge
Griffin Academy
Class 1
Best in Class
Kaboom
Abraham Lincoln High School
Class 1
Best in Class
Tera Bridge
Abraham Lincoln High School
Class 2
Best in Class
Blue Bonnet Bridge
Envision Academy
Class 1
Best in Class
Crespo Bridge
Envision Academy
Class 2
Best in Class
The Dragon Path
Livermore High School
Class 1
Best in Class
Space City Span
Livermore High School
Class 2
Best in Class
Gate of Luck
Lowell High School
Class 1
Best in Class
Koi Crossing
NEA Community Learning Center
Class 1
Best in Class
Miyagi Bridge
Pinole Valley High School
Class 1
Best in Class
El Puente del Amour
San Francisco Hilltop High School
Class 2
2025 Judges
A diverse panel of expert architects, artists and engineers provided a broad array of viewpoints this year:
AWARD JUDGES
Robert Becker, Presenting Architecture
Katy Taylor Ford, Ratcliff
Ken Forward, Pacific Gas & Electric Company
Kenneth Klein, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger
Sophia Liu, Meta
Nicholas Murray, HNTB
Lauren Sullivan, CDM Smith
Noelle Yuen, Maffei Structural Engineering
ESSAY JUDGES
Katie Boisseree
Tali Feinstein, Exponent
Louise Foulkes, Build Change
Sania Khan, Maffei Structural Engineering
JUDGE MODERATORS
Uchenna Okoye
Mark Van Velzen
We thank each participating Judge for sharing their expertise, time and energy to help evaluate essays, bridges, and student presentations.
2025 Student Impact Project Event
Congratulations to all of the students who completed EAA’s 10-week enrichment program.
SCHOOLS
ABRAHAM LINCOLN HIGH SCHOOL
Teacher: Paolo Salazar
Class 1
Bridge of the Clear Stream, Kyoto: Dun Lau, Brandon Li, Jason Zhu, Brady Thai
Houston Shuttles, Houston: Bill Feng, Lucas Zuo, Sam Adrian Shao, Alvan Bayot, Yonqui Hu
Arashiyama Bridge, Kyoto: Kaiyi Chen, Katalina Munn, James Chen, Nayely Cauich Bautista
Kaboom, Houston: Lyna Milan, Nita Wu, Kenny Lin, Preston Tsui
The Texas Sombrero, Houston: Genesis Irias, Andrea Rivera, Logan Espinoza-Mancilla, Joshua Ha
The Red Hulk, Kyoto: Lucas Rondone, Nicolas Sandoval, Liam Kline, Jared Zhou
Gates of Purity, Kyoto: Sophie Ng, Makena Reeves, Chapman Poon, Cecilia Hunter-Kallus
Class 2
My Little Pony Dora Spaceship, Houston: Corinne Poston, Hailin Chen, Elliot Lansenderfer, Christy Huang
Bad Bunny, Houston: Elise Bang, Dorian Li, Lucas Pollock, Vicki Li
Tera Bridge, Kyoto: Jefferson Chay-Asip, Judah Meyerson, Andrew Chen, Jonas Kueffel
Bridge of Life, Houston: Brian Ramirez Hernandez, Valentino Lopez, Gabriel Fulgencio, Evan Truong
Sakuragawa Bridge, Kyoto: Ana Garcia-Cruz, Joy Elekwachi, Everest Kha, Justin Dinh
Sunshine Bridge, Kyoto: Kyle Zhuang, Ricky Zhen, Willow Pound, Tommy Chan Wu
Rainbow Bridge, Houston: Alejandro Garcia Cruz, Dahrey Lira-Guzman, Tryston Ng, Sean Powers
Kyoto Martinez, Kyoto: Andres Martinez, Jason Jayden Leung, Jonathan Nguyen, Raymond Liu
Class 3
The Houston Rockets, Houston: Sir Dave Hann, Andre Bell, Ethan Chan, Mohamed Alowdi
Covenant Crossing, Houston: Elijah Ozawa, Michael Lai, Tony Huang
Lone Star Truss, Houston: Tu May, Loyal Layne, Ren Hong, Emily Liu
The Sun Bridge, Kyoto: Wesley Kwong, Matthew Zeng, Emerson Liao, Jamal Milo
Kuusai Bridge, Kyoto: Jephrey Drawn, Kelly Du, Darrell Chan, Vincent Chu
Mosuhana, Kyoto: Thuy Quynh Lam, Jairo Hafenecker-Dodge, Carmen Li, Joanna Li
Mr. Tran’s Bridge, Kyoto: Aiden Tran, Darryl Huang, Jason Cheung, Lucas Zhu
The Great Jacky, Houston: Jacky Ng, Richard Guerra Olivares, Emiliano Del Rio, Jayden Encarnacion, Eric Chen
ALAMEDA COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER
Teacher: Heather Dutton
Class 1
Deer Park Round Bridge, Houston: Calari Bradford, Katie Hoang
2025 Bridge, Kyoto: Adam Elmouhtaj
Kiji Bridge, Kyoto: Nick Hall, David Alvarez, Zeno Kalonaris, Jensen Sprinkle
Class 2
Torii Bridge, Kyoto: Harmanpreet Kaur, Khloe West, Kalliyani West, Kamille Grant, Abdusalem Selamu, Amir Selamu
The Sun Crossing Bridge, Kyoto: Mike Ly, Corey Ng, Dante Mosier-Tidd
Hishigata, Kyoto: Rhiannon Edison, Xander France, Dashiell Young, Ben Stoffmacher, Erica Fan
Kagawa, Kyoto: Doug Fan, Arnie Phang, Amsy Velasquez
Sakura, Kyoto: Liliana Alvarez, Vivian Li, Asher Arnold, Fatima Mahgoub
CARLMONT HIGH SCHOOL
Teacher: Jim Bohac
Class 1
Arch of Protection, Kyoto: Madeline Cassidy, Keya Negandhi, Aaron Shelton
Cosmic Crescent, Kyoto: Dmitri Dogadkin, Kaito Kobayashi, Raja Patel
Moon Crossing Bridge, Kyoto: Warner Baker, Elliott Kramer, Alexandra Medvedeva
Sakura Bridge, Kyoto: Rin Uchida, Elbert Lo, Ambrose Boyle
Chery Blossom Bridge, Kyoto: Cat Holloway, Enosch Fadael, Aaryan Choksi
The Wave Bridge, Kyoto: Tara Krishnan, Landon Schaefer, Jason Nguyen
Dent’s Bridge, Kyoto: Wyatt Dent, Ethan Roth
Kitsume No Hashi, Kyoto: Andrew Callahan, Jenkins Owen, Dhatri Vennela
Class 2
Lone Star Link, Houston: Phie Wei, Ethan Kizner, Louie Dumont
Katsura Bridge, Kyoto: Wyatt Price, Trenton Basso, Jason Owyeong
Kazenomichi Bridge, Kyoto: Kylan Wang, Daniel Garcia, Austin Duarte
Sunrise Bridge, Kyoto: Delaney Wolfe, Neer Ghate, Nirav Ramdhanie
Mitsui No Bunri (Torai Bridge), Kyoto: Brandan Ng, Joshua Flores, Carter Tsui
Beyonce Bridge, Houston: Maurice Autoun, Lakshya Mayala, Noah Franklin, Leonard Jin
Apollo Gateway, Houston: Anita Metzler, Sophia Klar, Jeffery Yu
ENVISION ACADEMY
Teacher: Ali Vali
Class 1
Nishiyama Bridge, Kyoto: Kaylah Juniel, Dior Cooks, Miracle Hall, Ayoshi Mccoy
The Blue Bonnet, Houston: Estephany Diaz, Jezzel Oualle, Dulce Rodriguez, Karina Jarillo, Clarlinda Paul
Mushroom, Kyoto: Omar Campos, Erasmo Merino, Jesus Mendez Munoz
Class 2
Crespo Bridge, Houston: Rahwa Mahray, Aaron Monreal, Angel Anguiano
EA Bridge, Houston: Quami Moore Jr., Nano Lopez, Adrian Ayala, Luis Baltazar
Nezumi with the biggest bridge, Kyoto: Ayh Alashwal, America Castro, Sara Bibian-Ochoa, Suzann Al-Mulam
GRIFFIN TECHNOLOGY ACADEMY
Teacher: Alex Wallace
Class 1
Dragon Gate Bridge, Kyoto: Angel Ortega Guzman, Caelin Jun Cabrera
The Geisha Bridge, Kyoto: Pulena P. Laie, Palakpreet Kaur
Lone Star Link, Houston: Ashton Bonifacio, Danny Espino
Buck Bridge, Houston: Rejhon Davis, Redd Ho
Tano Daichi Bridge, Kyoto: Janell Alvarez, Pedro Orantes
San Jacinto memorial bridge, Houston: Mia Sanchez, Melvin Garcia
ZMZ Bridge, Houston: Angel Zuniga, Elian Lopez
Bushido Shrine, Kyoto: Miguel Garcia, Harris Choudhary
LIVERMORE HIGH SCHOOL
Teacher: Karen Fletcher
Class 1
San Jacinto Bridge, Houston: Kassandra Cuenca, Zeynep Vergili, Elia Gribi
Botan Bridge, Kyoto: Geneveive Bagakis, Alethia Lollis, Aubrie Buck, Payten Williams
Wild Wakes Bridge, Kyoto: Tanner Trinta, Chase Liner, Kyle DeSa, Park Polson
The Teriyaki Bridge, Kyoto: Fernando Calzada, Oscar Rodriguez, Ahan Patel
Shining Sun Bridge, Kyoto: Noah Mena, Mason Sargent, Arya Rajavelu, Anthony Reil
The Dragon’s Path, Kyoto: William Stern, Daniel Abalos, Anika Taloma, Lucas George
Fushimi Kaikyo, Kyoto: Oliver Griffing, David Kamena, Ethan Liu, Mansoor Taimuri
Suchah Bridge, Kyoto: Mia Munoz, Londyn Jones, Rhiannon Stewart, Gianna Willes
Class 2
Buffalo Bridge, Houston: Duke Fang, Rion Paradise, Michael Kor, Elizabeth Siemens
Bayou Bridge, Houston: Michael Nelson, Samuel Walter, Noah Trolo, Jaden Jirasevijinda
The Lone Star Bridge, Houston: MaySun Charlesworth, Michael McClung, Julian McCall, Carolyn Siemens
Space City Span, Houston: Levi Breiz, Brodie Bishop, Sean Clark, Christian Fam
Gori-Ka-Suru, Kyoto: Dashiel Brent, Kaden Baruz
Arashiyama Bridge, Kyoto: Elijah Frimpong, Raghav Singh, Sonia Spruiell
The Kohaku Koi Bridge, Kyoto: Tiffany Nguyen, Yashika Adusumilli, Nyssa Srivastava, Yaritza Luna Jimenez
LOWELL HIGH SCHOOL
Teacher: Theresa Nguyen
Class 1
Hinode Arc, Kyoto: Alex Wu, David Jung
Hana, Kyoto: Linh Ho, Marisol Valderramos, Elena Barkl
Red Road Creek, Houston: Quinn Luk, Maya Miyamoto
Fuiji, Kyoto: Katilyn Hau, Isabelle Wong
Turner, Houston: Andrew Ozhyndovskyy, Jeremy Kabiling
Crawfish, Houston: Benson Jun Yao Ma, Asen Kuykendall, Liam Liope
Apollo, Houston: Joshua Levy, Kevin Cabral, Ty Corum
Gate of Luck, Kyoto: Steven Gomez, Stephanie Zhou
Buffalo Bayou, Houston: Corbin Frank, Jonathan Dang, Nathan Banh
Tango Guji, Kyoto: Axel Maturel Franco, Edwin Hernandez, Jose Hernandez
Hino Ogi Bashi, Kyoto: Emma Young, Hina Murakami
Class 2
Inari, Kyoto: Rohin Mainali, Miles Serafino, Elias Montes, Adil Javed
Kenny Rogers Memorial, Houston: Lucas Astrachan, Auden Pierce, Walker Young, Colm Power
Le Deux Chevals, Houston: Strider Schulte, Cilla Field
Ame-No-Ukihashi, Kyoto: Richa Nath, Ava Leung
Amadai, Kyoto: Indiana Chander, Youyou Dai
Banana Split, Houston: Kaliopi Terplan, Grace Lee, Chloe Wilson
New Houston, Houston: Nicholas Sin, Oliver Rockwood
Aegis, Houston: Reis Sun, Ethan Will, Jasmine Liu
Kyouretsu, Kyoto: Maddix Dang, Nathan Wong, Antonio Nevarez
Haru no hashi, Kyoto: Derek Tran, Avery Yang, Kevin Cui
NEA COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER
Teacher: Heather Dutton
Class 1
Reddington Bridge, Houston: Abdul Aldhahi, Amr Alagi, Zyre Jamison, Moses Yonas, Jonathan Urias, Valeria Najera
Bay Bridge, Kyoto: Isabella DeLeon, Katelyn Corena
Koi Crossing, Kyoto: Malika Hansbury, Chyna Washington, Samuel Burton, Ryan Banh, Jaime Nguyen
MALS Bridge, Kyoto: Samantha Olmos, Lizzy Mora, Alex Freeman, Michelle Fuentes
The Wave Bridge, Kyoto: Anaisabel Fajardo, Camila Ruiz, Paulina Cardenas
Class of 2025, Kyoto: Brianna Whipple, Eniyah Tatum, Nashé Burrus, Ayana Harris, Antaneya Pierre
PINOLE VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL
Teacher: Angela Johnson
Class 1
That One Bridge, Kyoto: Juan Ramirez, Isaac Wong, Noah Colom, Ellijah Rogers, Zylle Torres, Hemza Ousount
Miyagi Bridge, Kyoto: Donovan, Bantay, Jean Shayne Pedragosa, Tze Ong, Natalie Szumlas, Walter Clark, Anthony Dasilva
Evolutionary Leap, Houston: Dorian Kula, Adrian Lo, Isaac Torres, Pascal Grisso, Evan Godwin, Noah Villa
The Lone Star Bridge, Houston: Jonathon Moran, Jorge Hildago, Usman Khan, Christian Ramos, Gael Castellanos. Craig Jensen, Allen Deogracias
Sakura Hashi, Kyoto: Kellyann Lauricio, Ava Douangphachanh, Liliana Uluac Vargas, Athena Abratique, Chenen Rae Vasquez, Teagan Ott
SACRED HEART CATHEDRAL PREPARATORY
Teacher: Kim Freudenberg
Class 1
The Moonlight Arches Bridge, Kyoto: Jude Bandak, Michael Hernandez, Julian Lechadores
Hananomichi Bridge, Kyoto: Emma Tom, Liya Milman, Brianna Hollub
Bayou Shipway Bridge, Houston: Tessa Miller-Wrong, Jamila Bullock, Anna Schou
Orion Link Bridge, Houston: Dashiell Snape, Darren Fung, August Bastian, Liam Callahan
Sunlit Bridge, Kyoto: Jacob Chew, Luka Petkovic, Lucas Carian
Gētou~ei (Gateway), Kyoto: Brad Kaiser, Finn Kavanaugh, Nico Laser
Sakura Bridge, Kyoto: Vivienne Austin, Kara Liu, Rachel Zhao, Caylee Chin
Tsukikage Bridge (Moonlight Bridge), Kyoto: Tommy Maguire, Nico Conte, Max Tamburro
Henkaku no hashi (Bridge of Transformation), Kyoto: Parker Mead, Sydney Kerpelman, Ava Lindner, Bonnie Hatch
SAN FRANCISCO HILLTOP HIGH SCHOOL
Teachers: Joseph Alter, Peter Lu
Class 1
Bunny ‘23 Bridge, Kyoto: Casandra Villanueva Gonzalez, Brooklyn A. Willis, Emily Mendez, Cheny Lopez, Destiny Sanchez,
Brenda A. Juarez Diaz
Hashi Bridge, Kyoto: Rocsi Reeves, Melasia Lawrence
Melody Bridge, Houston: Anyelin Enriquez Perez, Yoseli L. Hernandez Mejia, Selena Sunuc, Yency A. Linares Espinoza, Berta Nohemi Muxnay Mendez
Class 2
El Puente del Amor Bridge, Houston: Hazel Gonzalez Deras, Nazareth Rubio, Lorena Lopez Perez,
El Puente del Amor Bridge, Houston: Hazel Gonzalez Deras, Lorena Lopez Perez, Nazareth Rubio, Jacqueline L. Argueta Bonilla.
El Puente del Destino Bridge, Kyoto: Maria E. Alvarado Echeverria, Milagros Muñoz Espinoza
Yeni, Kyoto: Yenta Aguilar Castanon
