Building a rocket is exciting. Launching one is even better. But for students in Pellissippi State Community College’s Engineering Club, the biggest discoveries may have nothing to do with how high a rocket flies.
Students are learning that engineering requires creativity, persistence, teamwork and a willingness to try something that might not work the first time.
The club recently participated in the 2025-26 Space Grant Midwest High-Power Rocketry Competition in Minnesota, where college teams designed, built and launched rockets. Pellissippi State’s project included an additional challenge: developing a system to capture a coded message transmitted by flashing lights during flight.
The rocket didn’t perform quite as the students had hoped, but the experience delivered something more valuable than a perfect launch.
Finding a new direction
Aleena Kokesh joined the Engineering Club with little experience using tools. Through the club’s projects, she learned about programming, electrical circuits, soldering and 3D printing. The experience helped inspire her decision to pursue Electrical Engineering Technology.
Kokesh now leads the club, following former president Nolan Topor, a Maryville native who began his college journey at Pellissippi State through Tennessee Reconnect.
Topor transferred to Northeastern University to study electrical engineering. He credits his club involvement with helping him develop technical and leadership skills, including design, problem-solving and collaboration.
Learning beyond the classroom
Supported by NASA’s Tennessee Space Grant Consortium, Pellissippi State students traveled to Minnesota for their second consecutive year in the rocketry competition.
The project brought together students with different abilities and interests, requiring them to combine their knowledge to tackle challenges they couldn’t solve alone.
Faculty coordinator Olga Malkina helps guide the club, which offers students opportunities to explore engineering through hands-on projects.
For Kokesh and Topor, the experience reinforced an important lesson: Success in engineering isn’t simply about knowing the right answer. It’s about learning how to find one together.
Read more about the students, their rocket competition and the experiences that shaped their futures in Pellissippi State’s full article.
