At Engineering’s Alumni Cup, the Atmosphere Was Electric

With Whimsy and Wild Ideas, Undergraduate Teams Tackle Challenge to Design Device That Closes a Circuit

This story by Rebecca Moon Ruark originally appeared in Maryland Today on March 2, 2026. Photos by Greg Fiume.

The ChemE team poses around its Rube Goldberg device

University of Maryland engineering students brought chest-thumping, trash-talking signs worthy of any sports fan or political rallygoer to their annual Rube Goldberg-inspired competition, but with a techie twist.

A student holding two signs yells in support of his favorite team

Signs point to electric engineering energy

“No Drag, Just Swag,” read one sign. Other sassy examples proclaimed “BioE has Big Brain Energy,” “FPE is Fire” and “Can’t Spell Victory Without V = IR.” (This referred to Ohm’s Law, a fundamental electronics formula.)

That reflected the lively vibe of the 15th annual Alumni Cup competition at the A. James Clark School of Engineering on Friday, where eight undergraduate teams representing each academic department faced off in a competition showcasing their creativity and smarts.

Innovative machines that close circuits, open minds

This year, the student teams were required to string together a series of 20-plus chain reactions to close an electrical circuit. Chemical and biomolecular engineering majors won with their Clean Green Chem-E Machine, which told the history of the engineering field’s contributions to the environment, from deforestation and oil spills, to carbon capture and chemical recycling—in other words, from polluting the earth to cleaning it up.

A chain of events that included tumbling "tree" dominoes, rolling marbles and a plastic-dissolving reaction between acetone and Styrofoam led to the activation of mini wind turbines.

“We had about 27 steps and two chemical reactions,” said team lead Caroline King ’26, who was dressed like a clown fish. “And it worked!”

A student holds a microphone to describe the Testudo's Circuit device

Unlimited creativity on a limited budget

Teams had two weeks and $100 to build their entries for the event that capped off National Engineers Week. Students, faculty and staff gathered in the rotunda of the Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building to watch and cheer for their favorites. Presented by the Engineering Alumni Network, the competition was judged by Clark School administrators and alums.

“This is a great opportunity to get experience with a more physical project,” said electrical and computer engineering major August Ven Geertruyden ’27, whose team’s entry, Testudo’s Circuit, paid homage to science fairs and culminated in an iconic baking soda volcano eruption.

Other teams featured scary themes, including the materials science and engineering team’s entry, Materials Haunted Mansion, and the fire protection engineering team’s entry modeled after the video game series Five Nights at Freddy’s.

A student from civil and environmental engineering describes the CivOlympics device

Community via competition

“Engineering is a high-pressure major,” said mechanical engineering Professor and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs Kenneth “Ken” Kiger. “So, this is a way to come together as a community, connect alumni with current students, and blow off steam.”

“I’m going to miss the bond with my team,” said civil and environmental engineering major Caleb Baer ’26. His team’s timely entry, ‘CivOlympics,’ which won both the People’s Choice Award and second place, featured discipline-related sporting events, including the sheer stress ski jump and the balancing I-beam. Mechanical engineering’s ‘Marvelous MechE Madness’ machine, which capitalized on carnival games, took third place.