West Philly’s Hybrid X team honored by Popular Mechanics

West Philadelphia High School’s Hybrid X team has won the Next Generation award from Popular Mechanics.

The honor is part of the magazine’s Breakthrough Awards which acknowledge technological innovation, and the kids are in pretty good company. “James Cameron is also being honored,” said Deirdre Darragh, spokeswoman for the School District of Philadelphia. The team won the award for designing a building a hybrid electric car that gets 100 miles per gallon on the highway.

“What they’re honored for is not only the construction of the car,” said Darragh, “but also the fact that this is really an example of how interactive, hands-on education can produce amazing results.” The award gets added to the long list of accolades the team has achieved, but Darragh said this one is special.

“Their car and the students will be featured in Popular Mechanics,” she said. The issue hits newsstands on Tuesday, and the awards presentation is on Monday.

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