Spruce Mountain High School senior Drew Delaney explains features of the robot built by the Spruce Mountain Area Robotics Team 3930 to members of the Regional School Unit 73 Directors on March 12. Delaney is the recipient of the 2021 Principal’s Award. File photo

JAY — Spruce Mountain High School Principal TJ Plourde has announced Drew Delaney is the recipient of the 2021 Principal’s Award.

The award, sponsored by the Maine Principals’ Association, is given in recognition of a high school senior’s academic achievement and citizenship.

Delaney, a senior from Livermore, is the son of Rick and Sarah Delaney.

“Throughout his years at Spruce Mountain High School, Drew Delaney has distinguished himself in the classroom, on the playing field, and as a leader in the school and the community,” Plourde noted in making the award. “He very much deserves this recognition.”

Delaney has been on the school’s bowling team four years and the golf and tennis teams since his sophomore year.

He is part of the school’s band and has performed in the Rock of Ages program. A member of local band The Only Hope, he has performed at Livermore Falls History Night, Apple Pumpkin Festival and elsewhere.

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Delaney was active in FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) LEGO League three years in middle school and three years on the high school’s FIRST Robotics Competition program. SMHS did not participate in the robotics competition this year.

Last year Delaney was the build-team captain for SMART, the school’s robotic team. He was named one of two semifinalists for the Dean’s List Award at the FIRST Robotics Competition Pine Tree Event in 2020. The event was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“He has taken computer-aided design, metalworking, and woodworking technology classes to expand his hands-on skills,” SMART advisor Daniel Lemieux said at the time. “He runs our pit area like a NASCAR pit stop. The robot comes in, gets prepped for the next match, and Drew moves on to speaking to judges or helping other teams. From time to time he has stepped up to help with the drive team.”

“Drew has been incredibly dedicated to FIRST Robotics programs in RSU 73,” SMART mentor and high school teacher Rob Taylor wrote in an April 28 email. “A 3 year LEGO League participant at SMMS, Drew was a leader on his team in 8th grade when they won the Maine LEGO League Championship and represented Maine at the LEGO League World Festival in St. Louis, Missouri. In high school, Drew was a leader on our school’s build team and was highly involved in the team’s award winning safety program. His efforts in robotics should serve him well in his future career as an engineer.”

Delaney is also a four-year member of the school’s Envirothon team.

“Drew has been a 4 year participant in Envirothon and his team was 2nd in all of Maine his sophomore year,” Envirothon advisor Taylor wrote. “He has high expectations for this year’s competition, which will be held virtually the last week of May.”
Like so many other things, competitions were canceled last spring because of COVID-19. Envirothon tests the team’s knowledge of four environmental subjects and has included a current issue scenario. Teams research that issue and develop ways of addressing it.
Maine in prior years has held several regional competitions. The top three teams at each then move on to the state competition.
“This year’s state Envirothon competition will consist of four hour-long tests over the areas of aquatics, forestry, soils and wildlife,” Delaney said in a phone interview Sunday, May 2. “There will be no current issue, no regional competitions.”
The SMHS Envirothon team has been meeting Sunday evenings in preparation, he said. Multiple webinars hosted by Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife have been watched via Zoom and last Friday the team participated in a training at the Maine Wildlife Park in Gray, Delaney said.
“Over the last 4 years, Drew has been incredibly active in community environmental activities undertaken by the Envirothon team,” Taylor wrote. “He has helped gather and analyze water quality data on Moose Hill and Parker Ponds, our community sources of drinking water and he helped organize and conduct a watershed survey to study the impact of erosion on the 2 ponds.
“He has contributed to agriculture programs in the schools, including growing food for local food pantries in the school greenhouse and growing hybrid Chinese/American chestnut trees in an American Chestnut Foundation project to help develop a blight resistant chestnut tree.”
“Drew is very involved in the school, so many things,” Plourde said Monday, May 3. “He’s just a top notch kid.”
While there is no information available, it is absolutely unusual for three members of a family to receive the Principal’s Award, Plourde said. Drew’s sister Amber Delaney received the award in 2016 while his other sister Rylee was selected in 2018.
Drew is valedictorian this year. All finished in the top three, Plourde said. “They’re smart kids.”
“I was excited when I heard,” Drew Delaney said.
Delaney plans to attend the University of Maine next fall where he will be majoring in electrical engineering technology and minoring in mechanical engineering technology.
“My goal is to work in the mechanical, electrical engineering industry in automation, robotics,” he said.
“Drew is a great young man and I wish him the best,” Taylor noted. “The University of Maine is getting a great student in Drew.”

Delaney, Plourde and other award winners and their principals will participate in a Live Virtual Scholarship Drawing Event on Friday, May 14, at 1 p.m.

Ten $1,000 scholarships will be drawn in the names of former Maine principals and MPA Executive Directors Horace O. McGowan, Richard W. Tyler, and Richard A. Durost.

The Principal’s Award is presented in more than 100 Maine public and private high schools by member principals of the MPA, the professional association which represents Maine’s school administrators.


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