AMSE Xprize
VCS stands out as one of the only secondary schools competing in the elite world of XPRIZE—an arena typically dominated by top universities and cutting-edge corporations. Our students are breaking new ground, earning recognition as true pioneers in scientific innovation.
Each year, VCS proudly supports multiple student teams in prestigious XPRIZE competitions. These large-scale, incentivized challenges—led by the renowned nonprofit XPRIZE—are designed to spark bold breakthroughs in science, technology, and the future of our world.
In a historic achievement, the Applied Math, Science, & Engineering (AMSE) Institute at VCS fielded the first team of junior high and high school students to compete in an XPRIZE competition, winning the NOAA Bonus Prize in the $7M Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE with Team Ocean Quest in 2019. Since then, VCS teams have continued to shine on the global stage: Team Avatar Quest and Team Rainforest Quest advanced to the semi-final and qualifying rounds, while Team Carbon Quest and Team Healthspan Quest earned recognition as Top 100 teams.
Current AMSE XPRIZE Competitions
Wildfire Quest 2022-Current
XPRIZE Wildfire
Achievement: Top 30 Qualified Team, $25,000 (currently competing)
Shaping the Future of Wildfire Prevention
Valley Christian’s Wildfire Quest Team is the only high school group competing in the high-stakes XPRIZE Wildfire competition—rising through the ranks to land in the Top 30 worldwide. See how these students are building groundbreaking technology to detect and suppress wildfires faster than ever before. Follow their journey:
Water Quest 2025
XPRIZE Water Scarcity
Achievement: (currently competing)
VCS students are diving into the $119 million XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition—one of the most ambitious global challenges yet to help reinvent how the world accesses clean water. Discover how this bold team is taking on climate change, environmental impact, and global inequality with breakthrough desalination tech.
AMSE XPRIZE Achievements
Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE
2017-19: TEAM OCEAN QUEST
Young Trailblazers Make Waves—Literally.
Team Ocean Quest from Valley Christian Schools just made history again, taking first place in the NOAA Bonus Round of the international Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE. See how this team of junior high and high school students beat out global powerhouses—and walked away with an $800,000 win.
Achievement: Winner, NOAA Bonus Prize, $800,000
XPRIZE Rainforest
2019-21: TEAM RAINFOREST QUEST
A Bold Step Toward Saving Our Rainforests
Our team leveraged innovative technology to protect Earth’s most biodiverse ecosystems, tropical rainforests, using sensors and real-time data to shape smarter conservation efforts.
Achievement: Qualified Team
XPRIZE Avatar
2019-22: TEAM AVATAR QUEST
Beaming into the Future
From delivering care across continents to aiding disaster relief in real-time, our team’s groundbreaking robotic avatar reimagined what it means to be present. They competed for the $10 million ANA Avatar XPRIZE, they proved their vision had global impact—earning a well-deserved spot as semi-finalists.
Achievement: Semi-Finalist
XPRIZE Carbon Removal
2021-24: TEAM CARBON QUEST
Crushing Carbon, Changing the Future
Our team rose to the global challenge in the $100 Million XPRIZE Carbon Removal competition, funded by the Musk Foundation. Their groundbreaking solution to pull carbon from the atmosphere caught international attention and could help shape a cooler, cleaner planet. They were named one of the competition’s Top 100 teams in the world.
Achievement: Top 100 Team
XPRIZE Healthspan
2024-25: TEAM HEALTHSPAN QUEST
Taking On Aging with Vision and Courage
A VCS student team made a noble effort in the global XPRIZE Healthspan competition, aiming to redefine aging and extend healthy, high-quality years of life. Ranking in the Top 100, their work pushed boundaries and showed what’s possible when young minds take on the world’s biggest challenges.
Achievement: Top 100 Team