Oliver motors to scholarship (From Gazette & Herald)

Oliver motors to scholarship

A DAY STUDENT at Ampleforth College has won a prestigious national scholarship.

Oliver Mankowski, aged 16, won the Arkwright Scholarship for flair and originality in engineering. He wins £1,000 for himself and £1,000 for the school over two years.

To win the scholarship, entrants had two hours to think of three mechanical ways of deterring rabbits without touching them. Entrants then had to develop a detailed rationale for one of the three ideas.

Oliver chose the idea of a wind-powered whistle. His creation was self-regulating. It was based round a three-dimensional triangle attached to a whistle. As the triangle presented and turned into the wind the whistle moved too into the flow of air and it whistled.

The development of his idea was not the end of the scholarship process. An interview board was followed by a team-building exercise.

"They were looking for the holistic approach - attitude, the whole scope," said Oliver. "I was a little euphoric when I got through."

Oliver, who lives in Ampleforth with his parents Andrew and Vivienne, is in the middle of taking 12 GCSE examinations.

He has already decided he wants to take chemistry, physics, mathematics and further maths at A level with a view to an engineering degree at a good university.

When he is not studying, Oliver goes for the outdoor life. He is just about to qualify as a sailing instructor. He dives, too, and is just progressing from club diver to sports diver with the school diving club.

Oliver is also a sergeant, soon to be promoted, in the school's cadet force.

Besides winning an Arkwright scholarship, Oliver was recently third in a national essay competition entered by 5,000 young people nationwide.

He wrote about the future of marine transportation for a Newcastle University competition, winning himself £200 plus another £200 for the school.

His current project is to build an electric car for the annual Greenpower Challenge six-hour endurance race in September.

The Arkwright scholarships are named after Sir Richard Arkwright, who invented the spinning jenny in the 18th century.

The awards are to encourage the study of design and technology A-level courses and the take-up of engineering places at universities.

Oliver's housemaster at Ampleforth, Fr William Wright, said: "Oliver is a highly-motivated young man, pursuing a number of interests, as well as his academic work, with total commitment. He is thoroughly likeable, dependable and a great asset to the house."

Updated: 11:37 Thursday, June 13, 2002