---
title: "For a Girl With Cerebral Palsy, a Lacrosse Goal Achieved"
date: 2024-05-29T05:30:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/for-a-girl-with-cerebral-palsy-a-lacrosse-goal-achieved"
section: Articles
---
# For a Girl With Cerebral Palsy, a Lacrosse Goal Achieved

*May 29, 2024* — by [Karen Shih ’09](/author/karen-shih)


> College Park Academy Students Design Adaptive Stick as Part of Engineering for Us All Program

*College Park Academy E4 USA 05282024 JC 9411 1920x1080 — Stella Stakolosa launches a ball into the net using an adaptive lacrosse stick designed by College Park Academy students, led by teacher Brendan McCarthy (left), as part of the Engineering for Us All program.*

Soon-to-be 10-year-old Stella Stakolosa received a birthday gift unlike any other on Tuesday, when students at College Park Academy presented her with a lacrosse stick they’d designed just for her: hot pink, bendable and wheelchair-mounted.  
  
Stella, who has cerebral palsy, was thrilled as she got ready to show off her skills, pulling a string to launch balls into the net during a demonstration outside the school.

“It’s awesome,” said her mom, Megan, as she watched Stella make goal after goal to cheers and applause. “She wants to be able to do things by herself.”

The adaptive device was designed by 19 juniors and seniors at[ College Park Academy (CPA)](https://collegeparkacademy.org/), a public charter school launched with support from the University of Maryland in 2013 and located in UMD’s Discovery District. The students are part of the[ Engineering for Us All (e4usa)](https://e4usa.org/) program, which was co-created by University of Maryland President Darryll J. Pines and the American Society for Engineering Education.

“I’m not just the president, I’m also an engineer by training,” said Pines, who gifted Stella a Terps lacrosse shirt and hat. “I love projects like these, where students can use their creativity to come up with an engineered solution that truly impacts the life of a real person in a positive way.”


*Darryll Pines speaks to Stella Stakolosa as she wears a red Terps hat and sits in her wheelchair — UMD President Darryll J. Pines, left, speaks to Stella Stakolosa after she demonstrates her adaptive lacrosse stick.*


*Students from College Park Academy with Stella Stakolosa — Students in the e4usa program at College Park Academy with Stella Stakolosa, a 9-year-old girl with cerebral palsy, who can now play lacrosse with an adaptive stick they designed to attach to her wheelchair.*




**Topics:** [Campus & Community](https://today.umd.edu/tags/campus-community)


**Tags:** [Disability and Accessibility](https://today.umd.edu/topic/disability-and-accessibility), [Lacrosse](https://today.umd.edu/topic/lacrosse)


**Units:** [A. James Clark School of Engineering](https://today.umd.edu/topic/james-clark-school-engineering)