Middle School Kids Compete For TOYchallenge 2005 Top Honors at Hasbro, Inc. Global Headquarters

(Pawtucket, RI) - TOYchallenge™ 2005 East and West Coast National Showcase winning teams from Irvine, Calif., Palo Alto, Calif., Brighton, Mich. and Medina, Ohio will compete for two grand prizes that include trips to Space Camp® and the creation of personalized Hasbro figures in each team member’s likeness at the Final Judging and Awards Ceremony at Hasbro, Inc.’s global headquarters in Pawtucket, R.I. on June 27.

The fun-fueled toy- and game-design competition was created by Sally Ride Science™, Smith College and Hasbro, Inc. to motivate and encourage middle school-age kids, especially girls, to pursue science and engineering as study or career fields. The contest is sponsored by Hasbro, Sony, Southwest Airlines and Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society.

The four National Showcase winning teams each received $500 and trips, including paid flights and accommodations, to the TOYchallenge Final Judging and Awards Ceremony. The teams will be treated to an exciting day featuring a behind the scenes tour of Hasbro, Hasbro University of Play workshops and a keynote speech by the first American woman in space Sally Ride. They will also have the opportunity to showcase and discuss their toy designs with Hasbro employees. In addition to the two grand prizes, runner-up awards include Thames & Kosmos® Fuel Cell Car and Experiment Kits and a Meade ETX-90AT Telescope. Both runner-up teams will also receive Thames & Kosmos Kite Dynamics Kits.

“TOYchallenge is a perfect vehicle for keeping students, especially girls, involved in and excited about science and math, and it’s also a terrific exercise in teamwork,” said Sally Ride, founder of Sally Ride Science™. “While designing your very own original toy is a great deal of fun, it also requires dedication, cooperation and hard work. We are so proud of all the students who have participated.”

“It is an honor for Hasbro to be a part of TOYchallenge and to host the finals at our headquarters, helping to inspire kids to further their interests in the fields of math and science,” said Hasbro president and CEO Alfred J. Verrecchia. “Maybe one of the students will enjoy the experience so much that they will even decide to become a toy designer in the future and help us make the world smile.”

TOYchallenge East Coast Showcase Winners:

• Techno Toads of Brighton, Mich. comprised of fifth and seventh grade students: Chrissy Redmond, Karen Redmond and Kelly Redmond; coached by Pat Redmond – created “Hop to It!,” a lively outdoor game for groups. Similar to Jump Rope, except with a frog, a turntable and an infrared light that spins around and which players must jump over. The players stand in a six-foot diameter ring and must hop to avoid the beam of light that the frog emits as it rotates in the center of the circle at different speeds. If a player misses, the frog croaks “hop” to indicate that they are out. The last player in the ring wins.

• 21st Century Gamemakers of Medina, Ohio comprised of fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grade students: Brianna Marasco, Tara Marasco, Noelle Scelina, Allison Steven, Mike Steven, Sam Weldon, Jacob Whitson and Jeremy Whitson; coached by Teresa Steven – created “Trash It?,” an educational board game where players move small wooden garbage truck game pieces through neighborhoods on trash pickup day. When a garbage truck pulls up to a house with a trash can, the player empties the garbage which includes items such as tiny broken toys and newspapers, into the truck and selects a card. Bonus cards feature recycling facts and special directions. At the end of the game, the players sort their trash and bring it to the dump or recycling plant. Points are given for the amount of garbage collected and correctly sorted. The player who accumulates the most points wins. The unique game board is made of interchangeable connecting squares that can be rearranged to create different levels of difficulty.

TOYchallenge West Coast Showcase Winners:

• California Aquatics of Irvine, Calif. comprised of sixth, seventh and eighth grade students: Brittany Carter, Alyssa Hansen, Amy Hansen, Kaycee Johnsen, Nicholas Johnsen, Matt Johnston, Josh Nordstrom and Kara Pedersen; coached by Janice Hansen – created “Underwater Xtreme, “ a cool pool toy that is similar to underwater laser tag. It comes with an UXtreme Light Pack, a flashing red light mechanism you wear on your swimsuit and UXtreme Goggles that block out the flashing red light completely unless you are looking directly at it. Team members Alyssa Hansen, Amy Hansen, Kaycee Johnsen and Nicholas Johnsen tied for first place at the TOYchallenge 2004 Finals, as the Wave Riders, for their “Boogie2Boogie” board.

• Alakazam! of Palo Alto, Calif. comprised of seventh grade students: Emma Barnosky, Kira Billman and Hadas Jacobi; coached by Anthony Barnosky – created “Skyscraper,” a complex, construction board game. Four players, each using a red, blue, green or yellow hardhat play piece, strategize their way to the center of the board to obtain construction permits. The first player to build their way back to their starting point wins.

TOYchallenge (www.TOYchallenge.com) was developed by Sally Ride Science and Smith College’s Picker Engineering Program as an outreach activity to engage middle school-age students, especially girls, in science and engineering and to inspire them to pursue careers in those fields. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women comprise only 11 percent of the engineering workforce. However, studies show that, in elementary school, equal numbers of girls and boys are interested in--and good at--math, science and technology. Unfortunately, beginning around the sixth grade, more girls than boys drift away from these subjects. While open to all U.S. and Canadian students in grades five through eight, TOYchallenge focuses on catching girls’ attention in these subjects in order to keep them in the engineering “pipeline.” Hasbro has been the program's presenting sponsor since its inception. Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society serves as a principal sponsor for the second year in a row and Sony has joined TOYchallenge this year as a principal sponsor. Southwest Airlines is the official airline of the competition.

Sally Ride Science
Sally Ride Science™ was founded by astronaut Sally Ride to support the large numbers of girls and young women who are, or might become, interested in science, math and technology. The company produces quality programs and publications for girls that empower them, engage them and encourage their interests. Current programs include Sally Ride Science Festivals, Sally Ride Science Camps, TOYchallenge™ and the Sally Ride Science Club™ - all designed to keep middle school girls engaged in science adventures by connecting them to people, information and attitudes that will nurture their relationship with science. For more information on Sally Ride Science programs and publications, please visit: www.SallyRideScience.com, or call (800) 561-5161.

Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE:HAS) is a worldwide leader in children's and family leisure time entertainment products and services, including the design, manufacture and marketing of games and toys ranging from traditional to high-tech. Both internationally and in the U.S., its PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, TIGER, and WIZARDS OF THE COAST brands and products provide the highest quality and most recognizable play experiences in the world.

Sigma Xi (www.sigmaxi.org), The Scientific Research Society, is the international honor society that recognizes research achievement in science and engineering. The Society is a diverse organization with nearly 65,000 members dedicated to the advancement of science and engineering. Sigma Xi publishes American Scientist magazine (www.americanscientist.org), sponsors a grant program for young researchers, and organizes programs and services in the areas of ethics, science and engineering education, communication of science and engineering and international networking.

Smith College is consistently ranked among the nation's foremost liberal arts colleges. Enrolling 2,800 students from every state and 60 other countries, Smith is the largest undergraduate women¹s college in the country. Smith¹s Picker Engineering Program, the first such program at a U.S. women¹s college, is focused on developing broadly educated, engineers capable of assuming leadership roles in corporations, non-profit organizations and technology-related fields.