As my junior year rolled around, so did the COVID-19 pandemic. Our big hopes for the coming year were halted in their tracks. Instead, we had to adjust and adapt, something our team has proven to be excellent at over the past year. As the then-Director of Operations, I had my work cut out for me that fall - we needed to keep the team motivated and strong amidst a myriad of new and unforeseen challenges. We still had a car to finish and the possibility of attending the 2021 American Solar Challenge. However, the dedication and innovative spirit of the members of our team kept our goals moving forward and made my job easy. 

We started off the year with the most successful recruiting season in the history of our team. After a series of virtual recruiting and informational sessions, over 200 students expressed initial interest in joining Illini Solar Car. A month or so later, fifty of them completed our fully virtual onboarding process and officially joined the team. Thanks to the diligent efforts of all of our group leads, every new member was taught and walked through the basics of the work they might encounter. They then jumped straight into projects for our new car. 

Thanks to the rigorous and effective testing program at the University of Illinois, we were able to continue reduced and distanced work at our garage. We made steady progress on the new car throughout the months. All the while, we continued having virtual group meetings with all of our members, keeping everyone engaged and working whether they were on campus or taking classes from home across the world.

As we dove into the colder months of the year, work on the new car continued. After countless hours of around-the-clock work, it began to look and work like a real solar car. This was just in time for our grand unveiling of the new car, Brizo. Although the virtual event was delayed and different from the in-person event we had scheduled last year, we were all so excited to finally get to share what we had all been working on. Hundreds of people tuned in from around the world to listen and learn about Brizo during our live stream.

Now, as the school year has come to a close, we are nearing very exciting times for our team. After a tough year, the lights at the end of the tunnel are bright and exciting. Our second car, Brizo, will make its debut at the American Solar Challenge this summer. Accompanying the car will be our largest race crew yet and we can’t wait to see how Brizo performs. This fall, we hope to regain a sense of normalcy and start to resume in person team meetings. After over a year of seeing members through a computer screen, I look forward to meeting, speaking, and innovating face-to-face once again. 

Despite a challenging year, we’ve emerged bigger and stronger, and, through it all, I continue to be impressed by my fellow teammates. I am constantly learning from them and I am humbled to have been chosen to lead such a bright and inspiring group of students. I am so proud of the work we’ve accomplished and can’t wait to see what the future holds for our team.

Tara D'Souza, Team President

Electrical Engineering '22