Idaho Falls, Hagerman students earn top honors at Eastern Idaho science fair
POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) - Student projects from Hillcrest High School in Ammon and Hagerman High School in Hagerman earned Best in Fair at the 2022 Eastern Idaho Science and Engineering Fair, and one from American Heritage Charter School in Idaho Falls garnered Fair Runner Up.
They were among 30 projects that 52 students from three schools presented at the sixth annual event, which the Idaho STEM Action Center staged March 4 at Idaho State University.
BEST IN FAIR WINNERS
"The Relationship of Being a Supertaster and People's Scores on the Autism Spectrum" by Hagerman High School freshmen Saree Hillstead and Danica Knapp earned one of two Best in Fair awards. In addition, they earned Best in Category in Behavioral and Social Sciences and a Category Gold award. Knapp and Hillstead also earned one of the fair's special awards: first place from the Idaho Academy of Science & Engineering (which includes a $75 cash prize).
Hillcrest High School sophomore Brecken Allegood and junior Nathan Elison garnered the other Best in Fair award for their project, "Testing Water Quality." They also earned Best in Category in Biology and Environmental Science, a Category Gold award, and several special awards, including the Cross Charitable Foundation Environmental Sciences Award, second place from the Idaho Academy of Science & Engineering (which includes a $50 cash prize), the NASA Earth System Science Award, and a Stockholm Junior Water Prize.
On top of serious bragging rights, the Best in Fair winners will represent Idaho at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair in May. The winning teams from each Idaho regional fair and their mentors earn all-expense-paid trips to attend and compete in the event in Atlanta May 7-13.
FAIR RUNNER UP
American Heritage Charter School junior Annie Brownlee earned Fair Runner Up for her project "Musical Three Pointers." She also won a Category Gold award and several special awards, including the American Psychological Association and the Mu Alpha Theta Award.
FOUR STRANDS, MANY AWARDS
Students in ninth through 12th grades throughout Eastern and Southern Idaho were eligible to submit entries in four categories: Biology and Environmental Science; Behavioral and Social Sciences; Engineering and Computer Science; and Physical Sciences.
American Heritage Charter School and Hagerman High School students captured the two remaining Best in Category awards:
* "Mission Improbable" by American Heritage Charter School juniors Ashton Blackburn and Jake Swenson earned a Best in Category in Engineering and Computer Science, a Category Gold award, and the Yale Science and Engineering Association Award, one of the fair's special awards.
* "Ziploc, Polyvinyl, vs. Vacuum Packaging Types for Extending the Shelf Life of Fresh Ground Meat" by Hagerman High School freshmen Katherine Kinder and Jonah Knapp earned a Best in Category in Physical Sciences, a Category Gold award, and several special awards, including third place from the Idaho Academy of Science & Engineering (which includes a $25 cash prize) and the Ricoh Sustainable Development Award.
Judges honored one more project with a Category Gold award: "Bleach Try-outs," a Physical Sciences entry by American Heritage Charter School juniors Taylor Malony and Salina Saiz.
In addition, judges awarded Hillcrest High School junior Dallas Hunzeker the Bearden Award for Women in Computer Science for her project "A Tech Reaction: Combination of Animation, Programming, and Coding." The award, which also includes a $500 cash prize, is funded by longtime Idaho resident Elizabeth "Betsy" Bearden for the female or team of females whose research exemplifies high standards of innovation in creating solutions with computer science
The STEM Action Center presented 10 other projects with Category Silver awards and an additional nine special awards from the American Meteorological Society, the ASM Materials Education Foundation, the Genius Olympiad, the National Geographic Society, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Office of Naval Research, Regeneron, the Society for In Vitro Biology, the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Metric Association, and the United States Agency for International Development.
American Heritage Charter School earned the Top School award. The award is calculated based on total projects and total category awards, including Silver, Gold, Best in Category, and Best in Fair. Science teacher Alaysha Whitworth coached American Heritage Charter School's participants, which earned Fair Runner Up, one of the four Best in Category awards, three of the six Category Golds, and four of the 10 Category Silvers. Whitworth was named EISEF's top-performing educator.
A group of local experts from an array of STEM-related fields served as judges.
