Twelve Nacogdoches High School STEM students (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) advanced Friday to the State Science and Engineering Fair next month in College Stadion.
And three of those students – Irvin Cruz, Bryan Martinez, Gezle Uson – were named the regional science fair’s overall winners in Kilgore and will advance directly to the International Fair that will be held in May in Columbus Ohio. Irvin, Bryan and Gezle took a project to Kilgore “Staph is not Mint to Be,” which explored identifying which variety of mint could be effectively incorporated into a natural lotion to help combat Staphylococcus epidermidis.
“Our students couldn’t have done this without all the individuals and mentors who have supported them,” said Nacogdoches High School Science Teacher Lindy Arbuckle. “This would never happen without every educator who has given their time to make these students stronger scientists, mathematicians, writers, presenters and thinkers.”
Other state qualifiers include Erick Gutierrez and Dereck Polo with their project “Misty Magic”; Jean Choi and Amy Lopez with “Shining Light on Sustainable Fuel”; Taylor Hart with “Salty Solutions: “Dwarf Glasswort for Sustainable Agriculture”; Nixon Long and Miguel Diaz with “Running the Data: Unlocking the Training Secrets of Olympic Marathoners Using Strava”; and Jacob Norman and Luke Pierce with “Unveiling the Influence: Investigating Biases' Impact on Group Conformity.”
Taylor Hart’s project on water desalination was impressive enough to draw the attention of the Water Environment Association of Texas. Taylor earned a first place Award of Excellence from the organization along with a cash prize.
The State Science and Engineering Fair will be held March 28-29.
