A delighted crowd of parents, family members, teachers and principals gathered inside the Braden River High School auditorium on Tuesday, February 20, 2024, to cheer for students during the district’s Secondary STEM Awards Ceremony.
Teens from middle and high schools across Manatee County vied for awards in categories that included Animal Sciences, Behavioral and Social Sciences, Chemistry, Cellular and Molecular Biology, Intelligent Machines and Robots and much, much more.
Two “Best in Show” awards were presented as follows:
Middle School Best in Show: Juanita Gomez, Dr. Mona Jain Middle School
Project Title: Biodegradable Hydrogels Can Help to Conserve Water in Farming (Environmental Engineering Category)
High School Best in Show: Amy Lu, Manatee High School.
Project Title: Impacts of Amebic Population Clusters After Exposure to Increasing Temperatures and Ultraviolet Radiation (Cellular/Molecular Biology and Biochemistry)
In addition, the judges announced the 20 students who were selected to represent Manatee County at the 69th Annual State Science and Engineering Fair in Lakeland, Florida, April 2 - April 4, 2024.
Middle School (10)
Kinley McCaw - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
Sebastian Lemke - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
Sylvia Lebron - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
Ameer Jibril - Braden River Middle School
Juanita Gomez - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
Ella Fuschetto - R Dan Nolan Middle School
Mason Durfee - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
Alex Hysell - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
Maia Bacchus - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
Malachi Endelicato - Dr Mona Jain Middle School
High School (10)
Caitlyn Cooke - Southeast High School
Brooke Kuiken - Southeast High School
Kipras Vitas - Manatee High School
Isabelle Valcarcel - Southeast High School
Amy Lu - Manatee High School
Gabriela Mendes - Southeast High School
Camille Gao - Manatee High School
Alexander Stanney - Southeast High School
Natalie Barendse - Southeast High School
Adiam Teka - Southeast High School
