Released today by the Clarke County School District:
A total of 32 CCSD middle school students and 20 projects received medals last weekend in the Northeast Georgia regional science and engineering fair at Piedmont University and Demorest, while 21 students and 13 projects qualified for the state fair that will take place this spring.
Alex Call, a sixth-grader at Clarke Middle School, won a Gold Medal and also won the Piedmont Rising Researcher Award and the American Chemical Society Award at the regional competition for her project, “Soil PH.” Meanwhile, Clarke Middle eighth-graders Ezra Irwin and Mason Malec won a Gold Medal for their project, “A Flavorful Illusion,” and fellow CMS eighth-grader Omar Ghareeb won Gold for his project, “Using Household Materials to Accelerate Composting of Leaves.”
Gold Medal winners and the top 10 Silver Medal winners from each regional fair advance to the state fair. The 77th Georgia Science and Engineering Fair will be held April 3-5 at The Classic Center in downtown Athens. Silver Medal winners from CCSD who also qualified for the state fair included:
● Kennedy Gates, Clarke Middle – “Does Smell Affect Your Sense of Taste?” This project also won the American Chemical Society Award.
● Josephine Crim, Lyric Caudell, Laurie Bjorkland-Glazman, Clarke Middle – “Formulating the Perfect Teen Moisturizer”
● Josiah LaRue, Clarke Middle – “Guitar Frenzy”
● Ojas Kulkarni, Clarke Middle – “Magnetic Levitation Train Model”
● Jonah Toon, Clarke Middle – “Reducing Carbohydrate Intake Improves Blood Sugar Control”
● Ian McCracken, Clarke Middle – “Swimmer Training and Performance”
● Rhys Newcomer, Jack Rumfelt, and Robert Heald, Clarke Middle – “Thrill Factor: Impacts on Roller Coaster
Speed”
● Jessie Salas Estrada and Piper Card, Hilsman Middle – “Tune into Productivity: Does Music Boost
Efficiency?”
● Ezra Haag and Daniel Brown, Clarke Middle – “Will Spice Deter Squirrels?”
● Abby Green and Lillian Shaw, Hilsman Middle – “Lung Strength of Athletes in Different Sports”
Other regional Silver medalists from CCSD included Clark Crawford and Trevor Johnson from Burney-Harris-Lyons Middle for their project, “Wickedly Delighting.”
Regional Bronze medalists from CCSD included:
● Breyl Martin, Emma Arenales-Grajeda, and Shepard Bramlett, Clarke Middle – “Acid Rain vs. Building Materials” This project also won the American Chemical Society Award.
● Tristin Bryant, BHL Middle – “Egg-Hilarating Smiles”
● Granger Thompson, Clarke Middle – “How Does Temperature Affect Batteries?”
● Frankie Travieso and Pedro Ceniceros Cruz, BHL Middle – “Is the Water Safe?”
● Reese Pepin, Hilsman Middle – “Makeup vs. Cleanser”
● Lia Balde, Clarke Middle – “The Hair Affair.”
Supporting educators from CCSD for the regional fair included:
● From BHL – Dr. Cheryl Hudson, Kyrsta Pokoski, Jessica Shuman, and Shon Wilson
● From CMS: Richard Allen, Ryan Baird, Tina Beasley, Kathryn Brown, Audrey Hughes, Michael Mingo,
Marie Peel, Stephanie Rolader, and Zach Spires
● From Hilsman: Kellie Rutledge, Meganne Skinner, Carter Torgerson, and Joshua Truitt
● From Coile Middle School: Dr. Erica Gaines, Jalyssa Jackson, Shawna Phillips, and Kemp Stroble.