Three St. Croix Educational Complex students participated this month in the world’s largest pre-college science fair competition, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in San Jose, Calif.
The three joined 1,500 finalists at the fair, culled from more than 6 million young scientists around the world who entered. The St. Croix trio formed "Team D," whose presentation was selected by Complex as the school’s top research project, according to an Education Department statement.
Team leader Mendrel Symphorien, a senior, soon off to university, presented a paper on Biological Research. Other presenters were eleventh-grader Jaleel Benjamin and tenth-grader Stephanie Rhoden.
"The intense work of these youngsters, all with high aspirations to study math, science or related fields, is truly amazing and we are proud of their accomplishments," said Ann Marie Gibbs, lead teacher and team coach, in the statement.
St. Croix Superintendent of Schools Gary Molloy said he was excited about Complex’s participation in the high-tech international fair. "This is testament that academia is alive and well in our schools as well as the high level of research work that is taking place," Molloy said.
At Intel ISEF, Complex students, as well as other students from around the globe, tackled challenging scientific questions using authentic research practices to create solutions to the problems of tomorrow. To judge the projects, more than 1,000 science, engineering, and industry professionals volunteer at the Intel ISEF.
According to Intel, the competition gives students a chance to share ideas, showcase cutting-edge ideas and compete for over $4 million in awards and scholarships.