NCSS Students Win Big at Regional Science Fair/NCCA STEM Student to Compete in International Science Fair
Newton County School System students brought home the hardware from the recent 2023 Griffin RESA Regional Science Fair with 40 students earning first, second, or third place awards! NCCA STEM Institute senior, Briana Jones, led the way with her first-place
project that also earned the highest honor possible for high school students—the Regeneron ISEF Award. As such, Briana will move on to compete and represent Newton County School System and our region at the Regeneron International Science & Engineering Fair (ISEF) in May!
According to Dr. Vicki Meeler, NCSS Secondary Science Curriculum & Instructional Specialist, while tens of millions of students participate in science fairs around the globe, only about 1,800 earn the right to compete for nearly $5 million awards at the ISEF. Briana was one of only three at the regional competition to win the all-expenses paid trip to the ISEF.
Although Briana put in countless hours working on her project, she was still stunned to win the award.
“I was baffled, completely shocked,” she said. “This project was just an idea I developed because of a small intrigue I had about algae blooms, and over the course of time it became something bigger and bigger. I struggled with it, and it went through so much trial and error, rescheduling, revamping and so on. Even though I put in so much work, I had never expected to make it this far.”
She added, “My ambition was a lot higher than my expectation, but neither reached what I actually achieved. I was proud of myself and my fellow peers for making it so far.”
While working on her project, entitled, “Algae Science: Analyzing Photosynthesis Rates of Agitated Vs. Still Algae,” Briana researched how movement impacts the growth of algae.
“I developed this project after looking into algae blooms which are harmful to the environment,” she explained. “Among the many factors that cause algae blooms, I wanted to know what physical factors affected them as well, which is why I wanted to know if agitation makes algae grow more or grow less so that we can further look into potential solutions to algae blooms. Through my research, I found that agitation actually makes algae grow more, and I've theorized that movement from runoff sites, from human interaction such as boats, and oceanic movement are a factor in algae blooms growing more.”
Even though the judges were thoroughly impressed with her project, awarding her both a 1st place award as well as the Regeneron ISEF award, Briana still plans some tweaks and updates to her project before she heads to the International Science and Engineering Fair.
“I know I will definitely be tweaking my poster board a bit, adding more pictures, maybe changing some descriptions, but it will be bigger and better than before,” she said. “I'm prepared to present my project anytime as I've done it a lot, and now I have the confidence of knowing that I can go very far, higher than my ambition can reach.”
In addition to Briana, several other NCSS high school students earned special awards for their projects. NCCA STEM Institute senior, Bethany McGowan placed first in her category and also took home both the U.S. Air Force Award and the Regeneron Biomedical Science Award. Najja McGee also earned multiple special awards for her first-place project, including the NASA Earth Systems Award, the NOAA Award, and the Association for Women Geoscientists Award. And Christopher Jones, Jocelyn Kilgore, Kendyl Maddox who placed first in their category, also brought home the Society for In Vitro Biology Award.
In the middle school competition, both Oliver Reid and Sabrina Stokes, of the Newton County Theme School, earned first place awards for their projects as well as the Thermo Fisher Scientific Award.
“The Thermo Fisher Scientific Award is the highest honor a middle school student can receive at the regional fair,” said Dr. Vicki Meeler. “RESA is allowed to choose three projects from the region to invite to the national science fair in Washington D.C. and our NCSS students earned two of the three! Oliver and Sabrina will now be in a pool of students from other Georgia RESA locations for the opportunity to compete in the national science fair.”
According to Dr. Meeler, all students who earned first place awards at the regional competition will now represent Newton County Schools in the Georgia Science and Engineering Fair in Athens, Georgia, March 30 - April 1, 2023.
See below for a complete listing of NCSS Awards Winners at the 2023 Griffin RESA Regional Science and Engineering Fair.
High School Results
| NAME |
|
SCHOOL |
|
GRADE |
|
TITLE |
|
AWARD |
| Briana Jones |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Algae Science: Photosynthesis Rates |
|
1st Place and Regeneron ISEF Award |
| Bethany McGowan |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Micro-Fuser: Compact Nuclear Energy Generator |
|
1st Place; US Air Force Award; and Regeneron Biomedical Award |
| Najja McGee |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Comets Grazing the Sun |
|
1st Place; NASA Earth Systems Award; NOAA Award; and Association for Women Geoscientists Award |
| Christopher Jones, Jocelyn Kilgore, & Kendyl Maddox |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
You're Not the Bird You Think You Are! |
|
1st Place 7 Society for In Vitro Biology Award |
| Kayla Archibald and Milo Baker |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Ultrasonic Transformation: Heat Shock and Bacterial Transformations |
|
1st Place |
| Elisabeth Kelly, Rhin Eubanks, & Sara Grace Knowles |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Microscopic Gardeners: Brassica Hydroponics |
|
1st Place |
| Dhakiya Knights & Chiara Chie |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Bia and the Body: Blinking and Political Stance |
|
1st Place |
| Natalie Henderson |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Encrypting Data with MultiBase Arithmetic Systems |
|
2nd Place |
| Nicholas Jean & Jade Neal |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Formation of an RFID Chip/Safety During Car Rider Dismissal |
|
2nd Place |
| Nathan Walsh |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Silica Sol-gel Beads as Glucose Biosensors |
|
2nd Place |
| Kaitlyn Williams & Alana Munoz |
|
Alcovy High School |
|
10 |
|
The Best Antacid for Heartburn |
|
2nd Place |
| Gabriella Green |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Investigating Hormonal Contraceptives Effect on Tear Proteins |
|
2nd Place |
| Chantel Boney & Jasmine Crouch |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
A New Generation of Pollutants: Microplastics in Local Watersheds |
|
3rd Place |
| Noah Larson & Noah Geiger |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Shooting for the Goal |
|
3rd Place |
| Justin Doepke & Cole Shannon |
|
NCCA STEM Institute |
|
12 |
|
Improving the Ergonomics of a Prosthetic Leg |
|
3rd Place |
| Jasmin Spillers, Brielle Henderson, & Madelyn Stroy |
|
Newton High School |
|
10 |
|
Glow Sticks in Different Water Temperatures |
|
3rd Place |
Our middle school student also brought home numerous awards from their regional competition.
Middle School Results
| NAME |
|
SCHOOL |
|
GRADE |
|
TITLE |
|
AWARD |
| Oliver Reid |
|
Newton County Theme School |
|
7 |
|
Determining the Effectiveness of Traffic Calming Signs |
|
1st Place & Thermo Fisher Scientific Award |
| Sabrina Stokes |
|
Newton County Theme School |
|
6 |
|
Which Brand of Nail Polish Fries Fastest |
|
1st Place & Thermo Fisher Scientific Award |
| Jamaya Davis |
|
Indian Creek Middle School |
|
8 |
|
Investigating Cheer Sounds |
|
1st Place |
| Caroline Meeler & Carolyn Paulus |
|
Indian Creek Middle School |
|
8 |
|
Bioluminescence in Phytoplankton |
|
2nd Place |
| Kayden O'Cain |
|
Newton County Theme School |
|
6 |
|
Staining EGG-speriment |
|
3rd Place |
| Alexander Ehret |
|
Newton County Theme School |
|
8 |
|
What is the Best Way to Purify River Water |
|
3rd Place |
| Jimmy Thomas |
|
Indian Creek Middle School |
|
8 |
|
Ripening Tomatoes |
|
3rd Place |
| Sophia Maxey |
|
Indian Creek Middle School |
|
6 |
|
Apples and the Five Juices |
|
3rd Place |
| Rylan Yeager |
|
Indian Creek Middle School |
|
6 |
|
The Pavlovian Response |
|
3rd Place |
| Adriana Drain |
|
Indian Creek Middle School |
|
8 |
|
Impact of Heat on Hydrogen Bonds |
|
3rd Place |
“Each year our Science Fair Competition has grown not only in number but also in complexity,” said Shundreia Neely, Director of Secondary Education for Newton County School System. “The depth of our students’ work has grown immensely. I contribute this to the work of science teachers, administrators, Science Fair judges, and our Science Instructional Specialist, Dr. Vicki Meeler. Each person provided a level of support and feedback to these students that have allowed our school system to earn so many first-place winners and even an ISEF participant. We know this is not by chance. This is due to students’ hard work, parent support, and teacher guidance. I am so proud of each of them. I am excited to see the outcome of the next round of competitions.”