Left to right: Rafid Mirza, Logan Dunkenberger, Shayom Debopadhaya and Carson Pugh.
On Saturday, March 17, over 100 gifted and talented students from the school districts of Roanoke City and Roanoke County, plus the Roanoke Valley Governor’s School, competed in the 2018 Western Virginia Regional Science and Engineering Fair at Virginia Western Community College. The following local students received top awards in their categories:
Glenvar High School
Logan Dunkenberger, First place, Microbiology, Grand Award Winner of the Regional Fair “Inhibitory Activity of Phenolic Compounds Against Epstein-Barr Virus Proliferation in Burkitt’s Lymphoma Cells”
Rafid Mirza, Second-place, Engineering Mechanics “Tabletop Robotic Arm to Pick and Place Object”
Salem High School
Shayom Debopadhaya, Third-place, Cellular and Molecular Biology “Investigating the Role of ZSOX1 in Skeletal Muscles and Their Synapses”
Carson Pugh, First-place, Engineering Mechanics “SolidWorks Designed Robotic Arm”
First-place winner Carson Pugh will next compete at the Virginia Science and Engineering Fair on April 14 at the Berglund Special Events Center in Roanoke.
As one of two Grand Award winners of the Regional Fair, Logan Dunkenberger has earned an all-expense paid trip to compete at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, which will be held in Pittsburgh, May 13-19.
-Submitted by Regina Carson