Southwest Florida middle school students compete successfully at national Science and Engineering event
Note: Hurricane Irma has tightened the timetable for the January 20,2018 Regional Science and Inventors Fair. Please see https://edisonfairs.org/recent-news/ for a letter providing key reasons to participate in the 2018 Lee and Charlotte County program.
For Immediate Release
Contact – Re: Thomas A. Edison Regional Science & Inventor Fairs– Media inquiries to
Jim Helms jimbhelms@hotmail.com or call 239-432-0970
Three Southwest Florida students who competed at last year’s Thomas Alva Edison Science and Inventors Fair were selected as the “Top 300” in the 2017 Broadcom MASTERS competition. Broadcom MASTERS (Math, Applied Science, Technology, and Engineering Rising Stars) is the premier science and engineering competition for middle school students. This year, 2,499 students completed the 2017 application with entrants from more than 6,000 nominees, representing the top 10% of science fair projects nationwide. The three students competing successfully and who achieved this honor were:
Maya Chandar, 7th Grade, Canterbury School, Fort Myers – Project Title: The Effects of High Frequency Shortwaves and Laser Beams on the Metamorphosis of Melittobia digitata (A Novel Second Year Study). She was a 1st Place Category Winner at the Kiwanis Regional Science Fair and a 1st Place Finalist at the 2017 State Science and Engineering Fair of Florida.
Sierra Edelstein, 8th Grade, Gulf Middle School, Cape Coral – Project Title: The Pearl of the Ocean: Do Freshwater Releases from Lake Okeechobee Affect the Filtration Rate of Eastern Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) in Southwest Florida Estuaries? She also was a 1st Place Category Winner at the 2017 Kiwanis Regional Science Fair and a Finalist at the 2017 State Science and Engineering Fair of Florida.
Junwei Tan, 7th Grade, Gateway Charter Intermediate, Fort Myers – Project Title: Autonomous Search and Rescue. He too was a 1st Place Category Winner at the 2017 Kiwanis Regional Science Fair and a Finalist at the 2017 State Science and Engineering Fair of Florida.
Please join us in congratulating these three outstanding STEM students in their national STEM recognition.
The Thomas A. Edison Regional Science and Inventor Fair (TAERSIF) Steering Committee works year-round to organize and conduct the Thomas Alva Edison Kiwanis Science and Engineering Fair, the Suncoast Credit Union Elementary Science Expo and the Thomas A. Edison Festival of Light Regional Inventors Fair that host more than 1500 local students. TAERSIF is the signature event of the Fort Myers Kiwanis. Suncoast Credit Union is a Title Sponsor and it is a sanctioned event of the Edison Festival of Light. Other key partners of TAERSIF include Lee County and Charlotte County Public Schools, numerous private and parochial schools, Florida Gulf Coast University, Hodges University, Florida Southwestern State College, the James and Eleanor Newton Scholarships, Sony Electronics, Imagine Solutions Conference, Caloosa Bromeliad Society, The Edison & Ford Winter Estates, The IMAG History and Science Center, Southwest Florida Community Foundation, Caloosa Veterinary Medical Society, Florida Power and Light, Doug MacGregor. The Edison Pageant of Light, Sony Electronics, the Entrepreneurs Society of Naples, the Scientist Society of Southwest Florida, Lee Memorial Health Systems, the Lee County Medical Society and numerous private donors and volunteers.