Local Student WINS Multiple National Invention Convention Awards
For Immediate Release
Contact – Re: Thomas A. Edison Regional Science & Inventor Fairs– Media inquiries to
Lee Hughes, lee.hughes@edisonfairs.org or call 239-337-8315
Five (5) Southwest Florida students that competed in this year’s Thomas Alva Edison Science and Inventors Fairs were finalists in the Invention Convention U.S. Nationals 2020 this summer, including:
- Hayden Fuller, 5th Grade, Rayma C. Page Elementary, Fort Myers – Project Title: Handicap Parking Alert.
- Xavier Baquero-Iglesias, 5th Grade, Community School of Naples, Naples – Project Title: Solex Turf.
- Dhruva Sharma, 7th Grade, Paul Laurence Dunbar Middle, Fort Myers – Project Title: Energy Generating Shoes.
- Robert Stewart, Jr., 8th Grade, Paul Laurence Dunbar Middle, Fort Myers – Project Title: The Dilution Solution.
- Aum Dhruv, 9th Grade, Fort Myers High, Fort Myers – Project Title: Surgical Shealths.
On July 2, sixty-three (63) outstanding students were honored for their ingenuity at Invention Convention U.S. Nationals 2020, presented by Raytheon Technologies. Our Invention Convention finalists were among nearly 500 award-winning K-12 inventors from across the nation who were celebrated at the virtual awards ceremony. In total, 120,000 K-12 inventors from across the United States competed at local affiliate events this year. While all five students from Southwest Florida represented our region well on a national stage, one student was recognized for outstanding achievement with two (2) national awards.
Dhruva Sharma, a 7th Grader at Paul Laurence Dunbar Middle, was recognized twice during Invention Convention U.S. Nationals 2020 Awards Ceremony for his Energy Generating Shoes invention. He received the Innovation in Energy Award: Presented by Chevron Corporation – a Specialty Award that included a $500 Scholarship, Trophy, and Personalized Certificate. Dhruva also received the Young Visioneers Award: Present by Koch Industries – a Best of Show Award that included a Mentorship Experience, Trophy, Personalized Certificate, Personalized Virtual Experience to Advance Invention and Young Visioneer Lab Coat. Dhruva’s Best of Show Award was one of only six (6) Best of Show Awards presented at the competition.
The complete list of winners is available here. If you weren’t able to tune in for the awards ceremony Watch Party, check it out on YouTube.
Please join us in congratulating these outstanding students for their national STEM achievements.
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 1,500 local students. Key partners of TAERSIF include the Fort Myers Kiwanis, Lee County and Charlotte County Public Schools, numerous private and parochial schools, Florida Gulf Coast University, the Edison Festival of Light, Florida Southwestern State College, Hodges University, the James and Eleanor Newton Scholarships, Sony Electronics, Inc., Imagine Solutions Conference, Daitch Family Foundation, Caloosa Bromeliad Society, The IMAG History and Science Center, Southwest Florida Community Foundation, Pure Florida, Caloosa Veterinary Medical Society, Florida Power and Light, Doug MacGregor, The Edison Pageant of Light, 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.