Researchers sweep County fair 

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Hosted throughout the month of February, the Broward County Science Fair finished Feb. 21 with award notifications being sent out. After the school fair selection process, 25 Heritage students were selected to compete. There were two phases that 15 high schoolers and 10 middle schoolers had to complete.  

The county fair had a two-part judging process: first, students had to complete the virtual phase of the county process. Over 100 students from around Broward County, in both high school and middle school, participated in the first round. The county fair directors then selected the top 30 students from phase one to compete in the second round Feb. 17 held in person at the Museum of Discovery and Science in Fort Lauderdale. 

Out of the 25 AHS students who were in phase one, 14 high school and 8 middle school students qualified for the second round. Out of these students, 11 high school and 6 middle school students will be advancing to the state competition in April. With only 20 spots available for the state competition, Heritage was able to win over half the awards in the high school category. Below are the awards:

High School

First Place (qualifying for states):

  1. Anik Bora, 11
  2. Emma Colarte Delgado, 11
  3. Noah Duro-Andre, 10
  4. Iris Fan, 11
  5. Anagha Iyer, 10
  6. Akshay Kumar, 11
  7. Calvin Mathew, 11
  8. Kamilat Mustapha, 11
  9. Lorenzo Pulmano, 12
  10. Likitha Selvan, 11
  11. Hanna Zhang, 11

Second Place:

  1. Himashi Balasuriya, 11
  2. Aditya Kapadia, 12
  3. Shriya Narasimhan, 10

Qualified for County:

  1. Vid Yash, 9

Middle School

First place (qualified for states)

  1. Beatrice Assano, 6
  2. Scarlet Asselta, 6
  3. Ella Colarte Delgado, 6
  4. Sophia Fatteh-Patil, 7
  5. Ivan Kalashnykov, 8
  6. Colton Poppe, 6

Second:

  1. Sophia Caulkins, 6
  2. Sasha Charania, 7

Qualified for county:

  1. Platon Nesmeyanov, 8
  2. Arnav Bhatia, 8

Sisters Emma and Ella Colarte Delgado pose in front of Emma’s board following judging. The poster illustrates the gender barrier of Alzheimer’s disease, and the proposed method to solving this discrepancy. (Photo/Marisol Colarte Delgado)

From Heritage, 14 high school students presented their boards to judges, before facing a line of questioning. “Judges came up to me and really knew the science behind my project, so I had to be well-versed in what to say,” sophomore Noah Duro-Andre stated. “Being able to communicate with judges is key at this stage.” (Photos/Emma Colarte Delgado)

Middle school students had their own section of the museum to present to judges. Six sixth grade students made it to this stage, which is more than the past three years combined. (Photo/Emma Colarte Delgado)

Students also had the opportunity to enjoy the Museum of Science and Discovery after judging. They received free admission and were able to visit all exhibits. One of these exhibits included fossils and other pieces from prehistoric times, including models of prehistoric fish and rocks and minerals found at the time. (Photos/Emma Colarte Delgado)

Heritage students pose with science research director, Dr. Juliana Caulkins, following judging. Lunch was provided for students after their morning of interviews. (Photos/Marisol Colarte Delgado and Emma Colarte Delgado)

As a rising senior, this is Emma’s third year in the Patriot Post and she’s excited to be the Online Editor this year. Outside of newspaper, she’s Co-President of the journalism honor society, Quill and Scroll, and also the Editor-in-Chief of the Sigma Xi Honor Society magazine. She is also involved in and has officer positions in Science Research, Sigma Xi, FBLA, Model UN, SNHS, and other clubs, including honor societies and her own nonprofit. In her free time, she enjoys reading, watching dramas on Netflix, listening to Taylor Swift, and hanging out with friends and family. She’s very excited to work on the Patriot Post this year!