WCCUSD announces student STEM Fair winners

By Kathy Chouteau

The West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD) has announced the 6^th through 12^th grade student winners of its annual “STEM Fair,” which was held on Zoom Thurs., Feb. 17. The students shared their research in an array of areas, including Physical Science, Biological Science, Behavioral Science and Engineering/Tech/Innovation, per the district.

According to the district, the STEM Fair’s first and second place winners can advance to the virtual regional Golden Gate STEM Fair the week of March 7, and may earn the chance to move on to the virtual California Science & Engineering Fair in April.

First, second and third place winners will have medals delivered to their site/classroom, every student will receive a certificate for their participation and first place winners will receive a check delivered to them at home in the coming weeks, added the district.

More than 30 representatives from organizations and universities throughout the Bay Area—including Rebecca Lin of Chevron and others from the USDA, Bio-Rad, UC Berkeley and other places—helped judge the 49 student entries originating from nine district schools. 

“Thank you to the many teachers and site leaders who supported the fair along the way,” stated the district within Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Chris Hurst’s weekly newsletter.

Check out a slide deck from the STEM Fair with photos of the winning projects here and the list of winners below:

6^th Grade Biological Sciences: 3^rd Place: “Studying Root Growth Experiment,” by Elsa Graff and Eva Acosta Martinez; also 3^rd Place: “How Do Plants Grow in Different Environments,” by Kalista Quinlan; and 4^th Place: “What Are the Odds of a Person Getting an Autoimmune Disease,” by Sinjin Bishop.

6^th Grade Engineering, Innovation & Technology: 3^rd Place: “Bike Cleanup Project,” by Natalia Montoya, Maddie Cooper and Amelie Wolfer.

6^th Grade Physical Sciences: 2^nd Place: “Salty Eggs,” by Kaelyn Saechin; 3^rd Place: “Which Detergent is the Most Effective,” by Ny’Ari Davis; also 3^rd Place, “Chemicals in Motion,” by Merist Phillips; and 4^th Place: “Swimming Rocks,” by Daniel Navarro.

6^th Grade Social & Behavioral Sciences: 1^st Place: “How Does Different Music Affect Animal Behavior?” by Nahal Vosoughi and Kaila Ratner; 2^nd Place: “Does Music Affect People’s Mood?” by Lauren Ochong; 3^rd Place: “Taste of Colors,” by Bethany Mark; 4^th Place: “To See if Color Affects the Taste of Water,” (name unlisted); and also 4^th Place: “Science with Cats: Studying How Age Might Affect Cat’s Sleeping Schedules,” by Olive Ziegler and Kiri Marsh.

7^th Grade Biological Sciences: 1^st Place: “The Effects of Ash on Plant Growth,” by Azha Elsaesser; 2^nd Place: “To Drink or Not to Drink, a Test of How Long Milk Really Lasts,” by Vivien Mossman; and 3^rd Place: “Musical Plants,” by Piper Gomez-Zahnley.

7^th Grade Engineering, Innovation & Technology: 1^st Place: “Survival of the Fittest—a Comparison of Fitness Trackers,” by Zola Grondahl; 2^nd Place: “How Does the Number of Fins Affect the Altitude Reached by a Rocket?” by Tristan Dos Santos; 3^rd Place: “Cotton Candy Cart—a Therapeutic Toy for Cerebral Palsy (name unlisted); 4^th Place: “Traffic Tamer,” (name unlisted); and also 4^th Place: “Which Kind of High Quality Mask Gives the Most Oxygen to the Blood,” by Ben Nadel.

7^th Grade Physical Sciences: 2^nd Place: “The Effect of Different Liquids on Infrared Radiation,” by Claire Connallon; 3^rd Place: “Stargazing in the City,” by Owen Miller; also 3^rd Place: “Water Evaporation from Jars of Different Soils,” (name unlisted); 4^th Place: “How Do Different Colors Affect the Rate at Which Ice Melts?” (name unlisted); also 4^th Place: “EMF Levels at Different Cell Towers,” by August Broaddus; also 4^th Place: “How Does the Angle of Metal, Relative to the Heat Source, Affect the Metals Ability to Conduct Heat?” by Corwin Gauna; and also 4^th Place: “What Common Inanimate Objects Found in Nature Melts Ice the Fastest?” by Alexander Becker.

8^th Grade Engineering, Innovation & Technology: 4^th Place: “Catchy Claw,” (name unlisted); and also 4^th Place: “Disaster Delivery (version 1.0),” (name unlisted).

10^th Grade Engineering, Innovation & Technology: 2^nd Place: “Piano Playing Machine Prototype,” by Hugo Bale.

11^th Grade Biological Sciences: 1^st Place: “Scientific Study on Compost (2021-2022)—The Science, the Significance, the Solution,” by Haley Solis; 2^nd Place: “Food Waste to Energy—Optimization of Methane Production through the Process of Anaerobic Digestion,” (name unlisted); 4^th Place: “Genetics and Medicine—Why Do Some People Respond to Drugs Differently Than Others?” (name unlisted); and also 4^th Place: “Performance vs. Sleep,” by Danny Moore.

11^th Grade Physical Sciences: 3^rd Place: “How Does the Room Size/Area Affect the Sound of an Instrument?” by Elana Ignacio.

11^th Grade Social & Behavioral Sciences: 1^st Place: “How Does Color Have an Impact on Memory and/or Academic Performance?” by Nicole Hong; 2^nd Place: “The Sexualization of  Teenagers’ Clothing,” by Alexandria Jenkins; 3^rd Place: “Are Mental Health Games Effective on HS Students?” by Czerhea Mariano; also 3^rd Place: “Social Media and Parenting,” by Hailee Cid; Also 3^rd Place: “How Does Emotional Connection Affect an Individual’s Judgment over a Close Person’s Unethical Behavior?” by Nadine Tendean; 4^th Place: “Why is it Easier to Remember Song Lyrics Than Lectures?” by Simran Gurung; and also 4^th Place: “Do Mental Health Services Help Out Teenagers?” by Sydney G.

12^th Grade Biological Sciences: 1^st Place: “What is the Effect of Different Types of Carbohydrates upon the Anaerobic Respiration in Bread Yeast, etc…” by Zihan Xu; 2^nd Place: “What is the Effect of High Nitrate Concentration upon the Density of the Invasive Species of the Himalayan Blackberry?”  (name unlisted); also 2^nd Place: “What is the Effect of Different Wavelengths on the Photosynthesis Rates of Aquatic Plants as Measured by Oxygen Produced by Elodea Plants?” by Vincent Ramos; and 4^th Place: “What is the Effect of Varying PH Levels upon the Sugar Level of Apple,” by Dongfeng Yu.

12^th Grade Physical Sciences: 1^st Place: “Testing the Biodegradability of Plastic,” by Deki Samdrup.

Bob Fabrini Award (Top Score in Judging): “Survival of the Fittest: A Comparison of Fitness Trackers,” by Zola Grondahl, 7^th grade.