Awards

Two types of awards are presented at the Savannah State University-Savannah Regional Science and Engineering Fair: category awards and special awards.

Category award winners are chosen by category judges. The number of awards depends on participation levels and the quality of projects within each category. To receive a category award, student projects must meet the high standards of the fair as a whole and be of the highest quality within their category. If a category has only a handful of projects, the projects are judged individually, but they are held to the same high standards as other categories. For this reason, not all categories are guaranteed 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prizes.

In addition to category awards, special awards are sponsored by local and national businesses and organizations. Eligibility varies from award to award, and recipients are chosen by special awards judges.

Ms. Alicia Miller, Chair

2025 Regional Science & Engineering Fair

Awards and GSEF Advancing Projects

IMPORTANT ADVANCING PROJECT INFORMATION BELOW

PARTICIPANT(S)	Project Title	Competitor Group	PRIZE	STATE
Peyton Chapman William James Middle School	Beautiful Bones: What is the best/most efficient way to deflesh bones?	MS ANIM	1ST	YES
Alainah Hicks Tybee Island Maritime Academy	Most Preferred Beehive Layout	MS ANIM	2ND	YES
Ariana Elise Morcus Aida Susana Rojas Hattie Virginia Williams St. Francis Xavier Catholic School	Colors of Emotion	MS BEHA	1ST	YES
Tallulah Pair Tybee Island Maritime Academy	How to Best Supplement Diets to Prevent Osteoporosis	MS BMED	1ST	YES
Harrison Mobley St. James Catholic School	How does saltwater affect the corrosion of different metals?	MS CHEM	1ST	YES
Finnley Brady William James Middle School	Do different substitutions for eggs change the taste, look, or consistency of the final product?	MS CHEM	2ND	YES
Annabelle Paquette St. James Catholic School	What happens when you bake a cake with a missing ingredient?	MS CHEM	3RD	YES
Stella Mott STEM Academy at Bartlett	Egg-ceptional Cupcakes!	MS CHEM	3RD	YES
Emily Noel William James Middle School	How does the temperature affect the consistency of maple syrup?	MS CHEM	*NO PLACEMENT/STATE THRESHOLD SCORE*	YES
Qing Lu Chen STEM Academy at Bartlett	Solar Oven	MS EGSD	BEST IN FAIR MS 1ST	YES
Qing La Chen STEM Academy at Bartlett	Rooftop Gardens	MS EGSD	1ST	YES
Anna Collins Jamie Love William James Middle School	Can Beeswax Wraps replace Plastic Wraps ?	MS MATS	1ST	YES
Wyatt Hamilton Colin Senger Tybee Island Maritime Academy	Does the Pattern of Thermal Paste Change the Performance of a PC?	MS MATS	2ND	YES
Addison Padgett STEM Academy at Bartlett	Which C4 Does More?	MS PLNT	1ST	YES
Shelby Zeigler Hailee Burnette Effingham College and Career Academy	Memory retention of teenagers.	HS BEHA	1ST	YES
Victor Rath-Say Statesboro High School	How Different Forms of Social Stimulation Impact Happiness	HS BEHA	2ND	YES
Kirill Stavenchuck Demari Chermely Effingham College and Career Academy	What workout best stimulate your bicep and tricep muscles?	HS BMED	1ST	YES
Phoebe Hansen Statesboro High School	The Effects of Environmental Contamination on Ingestion of Microplastics by Daphnia magna	HS EAEV	BEST IN FAIR HS 1ST	YES
Rowan Davidson Statesboro High School	How Different Concentrations of Salt Solutions Effect the Death Rate of Lumbricidae (Earthworms)	HS EAEV	2ND	YES
Siddartha Sarakadam Hershal V. Jenkins High School	Space Junk: Developing a Solution to the Evolving Space Debris Problem	HS ENMC	1ST	YES
Corina Huang Statesboro High School	A MATLAB Simulation Approach to Understanding Initial Conditions in the Chaos Game	HS MATH	1ST	YES
Jun Hao Lin Hershal V. Jenkins High School	2-D Shapes on Cylindrical Non-Euclidean Surface	HS MATH	2ND	YES
Ely Isidoro Statesboro High School	The True Strengths of Different Fishing Lines	HS MATS	1ST	YES
Aiden Lee Savannah Arts Academy	Predicting Classical Music Eras Through Intensity Analysis	HS ROBO	1ST	YES
Christina Zheng Statesboro High School	How Can AI Optimization Improve the Walking Performance of a Stick Figure?	HS ROBO	1ST	YES
Deverell Goldson Woodville Tompkins Technical and Career High School	How can a Computer Based Mathematical Model Accurately Forecast Hurricane Intensity?	HS ROBO	2ND	YES

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED: Documents/Instructions to Finalists

Every finalist MUST COMPLETE the following four items:

GSEF Registration Instructions
GSEF Participation Agreement - required for every STUDENT
Forms Cover Sheet - Students are encouraged to fill this out and return to you (to help them understand forms and payment requirements), but RSEFs may decide to complete these on behalf of finalists.
GSEF Event Handbook

Please read the ‘GSEF Registration Instructions’ immediately and complete the GSEF Project Entry Form (online) within THREE (3) calendar days following TODAY'S DATE (2/7/25). Return all required forms within THREE (3) calendar days following TODAY'S DATE (2/7/25). Electronic versions of forms ONLY.

The items students should return within three (3) days following the conclusion of the Regional Fair are:

GSEF Participation Agreement(s) – ALL THREE PAGES signed, from every student
Registration Fee of $49 per student - if paying by cash/check (see section below)
Research Forms - Abstract, 1, 1A, B, etc. that you do not already have on file.
Forms Cover Sheet - if not completed by RSEF

REGISTRATION FEES:

The GSEF registration fee is $49 per student (not per project) and may be paid by RSEF, district, school, student, parent, etc. Fees may be paid by check or credit card; the source and method of payment should be indicated on the Forms Cover Sheet. If the Forms Cover Sheet is unclear about how GSEF should expect payment, please include a note with the packet clarifying.

PAYING BY CHECK: Please make every effort to collect all check payments and send them with the packets, but please do not delay mailing your packets if a check is late coming in from a parent or school. Checks should be payable to “University of Georgia” with the name(s) of student(s) covered by the payment in the memo line or elsewhere on the check.
PAYING BY CREDIT CARD: Payments can be made at www.georgiacenter.uga.edu/gsef. Parents / Teachers / Schools PLEASE PROVIDE YOUR intention of paying online so we are not awaiting checks; Please attach or send pic of the payment receipt.

GSEF Hotel Blocks

The Athens Convention & Visitors Bureau has secured special rates at select hotels for GSEF attendees. The reservation site for block rates is still under construction but will be available soon at bit.ly/GSEF2025housing. Space in the blocks is limited and blocks drop March 2. Please encourage your finalists’ families/schools to make their reservations ASAP following the Regional Fair. You can also point them to the list of other Athens Area Hotels, linked on page 2 of the GSEF Event Handbook.

Special Awards

NOT APPLICABLE FOR THE 2025 FAIR SEASON