ASHLAND — Many area students were among the 117 students from 26 area schools plus homeschoolers who competed in the 60th annual Mohican District Science Day.
Sponsored by the Mohican District Junior Division of the Ohio Academy of Science and hosted by Ashland University since 1960, the event was held online for the first time due to the cancellation of the face-to-face event in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Students uploaded copies of their reports, photos of their project boards, and short video presentations for judges to evaluate.
“We were very pleased with the number of students who chose to do the extra work to participate in this year’s online fair,” said Dr. Jeff Weidenhamer, Trustees’ Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at Ashland University and Science Day director. “Students do hands-on experiments, collect and analyze data and draw conclusions, rather than just reading and reporting what someone else has done.
“Many projects are original and creative. It is always great to see the enthusiasm that these students have for doing science.”
Weidenhamer thanked the approximately 60 local judges from education, industry, business and medical professions who helped to judge the projects, as well as Mohican District Science Council President Jeff Steele and Council members, who worked countless hours to make this event a success.
“This event would not be a successful and rewarding experience for our local students without the hard work and commitment of science teachers and the support of their school districts in fostering increased science, technology, engineering, and mathematics literacy,” he said.
For school awards, Northwestern High School had the most superiors (4) and also the highest percentage (33 percent) of superiors for the high school division. Those earning superior rankings included Colin Agnes and Jordan Allshouse, “The ChiroCushion”; Jordyn Ference and Montana Stidham, “Posture Pack”; Logan Haven, “The Effects of Sucrose Consumption on Spatial Memory”; and Leeanna Ruegg, “Knocking Out Certain Arginine Kinases in Caenorhabditis Elegans.”
Ference and Stidham’s project also earned the duo the Governor’s Award for Biotechnology & Biomedical Technology Research. It is one of the Governor’s Thomas Edison Awards for Excellence in STEM Education and carried with it a $50 award from the Mohican District Science Council.
Haven’s project earned the Charles River Laboratories’ Analytical Biochemistry Award of $125, while the Josh Poorbaugh BioAchievement Award I, sponsored by Grandpa’s Cheesebarn and carrying a prize of $250, went to Ruegg. Agnes and Allshouse received an Outstanding Student Award for submitting one of the top four projects.
Northwestern Elementary School student Reed Hamey also earned a superior ranking for his “Dogs See Color?!” project, which also garnered him the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo award for the best animal science project. He received four tickets to the zoo for his efforts.
Other local students earning superiors included:
Ashland Christian School: Logan Frazer, “Which Reaction Time Is Fastest: Sight, Sound, or Touch?” Frazer also was awarded The Josh Poorbaugh Bio Achievement Award II and $50.
Ashland High School: Alaina Reed, “The Effectiveness of Natural Versus Synthetic Cleaners in Removing Shigella and Salmonella from a Surface That Has Been Exposed to Organic Poultry” (also received an Outstanding Student Award and $60 for having one of the top four projects); and Elyse Reed, “Contrasting Industrial Waste and Agricultural Runoff as Contributors to Algae Blooms in Lake Erie”.
Ashland Middle School: Mira Bechtol, “How High Can It Rise?”; and Katrin Parker, “Gene Mutations: How We Are Affected”. Parker also received the Charles River Laboratories’ $125 Award for Medical and Health Sciences.
Central Christian (Kidron): Kara Jones, “Do Mycorrhizae Help Your Plants Grow?” Jones also received an Ohio Soybean Bioscience Award and $100.
Ontario Middle School: Emma Henderson, “Lead in our Environment? That’s Heavy!” She also received a Michael R. Hudson Outstanding Young Scientist Award sponsored by the Mohican District Science Council (in memory of long-time director Dr. Michael Hudson) and $50.
St. Edward School (Ashland): Julia Brauner, “Do Cats Bond With Their Human Owners?”; Emma Paddags, “Color and Your Memory”, and Autumn King, “How Does Speed Affect Pitch?” King also was awarded the Governor’s Award for Information Science & Technology Research.
St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception (Wooster): Elizabeth Frantz, “Macroinvertebrate Leaf Species Preference: A Comparative Study” (also awarded Michael R. Hudson Outstanding Young Scientist Award and a $250 Ohio Tuition Trust Authority College Advantage Scholarship); Bethany George, “Comparing Insulators to Work in an Upcycled Lunchbox”; Anthony Tarutani, “How Many Fins?”; Rosalia Bowling and Evelyn Veil, “Are 1st Graders or Kindergarteners More Likely to Manage Their Impulse Control and Follow Directions When They Think They Are Not Being Watched?” and Zach George, “What Is the Optimal Angle for a Vertical Axis Wind Turbine’s Blades to Collect Skyscraper Downdraft?”
