Junior Division (Grades 6, 7, and 8) Winners
Congratulations to The 2016 DuPont Challenge Junior Division top winners!
First Place:
Sonja Michaluk
Timberlane Middle School
Pennington, NJ
Sponsoring Teacher: Kelli Iannacone
Essay: Because Salamanders Cannot Speak for Themselves
(Read essay excerpt)
Second Place:
Makena Stack
H.B. duPont Middle School
Hockessin, DE
Sponsoring Teacher: Dana Wisnoski
Essay: Saving the Sea Turtle from Our Plastic Ocean, One Bite at a Time
Third Place:
Liliana Fiorini
Van Avery Prep
Temecula, CA
Sponsoring Teacher: Kim Kocaya
Essay: Living with the Threat of Anaphylaxis
Jaden Asuncion
Camp Lester Middle School
Okinawa, Japan–U.S. Department of Defense School
Sponsoring Teacher: Maryanne Tirinnanzi
Essay: Parasitic Food Tester
Delbert Bray
Hill Country Middle School
Austin, TX
Sponsoring Teacher: Woodroe Kiser
Essay: The Future of Roads… Plastic
Claire Chandler
Bell Middle School
Golden, CO
Sponsoring Teacher: Ken Parelman
Essay: Edible Entomology
Patricia Colaprete
The Salisbury School
Salisbury, MD
Sponsoring Teacher: Carol Matthews
Essay: Homeless Hotline
Jacob Crump
The First Academy
Orlando, FL
Sponsoring Teacher: Christy Requejo
Essay: Soarin’ Seeds Around the World
Malik Figaro
Harlem Academy
New York, NY
Sponsoring Teacher: Sponsoring Teacher: Meredith Philbin
Essay: GMO is the Way to Go
Aileen Foley
Roberto Clemente Middle School
Germantown, MD
Sponsoring Teacher: Roseann Brady
Essay: Affordable Prosthetic Limbs
David Futcher
Paul J. Gelinas Junior High School
Setauket, NY
Sponsoring Teacher: David Mutter
Essay: Piezoelectricity to Power the World
Corrine Gallagher
Paul J. Gelinas Junior High School
Setauket, NY
Sponsoring Teacher: Kenneth Weiner
Essay: Nitrogen, Southern Pine Beetles, and a New Filtration System
Matthew Gu
Roberto Clemente Middle School
Germantown, MD
Sponsoring Teacher: Roseann Brady
Essay: What can the lightest metal known to man do for us?
Ronit Gupta
The Pike School
Andover, MA
Sponsoring Teacher: Maria del Carmen Burbano
Essay: Concussions are Nothing to be Played With
Sam Gupta
Paredes Middle School
Austin, TX
Sponsoring Teacher: Elisabeth Sanders
Essay: Eating Healthy is not Rocket Science
Ella (Eleanor) Hardy
ALPs Charter School
Oshkosh, WI
Sponsoring Teacher: Laurin Endres
Essay: Yum! Locally Grown Food – The School Lunch Problem
Caitlyn Hickling
Module de l’Acadie
Kingston, Ontario
Sponsoring Teacher: Cynthia Hatfield
Essay: How Global Warming Affects Polar Bears
Sondra Holleran
Hill Country Middle School
Austin, TX
Sponsoring Teacher: Woodroe Kiser
Essay: Solar Heat Charger Bracelet
Julian Inge
Camp Lester Middle School
Okinawa, Japan–U.S. Department of Defense School
Sponsoring Teacher: Maryanne Tirinnanzi
Essay: Collecting Water Method With the Use of Spider Webs
Ryan Jacobs
Bell Middle School
Golden, CO
Sponsoring Teacher: Ken Parelman
Essay: Eat a Bug, Save the World
Rincon Jagarlamudi
Crestview Middle School
Ellisville, MO
Sponsoring Teacher: Jennifer Sinn
Essay: Where Are My Bees?
Claudia Janelle
Biddeford Middle School
Biddeford, ME
Sponsoring Teacher: Ann Putney
Essay: The Automatic Box Carrier
Viraj Jayam
Long Island School for the Gifted
Huntington Station, NY
Sponsoring Teacher: Forrest Lipp
Essay: Drone Doctors
Devishi Jha
Thomas Jefferson Middle School
Valparaiso, IN
Sponsoring Teacher: Stephanie Olsen
Essay: Power of Photosynthesis
Jessica Kovie
The First Academy
Orlando, FL
Sponsoring Teacher: Christy Requejo
Essay: Vocal Emotion Recognition for Children with Special Needs
Rhea Malhotra
Moravian Academy Middle School
Bethlehem, PA
Sponsoring Teacher: JoAnne Daniels
Essay: Treating Depression: A New Approach
Jaden Merriman
Bell Middle School
Golden, CO
Sponsoring Teacher: Ken Parelman
Essay: What Will Fuel Your Daily Commute 34 Years from Now? The Superior Alternative to Gasoline
Akash Mullick
Smith Middle School
Chapel Hill, NC
Sponsoring Teacher: Regina Baratta
Essay: Feeding the World, One Old Shipping Container at a Time
Sylvia Nica
Nagel Middle School
Cincinnati, OH
Sponsoring Teacher: Tara Kaiser
Essay: Who Would Use the Leftovers?
Eugene Ayessa Ordanez
Camp Lester Middle School
Okinawa, Japan–U.S. Department of Defense School
Sponsoring Teacher: Maryanne Tirinnanzi
Essay: Reducing Global Warming With Just a Turn of a Pedal
Nayna Pashilkar
Hill Country Middle School
Austin, TX
Sponsoring Teacher: Woodroe Kiser
Essay: Sweet Fuel
Raj Patel
Hyde Park Middle School
Las Vegas, NV
Sponsoring Teacher: Robin Hill
Essay: The Solar Road: Building the Future, One Road at a Time
Colin Patton
Paul J. Gelinas Junior High School
Setauket, NY
Sponsoring Teacher: Kenneth Weiner
Essay: Wireless Energy Transmission
Audrey Pino
Bell Middle School
Golden, CO
Sponsoring Teacher: Ken Parelman
Essay: Evaporating Trash
Arvind Ravipati
River Bend Middle School
Sterling, VA
Sponsoring Teacher: Diane Crain
Essay: Our Secure Energy Future
Naran Shettigar
West Ridge Middle School
Austin, TX
Sponsoring Teacher: Todd White
Essay: Using Virtual Reality to Assist Canines with PTSD
Adhvayith Sriram
Roberto Clemente MS
Germantown, MD
Sponsoring Teacher: Roseann Brady
Essay: Changing the World, One Firefighter at a Time
William Sun
Paul J. Gelinas Junior High School
Setauket, NY
Sponsoring Teacher: David Mutter
Essay: Cars Run on Bacteria
Christine Tu
West Ridge Middle School
Austin, TX
Sponsoring Teacher: Todd White
Essay: The Six-Legged Snack
Pablo Vidal
South Texas Preparatory Academy
Edinburg, TX
Sponsoring Teacher: Alfredo Garza
Essay: The Journey of a Cell through a Burn
Rayna Waite
Camp Lester Middle School
Okinawa, Japan–U.S. Department of Defense School
Sponsoring Teacher: Maryanne Tirinnanzi
Essay: IED Bomb Sensor For Military Vehicles
Matthew Young
Oxford Academy
Cypress, CA
Sponsoring Teacher: Stacey Levoit
Essay: How a Van, Patches, and a Balloon Can Save Lives
Justin Zhang
Paul J. Gelinas Junior High School
Setauket, NY
Sponsoring Teacher: David Mutter
Essay: Microwaves and Meteorology
Baran Zuniga
Creekland Middle School
Lawrenceville, GA
Sponsoring Teacher: Suzanne Cross
Essay: A Bright Idea
See the full list of Senior Division winners.