(Left to right, not in finishing order): Jingyan (Sabrina) Liu, Lula Wang, William Boberski, Rithvik Suren, Cooper Taylor, and Tyler Malkin were top finishers at the Connecticut Junior Science and Humanities Symposium, held February 22, 2025, at UConn Health in Farmington.
On Saturday, February 22, 2025, high school students from across the state presented their original research at the 62nd annual Connecticut Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (CT-JSHS) at UConn Health in Farmington. During the event, sponsored by UConn Health and the Connecticut Area Health Education Center (CT AHEC), students competed for cash and scholarship awards, as well as the right to represent the Nutmeg State at the National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium in Chantilly, VA, April 22–26, 2025. The following five students make up the Connecticut delegation.
1st Place Oral Presenter: Lula Wang, sophomore, Greenwich High School, for her work on designing a new chemoimmunotherapy treatment for the most common form of pancreatic cancer.
2nd Place Oral Presenter: Cooper Taylor, junior, Greenwich Country Day School, for developing a prototype for a cost-efficient drone with a modular design and a novel tilt mechanism that allows the same motors to function for both vertical lift and horizontal cruising. As the highest-ranked junior at the symposium, Taylor also earned the UConn Academic Excellence Scholarship.
3rd Place Oral Presenter: Rithvik Suren, freshman, CREC Academy of Aerospace and Engineering, for exploring the use of artificial intelligence and neuromorphic computing frameworks to develop more compact, radiation resistant, and energy efficient rovers for space exploration.
4th Place Oral Presenter: Jingyan (Sabrina) Liu, freshman, Choate Rosemary Hall, for her research on constructing a smart glove to aid in stroke rehabilitation, with a design inspired by mantis shrimp.
1st Place Poster Presenter: Tyler Malkin, freshman, Greenwich High School, for his poster presentation on creation of a quick, easy, inexpensive tool to detect iodine deficiency by testing saliva.
“I’m always impressed by the quality of the research conducted by these talented students,” said Dr. Brittany Knight, director of the CT-JSHS program. “Our hope is that their work presented here today will be just the first step in a rewarding career in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). We should all be proud to have them represent our state at the national symposium this spring.”
Of the over 115 students who applied to compete at CT-JSHS this year, 16 were selected to give oral presentations and 20 were selected to present their research in poster format. They competed virtually before a panel of judges the weekend before the state symposium, and then shared their work with a live audience of their peers on the day of the symposium. Another 39 students displayed their work in a non-competitive online STEM poster exhibition.
Cash and scholarships totaling nearly $40,000 were awarded at the symposium. In addition to the Connecticut delegation to the national symposium, the following students were recognized.
5th Place Oral Presenter: William Boberski, senior, Staples High School
6th Place Oral Presenter: Vito Scutari, junior, King School
7th Place Oral Presenter: Ethan Joseph, sophomore, Engineering and Science University Magnet School
8th Place Oral Presenter: Marley Wies, junior, Greenwich High School
9th Place Oral Presenter: Shriya Natarajan, junior, Wilton High School
10th Place Oral Presenter: Harshil Yerrabelli, senior, Conard High School
2nd Place Poster Presenter: Bruno Reinhoefer Ribeiro, junior, King School
3rd Place Poster Presenter: Lucia Vivanco, junior, King School
Backyard Scientist Award: Cooper Taylor, junior, Greenwich Country Day School. This award honors students who made creative use of resources “in their own backyards.”
CT-JSHS is sponsored by UConn Health and CT AHEC, under contract with the National Science Teaching Association. The Connecticut symposium is part of the Junior Science and Humanities Symposia Program sponsored by the U.S. Office of the Secretary of Defense, and the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force.