Contact: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Thursday, August 18, 2011

Fayette County Public Schools has produced two of Kentucky’s five semifinalists in the Broadcom MASTERS – a new national contest in which middle school students demonstrate their mastery of Math, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering as Rising Stars through science fair competition.  

Sahil Nair (now a freshman at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School) and Joanna Slusarewicz (now an eighth-grader at Winburn Middle School) were among the 300 announced this week by the Broadcom Foundation and the Society for Science & the Public.  

Both students attended Beaumont Middle School last spring. Sahil’s project was called “Up in the Air: How Winglets and Other Wingtip Devices Affect Aircraft Performance,” while Joanna’s was titled “Objects’ Effects on the Perception of Color.”  

The Broadcom MASTERS is the national STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) competition for sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders nominated by their local science and engineering fair.  

“This competition required significant initiative and effort beyond participation in their school, district, regional and state science fairs. Great job, Sahil and Joanna!” said Edward DeMoll, director of the Central Kentucky Regional Science and Engineering Fair. 

The semifinalists come from 251 middle schools across the United States. Visit www.broadcomfoundation.org/masters for a list and further details. 

The 30 finalists will be announced Aug. 31, and the national competition is set for Sept. 30 through Oct. 5 in Washington, D.C. The winner will receive the $25,000 Samueli Education Prize.