Seventh-grade scientists from Bi-Cultural Day School in Stamford had an impressive showing at the 2017 Connecticut Science and Engineering Fair (CSEF), bringing home a treasure trove of medals and honors from the prestigious statewide event, including several top awards.

Held March 14 through 18 at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, the fair showcased more than 560 research projects produced by upwards of 650 middle and high school students from 120 schools all across the Nutmeg State. About 150 of the students competing were selected as finalists. Their research was presented before volunteer judges from government, academia, professional societies and industry.

Six Bi-Cultural students were among the finalists taking home awards in their respective categories. Together, the Bi-Cultural contingent earned more than $1,500 in prize money.

“Bi-Cultural students have taken second place several times, but this is the first time in the 10 years I’ve taught at Bi-Cultural that I can recall our students receiving first place honors,” said middle-school science teacher Christopher Graseck, noting that three BCDS students took home first place trophies (with two of the students working as a team on a joint project). “In this competition winning first place isn’t an easy thing to do — it’s quite an achievement. But these students took the competition very seriously. They are an amazing group,” he said.

Along with their trophies and cash prizes, four of the Bi-Cultural award winners — Ben Cohen, Josh Marcus, Ori Divon and Brandon King — also earned invitations to compete in Broadcom MASTERS (Math, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering Rising Stars), the nation’s premier science and engineering competition for middle school students. Just 10 percent of the top science projects presented at state science fairs are selected for entry into the prestigious competition. Thirty finalists then present their research projects and compete in team hands-on STEM challenges to demonstrate their skills in critical thinking, collaboration, communication and creativity.

For their projects, the BCDS students were tasked with choosing a rresearch topic related to life science, which is the focus of the seventh-grade science curriculum. In addition, says Graseck, the project had to be one students “thought would be helpful for mankind or the world in general.”

Cohen and Marcus won first place in the Pfizer Life Sciences MS Team Award for their project “How Do Brine Shrimp Hatch in Different Ph?”; Divon and King took second place in the same category for their project “Is ‘Non-toxic’ Dish Detergent Safe for the Environment?” Dion and King also won the Schoepfer Award for Excellence in Local Aquatic Science.

Other Bi-Cultural award winners included: Anna Lichtenberg, whose project, “An Analysis of Nitrogen and Phosphate Fertilizer on Algae Growth,” earned her first place in the Project Oceanology category, as well as the Alumni Middle School Botany Award. She was also an Environmental Sciences Awards with CACIWC (Connecticut Association of Conservation and Inland Wetlands Commissions) finalist and an Alexion Biotechnology Awards finalist; and Aaron Liebskind, who took third place honors in the Life Sciences category for his project “How Different Colored Lights Impact Plant Growth.”

The Connecticut Science and Engineering Fair is supported by the state’s academic and industrial organizations, including presenting sponsor United Technologies. Its purpose, says Graseck, “is to teach young people how science works and how it can be used to discover and predict.”

As for the Bi-Cultural students, says Head of School Jackie Herman, “their accomplishment is made even more remarkable when you consider that they were competing against students from schools 10 times the size of ours. Their incredibly hard work paid off and we could not be more proud.”

CAP: A delegation of Bi-Cultural Day School seventh-grade scientists won top awards at the 2017 Connecticut Science and Engineering Fair. The group included: (front row, l to r) Aaron Liebskind and Ori Divon; (2nd row, l to r) Ben Cohen, Josh Marcus, Brandon King and Anna Lichtenberg.