Bolles science students excelled at the Northeast Florida Regional Science and Engineering Fair (NEFRSEF) held February 13-15 at Episcopal School of Jacksonville.
Sarah Park ’25 and Riya Kar ’24 were selected for two of the three available bids for the prestigious International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), with their projects outshining the highly competitive field of 38 regional entrants. The pair will compete in the ISEF May 13-19 in Dallas, Texas, as well as the upcoming State Science and Engineering Fair of Florida (SSEF). Sara Wasserman ’24 will join Park and Kar at the state competition April 2-6 in Lakeland, Florida.
Park is the first student in School history to win a bid to ISEF two years in a row. Her project is titled “Spark Care+: Personalized Music Therapy for Relaxation and Energizing using a Mobile and AI Approach.” She won first place in the category of Behavioral and Social Science and took home the Meninak Club of Jacksonville Award, the Special Award from the Society of American Military Engineers, the Johnson & Johnson Outstanding Research Award and the Outstanding Science and Engineering Fair Project Certificate of Achievement and Gift Packet from the United States Air Force.
Kar’s project, “The Role of VEGF-B and NRP-1 Axis in Regulating Mitochondrial Homeostasis in Ischemic Heart Disease,” was completed with research conducted through the Mayo Clinic SPARK Program. She won first place in the category of Zoology and a Johnson & Johnson Outstanding Research Award.
Wasserman’s state-bound project, “Effect of Anti-Inflammatories on the Growth and Treatment of Breast Cancer Cells,” was also completed with research conducted through the Mayo Clinic SPARK Program. She won fourth place in the category of Medicine and Health and received a trophy from the University of Florida College of Health.
Jayan Deshmukh ’26 also received the Regeneron Biomedical Science Award and the Outstanding Science and Engineering Fair Project Certificate of Achievement and Gift Packet from the United States Air Force for his project, “Improved Breast Cancer Diagnosis Using Neural Networks.”
Bolles science teachers Brad Bullington and Dr. Kathryn Halloran, who accompanied the students to NEFRSEF, noted the following students also had strong showings at the regional fair:
- Krish Relan ’23 – TMEM106B influence on tau seeding. Research conducted through The Mayo Clinic SPARK Program.
- Ashkon Shirazi ’24 – Effect of Short-Term Interval Heat Exposure on Lifespan of Drosophila melanogaster.
- Akhil Ketty ’26 – The Effect of Alpha Lipoic Acid on the Breakdown of Sucrose.
Congratulations to these innovative Bulldogs who are bound to change our world for the better! #BollesInnovates
Original source can be found here.
