Regeneron STS – apply by Nov. 13

The 2020 Regeneron Science Talent Search application is due on November 13th at 8 PM EST. In addition to ISEF and the Broadcom MASTERS competitions, the Society for Science & the Public also produces Regeneron STS, the nation’s oldest and most prestigious competition for high school seniors.

The competition recognizes 300 student scholars and their schools each year and invites 40 finalists to Washington, D.C. to participate in judging, display their work to the public, and meet with scientists and government leaders. Each year, Regeneron STS scholars and finalists compete for $3.1 million in awards. 

There will be a Teacher / Parent Workshop on November 12 from 6-7 PM at Castilleja School in Palo Alto. RSVP to src@science-fair.org if you want to attend.

The workshop will answer questions about the application process and project requirements. The workshop is recommended for every new teacher and any parent who will supervise a Parent-Sponsored Project.

Please submit applications that require pre-approval as soon as possible. Applications received by Nov. 12 will be reviewed at the mid-November SRC/IRB meeting. Projects that require pre-approval often need extra forms, especially projects involving humans. Submitting at the FINAL deadline (Dec. 3) may not give us enough time to resolve issues and receive all the necessary forms before the final IRB review meeting.

We see many applications in the pipeline and look forward to receiving them soon!

Congratulations to 21 students from the Synopsys Championship who were selected in the Top 300 semi-finalists in the 9th annual Broadcom MASTERS competition and especially to Brian Chen from Harker, one of 10 students from California among the Top 30 finalists.

Broadcom MASTERS competitors are the top 10 percent of 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade projects from science fairs around the US. The Top 300 semi-finalists were selected from 2348 competitors and 30 finalists were announced on September 18th. Finalists will travel to Washington, DC, in October for a 4-day competition that includes individual and team challenges in various STEM disciplines.

Both events will be at the Santa Clara County Office of Education. The Student Clinic (for parents, too) will answer questions about finding a topic and developing the project from idea to display and oral presentation. The Teacher/Parent Workshop will answer questions about filling in the application forms and where to get help for supplies and ideas for projects. The workshop is strongly recommended for any parent who may need to supervise a Parent-Sponsored Project.

Learn How to Spread the Word!  High School Alumni, come to a workshop on doing presentations at your local elementary schools. We need to start the youngsters off right, and you can help to make that happen. Santa Clara County Office of Education, Oct 15, 7-8 PM. At the training you will do an experiment you can do as a demonstration, get an experiment kit, take home activities for families, and posters for the teachers. RSVP with Heidi Black blackh@esuhsd.org

The 2020 Rules Changes page is still being revised, but one big change is already in effect: the Behavioral Science field of study has been discontinued (see the note below from the SRC). In addition, the SCVSEFA Category Judging Criteria have been revised to emphasize independent work, project understanding, and clarity in answering judges’ questions. ISEF has expanded its Ethics Statement and rewritten the Roles & Responsibilities of Students and Adults.

Watch this space for an early-October announcement that the 2020 Synopsys Championship application process is open. Beginning in September the science fair web pages will be updated for any changes to rules or forms by SCVSEFA or ISEF.

Meanwhile, first time participants may want to read the pages in the Rules & Registration section about Project Types and Categories as well as Eligibility. The Students section explains the Process of starting a project and Planning & Preparation.

Congratulations to our outstanding Santa Clara County students! Winners of the 2019 Intel ISEF in Phoenix, Arizona, were announced on May 16-17th. Ten Grand Prize winning projects from the Synopsys Championship and two top winners from CSEF competed with 1800 students from more than 80 countries.  Fourteen students from the Synopsys Championship were recognized with category and special awards, and Allison Jia was honored as an Intel Foundation Young Scientist for her project, Modeling Neurodegeneration in vitro: A Dynamic Study of Tau in a Microfluidic Chamber System via Quantum Dot Labeling. Thank you to all who participated and facilitated the effort to help our top students present their research.

Congratulations to our outstanding Santa Clara County students! More than 100 Synopsys Championship participants made the trip to Los Angeles to compete at the California State Science & Engineering Fair on April 29-30.  Winners were announced at the awards ceremony on April 30th and are posted on the CSEF web site.  SCVSEFA has a summary page of all the winning participants from the Synopsys Championship. Thank you to all who participated and to the volunteers, parents and teachers who helped our students present their fine work.