More than 80 high school students spent their summer working with some of the top scientists in the greater St. Louis area. These aspiring scientists conducted a wide range of research, studying everything from the mating activities of female snakes to new methods for early cancer detection.
Last Friday (July 18), they graduated from the 2008 Students and Teachers as Research Scientists program at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. The program is sponsored by Solutia Inc., Pfizer Inc., LMI Aerospace Inc., D3Technologies and The Solae Company. UMSL also partnered with the Donald Danforth Science Center in Creve Coeur, Mo., Saint Louis University, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and Washington University in St. Louis, all of which provided research opportunities for the STARS participants.
Kenneth Mares, director of the STARS program at UMSL, said that students with bachelor's degrees in science, math and engineering are needed more today than ever by American businesses wanting to stay competitive. And yet, efforts to bolster the number of graduates in the science, technology, engineering and math fields are failing, according to a recent report by the Associated Press. The mission of STARS is to help generate interest in those fields.
"We are delighted to provide this opportunity where senior faculty members share their experiences as they, along with their research teams, direct students in significant research projects," Mares said.
Gary Forsee, president of the University of Missouri System, spoke at the STARS confirmation. He said some economists believe that science and technology research, through its transformation into useful products and services, accounts for 85 percent of the gain in per capita income experienced by our nation.
"In order for our nation to continue to make gains in technology, life and bio sciences, health care and other areas -- and reap the economic benefits of those gains -- we must encourage the next generation to engage in scientific research," Forsee said. "That is why programs such as STARS are so vital, not only to prepare young people for college, but to prepare them for cutting-edge careers or to continue their research in graduate programs as well."
For 20 years, UMSL has hosted this intensive summer research program for academically talented junior and senior high school students. The STARS program introduces participants to the various aspects of the scientific enterprise as practiced by successful scientists in academic, private or corporate research institutions.
Participants chose one research project from a variety of outstanding opportunities. Fifty-seven faculty members from the participating institutions and six scientists from the Danforth Center volunteered for this project. In addition, Pfizer Inc., Solutia Inc. and the Solae Company identified research scientists to make career presentations.
Max McCombs, vice president of Environment, Safety and Health at Solutia Inc., called STARS a proven, effective program that encourages talented high school students to pursue careers in science and technology.
"It is a forum where students from across the US and many foreign countries can interact with each other and dedicated teachers from distinguished institutions in challenging and creative ways to explore the wonders of science," McCombs said. "Solutia has been a proud sponsor of STARS for many years and each year we look forward to our interaction with the STARS program."
This year's program, "Experiencing the Scientific Enterprise to Enhance the Education of Young Scientists," was held June 9 through July 18 at UMSL. In addition to conducting research and presenting papers, students took part in career workshops, attended lectures by leading scientists from the St. Louis science community and engaged in social activities such as attending a St. Louis Cardinals game, bowling, movies and barbeques.
The 2008 STARS graduating students and their schools are:
Anatolia College of Thessaloniki (Greece): Angeliki Latsiou
Block Yeshiva High School (Creve Coeur, Mo.): Davita Wachsstock
Bloomington High School South (Indiana): Joe Hong
Chaminade College Preparatory School (Creve Coeur, Mo.): Donastas Sakellariou-Thompson
Choate Rosemary Hall (Wallingford, Conn.): Roy Collins IV
Clayton High School: Jeremy Bleeke, Tom Maxim, Mack Su, Steven Yamada, Yiliu Zhang
Cor Jesu Academy (St. Louis County, Mo.): Bridget Waller, Rachel Zeiss
Crossroads College Preparatory School (St. Louis): Tianay Pulphus, Colin Witherspoon
Eureka High School: Dani O'Neil, Abdullah Shoaib
Fox Senior High School (Arnold, Mo.): Rae Guyse
Francis Howell Central High School (Cottleville, Mo.): Shannon Kelly
Illinois Math and Science Academy (Aurora, Ill.): Nate Hausfater
Iowa City West High School: Julie Hwang
John Burroughs School (Ladue, Mo.): Emily Foley, Alex Goel, Hannah Gu, Supriya Hobbs, Radhika Jain, Emma James, Jack Linshi, Jenny Liu, JJ Liu, Joanne Maliekel, Matt Williams
Ladue Horton Watkins High School: Sophia Sanchez, Elliot Schwartz, Mark Wilensky
Lafayette Senior High School (Wildwood, Mo.): Cassie Liu, Spencer Wells
Maplewood-Richmond Heights High School: Tiffany Moore
Marquette High School (Chesterfield, Mo.): Jereme Kramer, Marshall Huang
Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School (Ladue, Mo.): Sean Ghosh, Vishnu Kalugotla, Varun Manohara, Hassan Yasin
Metro Academic and Classical High School (St. Louis): Tulsi Singh
Missouri Academy of Science, Mathematics and Computing (Maryville, Mo): Mandeep Babbra, Cody Dickerson, Michael Jemison
Nerinx Hall (Webster Groves, Mo.): Khira GablianiNorth Broward Preparatory School (Coconut Creek, Fla.): Susie Chung, Isabel Vogt
Park Tudor School (Indianapolis): Neena Parikh
Parkway Central High School (Chesterfield, Mo.): Joy He
Parkway North High School (Creve Coeur, Mo.): Aravinth Karunanandaa
Parkway South High School (Manchester, Mo.): Vishesh Mathur, Srishti Sharma, Lauren Tucker, Andrew Williams, Sharon Xu
Parkway West High School (Ballwin, Mo.): Bob Han, Peter Holly
Paul D. Schreiber High School (Port Washington, N.Y.): Andrea Ortega
Phillips Academy: (Andover, Mass.): Wutae Lee
Phillips Exeter Academy (Exeter, N.H.): Sol Lee
Saint Francis High School (Mountain View, Calif.): Sejal Parekh
St. Joseph's Academy (Town and Country, Mo.): Caroline Shaughnessy
Saint Louis Priory School: Robb Becker
St. Louis University High School: Jack Lally, Nevin Peeples
St. Mark's School of Texas (Dallas): Ali Aziz
Troy High School (Michigan): Niharika Goparaju, Varsha Koripella
University City High School: Zach Levinson
Visitation Academy (Town and Country, Mo.): Katie Fischer, Miceala Shocklee
Wentzville Holt High School: Lynn Jones, Jared Park, Randy Ray
Westminister Christian Academy (Creve Coeur, Mo.): Nevin Cherian, Austin Wallach, Andrew WiensWhitfield School (Creve Coeur, Mo.): Ricki Diamond
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