Gould Academy student wins top honors at Maine State Science Fair for third year in a row

Bar Harbor, Maine – Demetri Maxim of Gould Academy, who took first place in the 2014 and 2015 Maine State Science Fairs, made it a three-fer on Saturday with his 2016 research project, “Building human kidney tissue from pluripotent human stem cells: A promising new treatment for kidney disease.”

Paige Brown of Bangor High School took second place for her project, “Constructing low-cost calcium alginate scaffolds for the reduction of pollutants in stormwater.” On March 15 Brown won a first-place, $150,000 award at the prestigious Intel Science Talent Search.

Third place went to another Bangor High School student, Sydney McDonald, for “The design and analysis of an artificial muscle comprised of ionic-polymer metal composites.”

The 2016 Maine State Science Fair took place at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor on Saturday, March 16. More than 182 students from 17 Maine high schools participated.

The 2016 Maine State Science Fair was organized by The Jackson Laboratory and the Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance. Since 2012, winners of the Maine State Science Fair have been eligible to qualify for the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, the world’s largest science fair. The top three winners of the 2016 Maine Fair and their mentors will travel to Phoenix, Ariz., in May for this year's Intel event.

The Jackson Laboratory offers educational programs for scientists throughout their careers—from STEM education for high school students and training for science and math teachers to courses and conferences for experienced researchers defining the cutting edge of genomics research and specialized training for physicians interested in incorporating genetics and genomics into their practices.

Download a full list of winners