She wasn't one of the four cash prize winners, but Sumani
Nunna, a senior at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in
Durham, was one of the 15 finalists for the International BioGENEius Challenge,
a major science competition for high school students.
And she did get a private audience from a proud North
Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper as he joined global life science leaders at the 2018
BIO International Convention in Boston.
Nunna, North Carolina’s lone finalist among entrants from
around the U.S., Canada and Germany, lives in the Charlotte suburb of Concord.
The BioGENEius Challenge recognizes outstanding research in
biotechnology. Nunna and the 14 other finalists showcased their research at the
annual BIO event.
The Challenge provides young STEM innovators and
entrepreneurs a venue to showcase their research and helps them build a
long-term support system.
Sanjeev Kohli, a grade 11 Sir John A Macdonald Secondary
School student from Waterloo, Ontario was the $7,500 grand prize winner.
Finalists who received high honors and a $1,000 prize
include:
Sriharshita Musunuri, Henry M. Jackson High School, Mill
Creek, Washington;
Shloka Janapaty, Presentation High School, San Jose,
California;
Tobias Stadelmann, Marta-Schanzenbach-Gymnasium Gengenbach,
Gengenbach, Germany.
Nunna said she pursued the research based on inspiration
from her mentor, David Dayton, Ph.D., during an internship she had last year at
RTI International in Research Triangle Park. Her study is titled, “Increasing
the Economic Viability of Biofuels By Recovering Methoxyphenols As Value-Added
Bioproducts.”
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