LOCAL STUDENT WINS 1st PRIZE @ JR. ACADEMY OF SCIENCE COMPETITION

We are very excited to announce that on February 24th, FMI graduate and Cheltenham High School student Rebecca Banner won 1st place for her presentation at the Regional Competition of the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science! Her research, conducted with Michaella Lucas and Noni Diarra, focused on the interaction between drugs and contact lenses.

Rebecca’s initial research question focused on determining whether or not drugs of abuse could be detected on contact lenses. The project yielded successful results showing that certain therapeutic and abused drugs could be adsorbed by contact lenses and detected using highly sensitive analytical instrumentation.

At the regional competition in February, Rebecca presented research completed while attending The Forensic Sciences Mentoring Institute (FMI) in Willow Grove, PA. After graduating from the FMI program, Rebecca carried on the research throughout the Fall for her high school’s science program. “At the end of the FMI summer program I walked out as a true forensic scientist. FMI provided me with knowledge, hands on experience, and mentoring that allowed me to pursue ideas never explored before,” said Rebecca following her first-place win.

The Forensic Sciences Mentoring Institute (FMI) is a 7-week long summer science program based at the Fredric Rieders Family Foundation in Willow Grove. This tuition-free program is open to high school students who have a passion for science and an interest in forensic investigations. FMI students work alongside mentors in a state-of-the-art laboratory using highly sophisticated instrumentation as they learn the fundamentals of forensic biology, forensic chemistry, and forensic toxicology.

Rebecca will go on to the PJAS State Competition in May, where she will compete with approximately 3,000 of the best and brightest science students from across the state. Please join us in congratulating Rebecca and the research team on the first-place win at the regional competition. We wish her the best of luck in the State competition this May!

Applications are currently being accepted for the 2018 FMI program. Students, parents, and teachers who would like to learn more about the program and see the lab first hand can tour the facility during the annual open house dates on April 19th and 21st, 2018. For more information, please visit the FMI website (https://www.frfoundation.org/fmi-summer-sciences-program/) or call 215-366-1591.