Juneau student earns science and engineering award
Elizabeth S. Djajalie, a sophomore and Juneau’s Thunder Mountain High School, took the top prize at this year’s Alaska Science and Engineering Fair. Her project “Macroalgae Bioplastics: Product Development and Biodegradability Testing” won her a finalist ticket to the International Science and Engineering Fair to take place in Atlanta in early May. Djajalie is thrilled. She can hardly wait to attend the life-changing event where she know’s she’ll meet thousands of brilliant high school STEM minds from around the globe.
For her internationals project, Djajalie will present research she conducted earlier this year on using seaweeds, including Alaskan bull kelp, to produce environmentally friendly plastic cups that will degrade in the natural world. The project was aimed at alleviating plastic pollution, especially from single-use plastics. Her conclusions found that bull kelp produced better bioplastic products than knotted kelp, native to the U.S. East Coast, while knotted kelp produced the more biodegradable product of the two.
Her innovative use of new materials also won her two special awards at the science fair including the Northern Utility Services Award Recognizing Excellence in Construction Innovation and the Ricoh Award for Sustainable Development.
Juneau students earn honors at Oregon State
Several students from Juneau were recently named to Oregon State University’s scholastic honor roll for winter 2022, the university announced.
A total of 7,732 earned a B-plus (3.5 GPA) or better to make the listing, according to Oregon State University. To be on the Honor Roll, students must carry at least 12 graded hours of course work.
Juneau students earning honors were Jennifer Burman, Timothy A. Degener, Teslin L. Gallagher, Amanda J. Mcdowell, John A. Morris and Abigail R. Olsen.
