District 5 biomedical students take research to national level

Four students from the Center for Advanced Technical Studies have earned the opportunity to serve as South Carolina delegates at the American Junior Academy of Science national meeting, to be held in Chicago in February 2027.

Shaun Njau (Irmo High), Madeline Rutherford (Spring Hill High), Jenna Mathis (Spring Hill High) and Olivia Somerville (Spring Hill High) conducted research projects as part of the biomedical science program at CATS and were awarded first place in their categories at the South Carolina Junior Academy of Science competition held on the campus of Furman University.

Njau's consumer science project is titled “The Dirty Truth About Toothbrushes: How Storage and Cleaning Impacts Bacterial Growth.”

Somerville, Mathis and Rutherford worked as a team, and their engineering project is titled “Breaking the Ice: Tracking Viability in Kidneys.”

Student research projects are grant-funded with the assistance of the District 5 Foundation.

“I am incredibly excited to share our research, learn from other like-minded individuals and see how far this opportunity can take me,” senior Jenna Mathis said.

Each year, the American Junior Academy of Science Annual Conference brings together outstanding high school researchers from across the United States to present their original STEM research, attend laboratory tours, connect with professional scientists, interact with their peers and participate in the National Association of Academies of Science annual meeting.

These District Five students will also receive an induction into AJAS with a lifetime fellowship at this national conference.

“This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for these talented biomedical students to interact with other state student delegates and lifelong professional scientists,” said Patrick Smallwood, CATS’ biomedical science instructor and research adviser. “It is my hope that these four students leave the event with helpful advice and inspiration about planning for their future contributions and careers in healthcare and research science.”