MOBILE, Ala. (WPMI) — Madeline Borchert is the first Mobilian to win the top prize at the state of Alabama’s science fair. Madeline is 17 years old and a junior at the Alabama School of Mathematics and Science (ASMS), a public residential boarding school located in Mobile. In February, Madeline won the top prize at the Mobile Regional Science Fair and progressed to compete in the Alabama Science and Engineering Fair (ASEF) hosted at Auburn University.
At ASEF, Madeline’s project, “Designing RNAi pesticides to specifically target invasive species,” took home the highest honor — Best in Fair. This is the first time in competition history that a student from Mobile County has received the premier honor for their work. Madeline is part of the ASMS Research Fellows Program and spent this past school year working on her research project under the guidance of Dr. Jeffrey DeMeis at the University of South Alabama and ASMS Research Coordinator, Asia Frey, who states:
“Students who participate in our Research Fellows program create projects that do very well in competitions like the Science Fair because we are able to leverage the expertise of our ASMS faculty and a network of colleagues at local universities to mentor their projects and also help prepare them for the tough Q and A sessions they have to undergo from judges. I am thrilled that Madeline has gotten so much recognition for her amazing project, and I have high expectations for our students as they continue to compete.”…