The San Joaquin County Office of Education (SJCOE) recently hosted the 65th annual San Joaquin County STEAM Fair and awards ceremony. Judges selected winners after reviewing 266 individual, group, and whole-class projects submitted by over 480 K-12 students in the county. In all, more than 440 students from 25 schools participated in the fair.

All competitors had an opportunity to present their projects to volunteer judges. Over 60 STEM professionals, teachers, University of the Pacific college students, and other volunteers from the community helped judge the projects and conduct interviews.

The SJCOE STEAM Fair also included an Expo portion. The Expo was open to the public and included many hands-on exhibits from different community partners.

The county Office of Education seeks to promote science and engineering exploration and understanding for students. Each year, the SJCOE awards thousands of dollars to students and teachers who exhibit and articulate superior levels of understanding in the areas of science and engineering.

There were awards in multiple divisions and grade levels, from kindergarten through 12th grade.

Among the top honors, the Best of Show for grades 6-12 was awarded to Mountain House High School’s Jordan Prawira for “PuraFlo”. The Best of Show for K-5 was awarded to Julius Cordes Elementary students Lauren Makalintal, Rishaan Bhagdev, and Haley Joaquin for their project, “What’s the Dirtiest Place at School?”

Cash prizes were awarded to top contenders from SJCOE Educational Foundation and Synopsys Outreach Foundation.

Eight students from the STEAM Fair will go on to represent San Joaquin County in the California Science and Engineering Fair on April 16.

The San Joaquin County Office of Education provides educational leadership, resources, and services to support schools throughout the county. For more information, visit www.sjcoe.org.