Millard Oakley STEM Center

Senior Division Winners

Animal and Plant Science (AP)

1st Place – Measuring Glucose Levels

Leah Reyna, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

2nd Place – Organic vs. Chemical Fertilizer

Justin Melton, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

3rd Place (Tie) – How Do Cats Respond to Bird Sounds?
Nathan Hamby, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

3rd Place (Tie) – Plant Regeneration

Richard Peters, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

Behavioral and Social Science (BE)

1st Place – Does Crossed Hand/Eye Dominance Affect Basketball Shooting Percentage?

Kyle White, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

2nd Place – Cognitive Flexibility and Language Skills

Talis Workman, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

3rd Place – Does Chewing Gum While Studying Affect Test Scores if Gum Is Also Chewed During the Test?

Peyton Simmons, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

Chemical Sciences (CH)


1st Place – Disinfectants on Bacteria

Isaac Smith, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

2nd Place – Chromatic Adaptation

Jake Anderson, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

Earth and Environmental Science (EA)

1st Place – Recycled Paper into Seed Paper

Eli Oakes, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

Engineering, Robotics, and Computer Science (ER)


1st Place (Tie) – Urban Search and Rescue

Ariana Moore, Cookeville High School, 12th Grade – Teacher: Dave Powell
Duel Coons, Cookeville High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: David Powell

Health and Wellness (HW)


1st Place – Sip and Spike

Marin Robinson, New Colossus Academy, 11th Grade – Teacher: Kristen Wilcox

2nd Place – Which Skin Moisturizer Works Best?

Leah Boling, Bledsoe County High School, 10th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

3rd Place – Balancing Act: Finding Your Center of Gravity
Olivia Hooks, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

Physics, Astronomy & Mathematics (PM)

1st Place – The Science and Reflexes of Dizziness

Jaxon Hankins, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

SPECIAL AWARDS

*Exercise Science $1,000 Scholarship to Tennessee Tech – Sip and Spike
 / Marin Robinson, New Colossus Academy, 11th Grade – Teacher: Kristen Wilcox
*Awarded to a qualifying student pursing Exercise Science. Disbursement of $500 (Fall Semester), $500 (Spring Semester)

**College of Engineering $1,500 Scholarship to Tennessee Tech – Urban Search and Rescue
 / Ariana Moore, Cookeville High School, 12th Grade – Teacher: Dave Powell
**Eligibility: Must be a rising senior. Must intend to purse an Engineering degree at Tennessee Tech.

Grand Prize $1,500 Scholarship to Tennessee Tech
($750 to each team member)  – Statistical Evaluation of Vision–Language–Action (VLA) Physical AI Perception and Execution Accuracy for Future Robotic Medical Tasks / 
Louis Kim, Cookeville High School, 10th Grade – Teacher: Kang Mihyun
; Taeyoo Kim, Cookeville High School, 10th Grade – Teacher: Duckbong Kim

2nd Place Overall Prize $1,000 Scholarship to Tennessee Tech – PAINT

Annabel Sheumaker, New Colossus Academy, 11th Grade – Teacher: Kristen Wilcox

3rd Place Overall Prize $500 Scholarship to Tennessee Tech – The Aging Palate

Kylie Campbell, Bledsoe County High School, 11th Grade – Teacher: Bridgett Loyd

Special Recognition – STEMobile County Award
We would also like to extend a special thank you to all teachers for encouraging student participation in this year’s fair. Your support plays a vital role in fostering curiosity and a love of learning.

We are excited to recognize the county with the highest number of student participants. That award goes to Bledsoe County Schools!

We will be bringing the STEMobile to your county for a week-long visit during the upcoming school year!

Junior Division Winners

Animal and Plant Science (AP)

1st Place – Plants Without Dirt

Braxton Walker, York Elementary School, 7th Grade – Teacher: Teresa Werner

2nd Place – Compost Crew: Worms at Work

Aggie Gentry, Smith County Middle School, 5th Grade – Teacher: Brittany Walker
Joslynn Smith, Smith County Middle School, 5th Grade – Teacher: Brittany Walker

3rd Place – Greenhouse vs Outdoor

Jaxon Green, York Elementary, 7th Grade – Teacher: Lisa Blevins

Behavioral and Social Science (BE)


1st Place – Give Me a Hand!

Lucy Sheumaker, New Colossus Academy, 8th Grade – Teacher: Kim Thorpe

2nd Place (Tie) – Beyond Black and White

Adalyn Dennis, Smith County Middle School, 6th Grade – Teacher: Donna Bush

2nd Place (Tie) – Can Your Eyes Beat A.I.?

Timothy Kistler, New Colossus Academy, 7th Grade – Teacher: Kimberly Thorpe

3rd Place – Rock, Paper, Scissors

Luke Fitzgerald, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark

Chemical Sciences (CH)

1st Place – Oxidation Intervention: Which Solution Protects Best?

Annie Beth Whitaker, New Colossus Academy, 6th Grade – Teacher: Alicia Sheumaker

2nd Place – The Good, The Bad, and the Brushed

Henry Smith, York Elementary Schools, 7th Grade – Teacher: Teresa Werner

3rd Place – Fizzy Fun

Jazlynn Garcia, York Elementary, 7th Grade – Teacher: Teresa Werner
Karlee Harding, York Elementary, 7th Grade – Teacher: Teresa Werner

Earth & Environmental Science (EA)

1st Place – Camouflage vs Human Vision

Leonard Duncan, York Elementary, 7th Grade – Teacher: Teresa Werner

2nd Place (Tie) – How Does Weather Affect Environments?
Abigale Stricklin, Pikeville Elementary School, 5th Grade – Teacher: Kim Ford

2nd Place (Tie) – Tennessee Twisters

Collin Fuqua, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark

3rd Place – Shining a Light on Sky Glow
Lily Houston, Eastside Elementary School, 7th Grade – Teacher: Jennifer Heath
Lyli Keith, Eastside Elementary School, 7th Grade – Teacher: Jennifer Heath

Energy & Environmental Engineering (EE)


1st Place – Power from Potatoes

Logan Garrett, York Elementary, 7th Grade – Teacher: Teresa Werner

2nd Place – How Are Circuits Different?

Sadie Grace Swafford, Pikeville Elementary, 5th Grade – Teacher: Kim Ford

3rd Place – Electric Lemon

Saul Rickheim, Pikeville Elementary School, 5th Grade – Teacher: Kim Ford

Engineering, Robotics & Computer Science (ER)


1st Place – Cube Crushing Calculation

Ellie Ingersoll, New Colossus Academy, 8th Grade – Teacher: Kim Thorpe

2nd Place – Potato Battery

Ryder Barton, Pikeville Elementary, 5th Grade – Teacher: Kimberly Ford

Health and Wellness (HW)

1st Place – 5 Seconds to Germ City

Silas Lewis, New Colossus Academy, 6th Grade – Teacher: Mrs. Sheumaker

2nd Place – Vision in Motion

Vanessa May, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark; 
Anastin Newberry, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark

3rd Place – When Sight Steps Out, Does Balance Fall?

Charlee Frye, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark; 
Serenity Carmack, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark

Physics, Astronomy, and Mathematics (PM)


1st Place – Candle-astrophy!

Micah Sheumaker, New Colossus Academy, 5th Grade – Teacher: Alicia Sheumaker

2nd Place – Bottle Flip Mechanics

Luke Roach, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Kim Fitzgerald
; Albert Bolton, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark

3rd Place – The Perfect Pour

Ciara Saddler, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark
; Aubri Spears, Macon County Junior High, 7th Grade – Teacher: Casey Roark

Marvin Tidwell Award (Best of the Junior Division)
How does acid affect grown plants?

Abigail Taylor, Pikeville Elementary, 5th Grade – Teacher: Kim Ford

Overall 1st Place

Benjamin Sprik
New Colossus Academy, Putnam County – Filtration Face Off

Overall 2nd Place

Chloe Boyd
Dekalb County High School, Dekalb County – The HOLE Truth

Overall 3rd Place

Elsie Sheumaker
New Colossus Academy, Putnam County – Stayin' Alive, One Compression at a Time

Senior Division Winners

Animal & Plant Sciences

1st – Alivia Hart – White County High School, White County – Is Your Livestock Grain Worth Its Weight?

2nd – Olivia Minton & Kinley Niehuus – Dekalb County High School, Dekalb County – Garden Grooves

Behavioral & Social Sciences

1st – Taeyoo Kim & Louis Kim – Cookeville High School, Putnam County – Analysis of Effects of MBTI with respect to age, gender, blood type, and ethics

2nd – Eva Greene – New Colossus Academy, Putnam County – Social Media and the Perception of Beauty Standards

3rd – Nolan Archer – New Colossus Academy, Putnam County – The Future of AI Art

Chemical Sciences

1st – Levi Pelfrey – Bledsoe County High School, Bledsoe County – How acidity affects the digestive enzyme in saliva

Earth & Environmental Sciences

1st – Lly Madge – White County High School, White County – Geospatial Analysis of Ambient mR Radiation Dose Rates in Urbanized and Rural Ecosystems in Tennessee

Energy & Environmental Engineering

1st – Estee Willis & Macie Burton – White County High School, White County – Comparative Analysis of Decomposition Rates for Biodegradable vs. Plastic Glitter

Engineering, Robotics & Computer Sciences

1st – David Wheeler & Jaxon Kleparek – Dekalb County High School, Dekalb County – AI vs Reality

2nd – Breanna Powell – White County High School, White County – A Comparative Analysis of Tensile Strength and Durability of TIG, MIG, and STICK Welds

Health & Wellness

1st – Sydney Hassler & Jaelyn Hawn – Monterey High School, Putnam County – Bacterial Resistance on Contaminated Cell Phones

2nd – Levi Rempel & Martin Anderson – Monterey High School, Putnam County – What are you drinking?

3rd – Jackson Reel – Bledsoe County High School, Bledsoe County – Electrolyte Challenge: Sports Drink vs Orange Juice

Junior Division Winners

Best of Junior Division

Marvin Tidwell Award – Jaxon Green – York Elementary School, Fentress County – Like Father, Like Son

Animal & Plant Sciences

1st – Thomas Troutt & Chantley Driver – Macon County Junior High School, Macon County – Reel 'Em In

2nd – SkyLynn Woodard & Marlee Lane – Smith County Middle School, Smith County – Plants in different environments

Behavioral & Social Sciences

1st – Kelsey Roark & Addie Schafer – Macon County Junior High School, Macon County – Attraction In Action

Chemical Sciences

1st – McKenzie Neill – New Colossus Academy, Putnam County – The pHacts of Fruit

2nd – Addison Dishmon – York Elementary School, Fentress County – Pop Goes The Fizz

3rd – Logan Garrett – York Elementary School, Fentress County – The Race to Melt

Engineering, Robotics & Computer Sciences

1st – Greyson Neill – New Colossus Academy, Putnam County – Can You Truss This Bridge

Health & Wellness

1st – McKenzie Walker – York Elementary School, Fentress County – Feel The Beat: How Different Types of Music Impact Heart Rates

2nd – Joel Vaughn – New Colossus Academy, Putnam County – Freezing Temperatures of Sodas
3rd – Braxton Walker – York Elementary School, Fentress County – Tooth Takedown: Which Drinks Are Weakening Your Enamel?

Physics, Astronomy & Mathematics

1st – Katelyn Emmitt & Demi Carter – Macon County Junior High School, Macon County – Bounce It Like It's Hot

2nd – Audrey Reiser – Macon County Junior High School, Macon County – Want Some Popcorn?

3rd – Bently Carter & Colby Neely – Macon County Junior High School, Macon County – Make It Pop