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Hillsborough honors regional STEM Fair winners; three students advance to international fair

3037646 · April 17, 2025

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Summary

The district recognized winners of the Hillsborough Regional STEM Fair, said more than 1,400 projects were showcased and named three students advancing to the International Science and Engineering Fair in May.

District STEM supervisors presented awards for the 2025 Hillsborough Regional Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Fair during the school board’s April 15 recognition meeting.

Doctor Clayton Nylund and other STEM supervisors said the 45th annual regional fair (presenters referenced the district’s “40 fifth annual” in remarks) took place at the Tampa Convention Center and showcased more than 1,400 student projects. Officials also noted a virtual option allowed over 6,000 students to participate in some aspect of the competition.

Presenters named multiple best-of-fair winners across elementary, middle and high school divisions. Elementary winners included Marlo Doherty (Roland Park K–8), Evelyn Hill (Pride Elementary) and Justin Gallo Castillo (Lutz K–8). Middle school junior-division best-of-fair went to Tanishka Chinthamaneni (Williams Middle Magnet). High school senior-division best-of-fair was Daniel Park (King High School).

The district said 34 middle and secondary students qualified to compete at the State Science and Engineering Fair in Lakeland; three district students will represent Hillsborough County at the International Science and Engineering Fair in Columbus, Ohio, in May: Daniel Park of King High School, Dineshka Aglaue of Strawberry Crest High School and Rudra Patel of Middleton High School.

Supervisors thanked volunteer judges, community partners and sponsors including Bristol Myers Squibb and TECO for supporting the fair. Students and staff were invited to photographs after the presentation; no board business items were approved at the recognition meeting.

District staff noted the difficulty of selecting best-of-fair winners from many category champions and praised student creativity and problem solving.