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Students win STEM awards; Champions for Change to lead peer vaping-prevention lessons
Summary
Deputy Superintendent Amber Azevedo and staff recognized three student STEM winners for research on invasive species and winglet design; Marathon High's Champions for Change will teach a four-lesson 'Catch Your Breath' vaping-prevention program beginning May 1.
Deputy Superintendent Amber Azevedo presented awards to three students for regional and state-level STEM projects and described the district’s youth leadership work.
Azevedo said Braylen Dixon (Key Largo School) tested whether sapodilla fruit oil affects germination of a native shrub and found the oils inhibited germination by about 35 percent. Lily Sokka (Coral Shores High School) studied Australian pine needles’ effect on ocean chemistry and reported that increasing numbers of needles decreased pH. Aiden McElhaney (Ocean Studies Charter) built a wind tunnel to compare T-shaped and L-shaped winglets and documented vortex behavior.
Azevedo then introduced Marathon High’s Champions for Change, a youth division of the Monroe County Coalition that runs prevention and leadership activities districtwide. Staff announced that Champions for Change students, in partnership with Guidance Care Center and WestCare, will deliver "Catch Your Breath," a four-lesson peer vaping-prevention program to seventh- and eighth-grade AVID students at Marathon High School starting May 1; the district said the pilot could expand if successful.
Students and school staff described countywide leadership summits and youth leadership goals, with roughly 135 participants at the most recent summit. The board thanked students and staff for the work and recognized the role of community partners and regional speakers at the summit.
