Christian Liberty students advance at regional science fair

On March 7 thirteen students from Christian Liberty Academy in Arlington Heights presented their science fair projects at the annual Illinois Junior Academy of Science (IJAS) Region 6 Exposition, which took place at Niles North High School. As stated on the website of IJAS Region 6, the Expo aims "to allow students an opportunity to communicate their research results and to promote discussion of their work with scientific colleagues."

Six CLA students won gold awards, while four earned silver and three received bronze. Along with that, four students, Titus Bennett, Rebekah Bouvier, Ellie DeRidder, and Joseph Liao, qualified to compete at the IJAS state exposition on May 2 at SIU Carbondale. For Bouvier, a 7th grader, this was her first time representing CLA at regionals. She said that her hope was simply to make it to state. But not only did she reach her goal, her project, "Environmental Stress and the Susceptibility for Maple Trees to Sooty Molds," also secured her the prize Best in Category for Botany and a nomination for the 2015 Broadcom MASTERS, a prestigious science fair competition run by the Society for Science and the Public (SSP). This achievement places her in the top 10% of middle school participants in SSP-associated fairs. Bob Stack, a science teacher at CLA, commended all his students for their success, and he, along with Bouvier, look forward to a positive outcome at state.