The Cariboo Mainline Regional Science Fair 2011 turned up some good results for entrants from 100 Mile House.
Carly Redford, a Grade 12 student at Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School, won a gold medal, as well as the prize for the Best Senior Project, which garnered one semester's free tuition at Thompson Rivers University.
Her project, entitled The Social Obsession, looked at how technology and social networking utilities have influenced face-to-face communication among young people.
Redford will now move on to compete at the 50th annual Canada-Wide Science Fair in Toronto, May 14-21.
This will be her fourth trip to the national competition, and because it's her last year to compete, she wants to make an impression.
"I'll be doing quite a bit more work to my project. I want to be in contention for an honourable mention and go out with a bang. I'm really excited about it."
This is the ninth year for Redford to participate in the local science fair program.
The regional science fair was held April 6-8 at Thompson Rivers University with close to 400 exhibitors who came from School Districts 27, 58, 73 and 74.
Students from 100 Mile House Elementary School made up the rest of the list of local participants. Winners of note among them were the team of Reid and Trey Dickerson, Grade 6, who earned a gold medal.
Silver medals went to Wesley Silverton, Grade 6; Wyatt Coulson, Grade 6; and the team of Jillian Thomson and Delaney Speers, Grade 7.
Brendan Oldegbers, Grade 7, was awarded a bronze medal, and awards of merit went to Jeffrey Lamarche, Grade 5; Kalli McDonald-Weins, Grade 6; and the team of Chloe Paterson and Tristan Johnson, Grade 7.
While attending the three-day event, participants had the opportunity to tour the university campus, participate in a mind-bending challenge during which they had to build a contraption from a pile of junk, and they also took in a chemistry show presented by TRU students and professors.
100 Mile Elementary teacher Jim Price was the School District 27 representative for the Cariboo Mainline Science Fair Committee, and he accompanied the South Cariboo participants to Kamloops.
He says the 2011 fair was one of the best ever.
"The comments were so positive from everyone who was there. The judges commented that the kids did a fantastic job."
