Congratulations to the Dirksen, Gompers, Hufford, and Washington Junior High School students who participated in the Science Fair Competition at the Joliet Public Schools District 86 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Extravaganza held earlier this month at Lynne Thigpen Elementary School.
Seventh-grade Dirksen Junior High School students Samantha Trujillo and Nathaly Velazquez received a perfect score from the judges at the event for their “Light Engineered” design project earning them Double Gold Trophies. The students’ goal was to create a kid-friendly and safe night light.
These students, along with the seventh- and eighth-grade students who earned a gold medal at the event qualified to participate at the Illinois Junior Academy of Science (IJAS) Region 9 Science Fair Exposition at North Central College in Naperville on March 14, 2026.
The gold medal student winners who will also compete at the regionals include Maria Aguillon Izaguirre, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Daisy Alvarez, Seventh Grade, Hufford Junior High; Anastasia Arreola, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Alisson Bello Ramirez, Seventh Grade, Gompers Junior High; Gabriela Borja Pesantez, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Paris Constantino, Seventh Grade, Hufford Junior High; Laila Escalante, Seventh Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Aiden Gallagher, Eighth Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Jackelyn Garcia, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; A'zailey Griffin, Seventh Grade, Gompers Junior High; Evelyn Guzman, Seventh Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Melany Guzman, Seventh Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Kenyah Handy, Eighth Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Miguel Hernandez, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Suleyma Hernandez, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Alijah Hughes, Eighth Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Jovanny Ibarra-Ramirez, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Daisy Leon, Seventh Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Natalia Martinez, Eighth Grade, Washington Junior High; Gabriel Medrano, Seventh Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Hailey Murphy, Seventh Grade, Washington Junior High; Yazmin Padilla, Eighth Grade, Washington Junior High; Amaya Perez, Seventh Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Luciana Restrepo Alvarez, Seventh Grade, Gompers Junior High; Deicy Reyes, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Jairo Reyes-Najera, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; Jennifer Rios, Seventh Grade, Gompers Junior High; Natalia Rodriguez, Seventh Grade, Washington Junior High; Emmanuel Santiago Cruz, Seventh Grade, Dirksen Junior High; Karyme Xicara, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High; and Andres Zavala, Eighth Grade, Gompers Junior High.
“The projects were fantastic,” said Joliet Public Schools District 86 Superintendent Dr. Theresa Rouse, “I am confident our students will do an outstanding job at the regional competition."
The science fair projects were coordinated by Dirksen teachers Rachael Del Boccio and Amelia Rafferty; Gompers teachers Michelle Grygiel, Melanie Miller-Moralez, Heather Sartain, and Robert Pollard Jr., Hufford teacher Roselle Haddick, and Washington teacher Kimberly Wood.