By Matt de Simone
The Botetourt County School Board recognized several students from Botetourt County at last Thursday’s meeting who excelled at the 2025 Roanoke Valley Governor’s School (RVGS) Project Forum. The RVGS Project Forum is an annual science fair that showcases student projects across various scientific disciplines.
The 2025 Project Forum took place on February 3 at Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke.
These students’ achievements highlight the strong emphasis BCPS places on fostering scientific inquiry and excellence. Lord Botetourt teacher Sarah Milko shared information about BCPS students who placed and received special awards at this year’s forum. “We have some pretty bright students in Botetourt County representing us at our Roanoke Valley Governor’s School,” Milko said prior to introducing the students.
The BCPS students who received awards at this year’s Project Forum include:
ANIMAL SCIENCES A
Third Place and Special Award for Determination/Persistence – The Effect of Acetylcholine on the Heart Rate of Daphnia magna – Lucas Young, Lord Botetourt High School
BIOMEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES
Third Place – Identifying Convergent and Divergent mTOR Hyperactivation Targets using Pten and Tsc1 Loss-of-Function Neurons – Emily Duncan, Lord Botetourt High School
Special Award –for Most Enthusiastic – The Relationship between PER3 polymorphisms and Sleep Phenotype – Jaiden Dann, Lord Botetourt High School
EARTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES A
Special Award for Best Experimental Design – The Effects of Sunblock and Sunscreen on Chlorella Growth and Water Quality – Kinsley Milko, Lord Botetourt High School
EARTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES B
First Place and Special Award for Most Enthusiasm – A General Analysis on the Effects of Invasive Earthworms on Soil Microbiomes in Virginia – Brett Smith, Lord Botetourt High School
Second Place and Special Award for Best Poster Display – Recycling Grey Water: Growing Raphanus sativus with Filtered Solutions – Ella Dickerson, Lord Botetourt High School
ENGINEERING MECHANICS B
First place – Applying Human Factors Principles to Redesign a Crane Control Panel and 3-Axis Controller – Kaeli Berry, James River High School
ENGINEERING MECHANICS C
Special Award – The Foundation of New Technology with a Mechanical Network of Units – Tyler McCarren, Lord Botetourt High School
ENGINEERING MECHANICS D
Third Place and Special Award – Machine-Learning Integrated Remote AI Guidance Engine (MIRAGE) – Kalob Daniels, Lord Botetourt High School
MATERIALS SCIENCE/CHEMISTRY
First Place and Special Award for Best Lab Notebook – Removing Harmful Azo Dyes from Water Using Naturally Modified Chitosan Beads – Maxton (Max) Mizuba, Lord Botetourt High School
Second Place and Special Award for Best Lab Notebook- Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Aqueous Solutions using Clinoptilolite – Preston Vaughn, Lord Botetourt High School
MICROBIOLOGY B
First Place and Special Award for Most Enthusiasm – The UV-Protective Ability of Mycosporine-like Amino Acids on Survival and Telomere Length of Saccharomyces cerevisiae – Raimee Sykes, Lord Botetourt High School
MICROBIOLOGY C
Special Award for Best Lab Notebook – The Antibacterial Effect of Copper Nanoparticles on Escherichia coli K12 and Staphylococcus epidermidis – Erica Gergely, Lord Botetourt High School
PLANT SCIENCES A
Third Place and Special Award for Best Lab Notebook – A Study of the Allelopathic Effect of Pisum sativum on the Germination of Lolium multiflorum – Hilary Gutierrez and Jordan Lin, Lord Botetourt High School
PLANT SCIENCES B
First Place and Special Award for Best Experimental Teamwork – Arabidopsis Modification to Express Down-regulated Defense Genes for Resistance against Cuscuta – Hannah Mizuba and Kane Reczek, Lord Botetourt High School
