Rising McCallie School junior Joshua Kim recently presented his award-winning research at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair in Los Angeles. Kim earned the trip to ISEF after his first-place presentation at the UTC-hosted Chattanooga Regional Science and Engineering Fair. Photo by Dr. Stephanie Philipp.
A pair of local high school students parlayed participation in a University of Tennessee at Chattanooga-hosted competition into an opportunity to showcase their talents at an international competition.
Rising McCallie School junior Joshua Kim and May 2024 Baylor School graduate Rachel Chen, the Senior Division winners at this spring’s Chattanooga Regional Science and Engineering Fair (CRSEF), recently presented their innovative research at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Los Angeles.
Hosted by the Society for Science, Regeneron ISEF 2024 featured approximately 2,000 young scientists representing 49 U.S. states and nearly 70 countries, regions and territories across the world. The high school scientists won almost $9 million in awards and scholarships at the event, which took place May 11-17 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
“Both of our ISEF finalists represented the Chattanooga Regional Science and Engineering Fair with the utmost dignity, honor and respect,” said UTC School of Education Clinical Instructor Rachael Davis—the organizer of this year’s CRSEF competition. “The two project winners had the blessing and the luck to go compete at ISEF. They put the work and determination into their projects.”
Kim’s project, “Accelerating Breast Cancer Diagnoses: Leveraging Machine Learning to Accurately Predict Breast Cancer,” earned him an ISEF Special Award—a full scholarship to a summer 2025 research camp hosted by the North Carolina State University College of Engineering. He was one of eight students selected to participate in the weeklong camp.
Chen, heading to Johns Hopkins University in Maryland in the fall to major in biomedical engineering, presented her project titled “Transgenerational Effects of Atrazine on Caenorhabditis elegans Brood Size.” Her research, which delved into the environmental impacts of the chemical Atrazine on future generations of a specific small worm species, showcased her dedication to solving pressing ecological issues.
Rachel Chen and Joshua Kim
The ISEF journey for Kim and Chen began at the CRSEF competition in March—an event that brought more than 100 Chattanooga area middle and high school students to UTC’s Maclellan Gym. Kim won first place in the Senior Division with his Biomedical and Health Sciences category project, while Chen placed second with her Animal Science category project.
During the spring, Kim also participated in the Tennessee Junior Academy of Science competition in Nashville, where he was selected as one of two winners and a Tennessee delegate for the 2025 meeting of the American Junior Academy of Science. He will present his research at the February 2025 meeting.
Davis said that UTC has hosted the annual CRSEF event for decades “because we want to promote scientific inquiry and collaboration” among middle school and high school students.
“We need them to see that they have a place in the STEM field and that their research is valuable to us,” she said. “It’s not just something to be done for a grade or a science fair project, but rather it’s something that helps them reach out beyond their school walls and meet with other students from all over.
“CRSEF covers 18 counties between Tennessee and Georgia, and it’s fantastic for our students to see that their STEM projects and research matter.”
Assistant Professor of Education Stephanie Philipp, who also serves as interim director of the UTC STEM Education Program, and her husband—Assistant Professor of Chemistry Craig Philipp—accompanied the students to California as chaperones.
“The one thing about the ISEF dates is that the students have to juggle (advanced placement) exams, final exams and graduation sometimes, but they were really good travelers,” Stephanie Philipp said. “Joshua was only a sophomore, so he didn’t have to worry about graduation—but I think he took three AP exams the next week. And I know that Rachel, who was a senior, had to come back and get ready for her senior trip … then exams and graduation and everything else.”
Despite those challenges, Philipp implored local area students to participate at the regional level at CRSEF next March, which will give them the opportunity to advance to ISEF.
“There are big scholarships involved,” she said, “and a lot of these students will go on to maybe patent some of this work. They are doing high-level stuff.”
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Chattanooga Regional Science and Engineering Fair (CRSEF)
Fueling innovation and STEM exploration: UTC hosts Chattanooga Regional Science and Engineering Fair
May 2024 Baylor School graduate Rachel Chen presented her research at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair. Photo by Dr. Stephanie Philipp.
