WKU News

The Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science student Sahil Chhabra (’22, Bowling Green HS) qualified for the world-renowned Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) by receiving Best of Fair and first place in the Microbiology category at the March 26 Kentucky State Science and Engineering Fair (KY-SEF). Chhabra will compete in the Regeneron ISEF along with five other Gatton Academy students who qualified through the Louisville Regional event. The 2022 ISEF will be a hybrid event that takes place in Atlanta, Georgia, May 8-13, 2022. It will include a judged competition and distribution of awards for in-person and virtual finalists. Chhabra’s research, mentored by Dr. Rodney King in the WKU Biology Department, centered on the genome engineering of bacteriophage MooMoo.

Chhabra explained, “Presenting my research and competing with other student researchers is the culmination of many months and hundreds of hours in the lab. That alone is a great honor. Even so, I'm glad that my hard work has paid off as I will now be able to present my research at the largest international science fair in the world. I hope to continue research in college and potentially as part of my future career. This award gives me motivation to continue research with an end goal of benefiting society through scientific discovery.”

KY-SEF’s mission is to expand educational opportunities for all middle and high school students and to enhance the visibility and importance of science and engineering in Kentucky by hosting an annual statewide competition. KY-SEF is affiliated with, and its Best of Fair winners attend, ISEF – the world’s largest international pre-college science competition. ISEF annually provides a forum for more than 1,600 high school students from over 70 countries, regions, and territories to showcase their independent research and compete for more than $4 million in awards.

Four other Gatton students also earned awards at KY-SEF. These awards are as follows:

Nishu Anekere (’23, Conner HS), Harrison Gover (’22, Bowling Green HS), and Sahil Krishnani (’22, duPont Manual HS) earned first place in the Embedded Systems category for their research, “Water Pollution Detection Using Autonomous Drone Hardware and Software Environmental Engineering.” Their mentor is Dr. Farhad Ashrafzadeh from the WKU Center for Energy Systems. 

Brian Nguyen (’23, South Warren HS) earned first place in the Computational Biology and Bioinformatics category for his research, “Analysis on an Extend Chronic Wound Model.” His mentor is Dr. Richard Schugart in the WKU Mathematics Department.

About The Gatton Academy: Established in 2007, The Gatton Academy is Kentucky’s first residential two-year program for gifted and talented junior and seniors. The Gatton Academy’s students enroll as juniors and are full-time WKU students pursuing their interests in advanced science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The Gatton Academy has been named to Jay Mathews’ list of top-performing schools with elite students for eleven consecutive appearances and received the National Consortium for Secondary STEM School’s Innovation Partnership Award.