Dear Science Educator, Parents and Students:

The 2008 Northeast Regional Science Fair will be held Saturday, February 23, 2008, at East Carolina University. We are working on getting a larger area so we will have plenty of room so the exact location on campus will be posted ASAP. Please put that date on your calendars. We would love to have participation by as many of our student researchers as we can this year. Our goal for the Northeast Region is to have participants from schools in every county in our region. Because our high school participation has been so low, we particularly want to encourage all high school science educators to encourage students to do science research projects and enter them in the regional fair. We did not have a single high school project from our region go to the state competition two years ago. Therefore none of our region’s high school students were eligible for the $8 million dollars in awards at the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). Now that our state fair is affiliated with ISEF, we want our students in the Northeast to be eligible for these opportunities. The 2007 Regional Fair had four high school projects this past year and we anticipate several more for 2008. To keep increasing the number the regional directors throughout the state have decided to continue to foster high school participation again this year by allowing high schools that don’t have science fairs to send five projects as long as the students have followed ISEF rules and regulations. It would be up to the school to decide how to select the projects to send to the regional fair.

In order to prepare space, judges, etc. for the fair on the 23rd, it is important that you schedule your local fairs early enough to send your registration forms to me by February 8, 2008. We need to have the regional fair early because the state fair is going to be on the 15th of March and we need to get our paperwork to the state on time. The state fair is earlier again this year because of the Easter break and the NSTA Convention as well as affiliation with ISEF.

Just a few basic reminders:

Divisions

Elementary: Grades 3-5 These projects are not divided into categories.

Junior: Grades 6-8 These projects are in Biological Science, Physical Science, Earth/Environmental, Technology

Senior: Grades 9-12 These projects are in Biological Science, Physical Science, Earth/Environmental, Technology

Team: Grades 9-12 These projects are not divided into categories.

Each school can submit three projects to the elementary division. Middle and high schools can submit one project per category and one additional from any category for a total of 5 projects. High schools can submit one team project.

Please review the categories that the students select for their projects. There is a suggested list of subjects for each of the categories on the website given below. We had several projects at the state competition last year that were not in an appropriate category which put them at a disadvantage during judging.

We are in the process of updating the website so that you can find all the information that you need. If there is anything that you can’t find, please let me know so that we can put it on the website. If there is anything we can do to help you, please email Nancy Bray.

Nancy Bray
Director Northeast Regional Science Fair
252-746-4494
ncscience@touchnc.net

2008 Preliminary Agenda

We have a number of events planned to make this a wonderful day for all who attend. The most important of all is the opportunity to see the science research projects that our students have worked so diligently to develop. Secondly we have high school students who will be presenting environmental poster sessions. In addition to these events so far we have an exhibit from the Aurora Fossil Museum, a wetlands mitigation exhibit by PCS Phosphate, a student participant activity led by Coleman Bailey who is one of North Carolina’s teachers-of-the year, and a teacher workshop featuring how to help students who want to do engineering-type projects. We have couple of other possible events that are still in the works.

Please come to enjoy this occasion with us.

Poster Contest and Poster Session

We will feature another poster contest and poster session this year to encourage high school students in our area to do science research projects during their remaining years in high school.

Theme for 2008: Our Impact on Our Planet
How does my life style affect the planet I call home?

Here are the details.

• Research an area of earth/environmental science of interest to you.
• Use your creativity to produce a poster illustrating the theme, How does my life style affect the planet I call home?
• Poster must be free-standing and no larger than a science fair backboard.
• Have your poster (up to three/school) selected at your school to go to the Northeast Regional Science Fair on February 23rd.
• Attend the science fair and participate in activities related to our environment.
• Discuss your project at the morning poster session to parents, teachers, and guests attending the science fair as they view the posters.
• Parents, teachers, and guests attending the science fair will vote during the morning poster session for the poster presentation that they feel best illustrates the theme.
• The project with the most votes will win an iPod sponsored by PCS Phosphate.
• The teacher of the winning student will win a Carolina Oil Spill Bioremediation Kit sponsored by Carolina Biological Supply Company.
• After the Northeast Regional Science Fair, posters will be displayed at Goose Creek State Park’s Environmental Education Center.

Teachers, please contact me, Nancy Bray, ncscience@touchnc.net, if you will have students from your school participating by February 10th. I will need to arrange for space for the posters. Please contact me for any further information about our event.

Updated 2/3/08