TSUKUBA CITY, Japan (March 18, 2010) — Photo of M.C. Perry High School student Nicole Perry from her championship finish in the 2010 DoDEA Pacific JSHS regional competition. (Photo by Charly Hoff, DoDEA Pacific Public Affairs/Released)

IWAKUNI, JAPAN — April 28, 2011 — M.C. Perry High School sophomore Nicole Perry returns to the national stage to represent DoDEA Pacific at the 49th National Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS) in San Diego, Calif. Perry’s first-place finish in the 2011 and 2010 DoDEA Pacific JSHS regional events earned her a repeat appearance at the national competition and an additional $2,000 undergraduate scholarship.
    Joining Perry at the National JSHS are 2011 DoDEA Pacific JSHS regional 2nd place winner JiSue Jeong, and 3rd place winner Joshua Nascimento — both hailing from Seoul American High School.
          
2011 DoDEA Pacific JSHS regional competition winning presentations:

1. 1st Place: “A Novel Peptide Derived from TRAF1 Inhibits RANKL-dependent Osteoclastogenesis” earned Nicole Perry of M.C. Perry HS a $2,000 undergraduate scholarship and an invitation to compete in the National JSHS competition in San Diego, Calif.
   
   
2. 2nd Place: “Bioremediation of the Pesticide Flucetosulfron Using Lentinus Edodes Fungi” earned JiSue Jeong of Seoul American HS a $1,500 undergraduate scholarship and an invitation to compete in the National JSHS competition in San Diego, Calif.
   
   
3. 3rd Place: “The Effect of Fermentation on the Growth of Salmonella Typhi” earned Joshua Nascimento of Seoul American HS a $1,000 undergraduate scholarship and an invitation to compete in the National JSHS competition in San Diego, Calif.

          
To earn an invite to the national JSHS competition, Perry bested 23 research projects submitted by fellow DoDEA Pacific high school students from Guam, Japan, South Korea and Okinawa. The March 11 earthquake and related events in mainland Japan prevented the 31st Annual DoDEA Pacific JSHS to be held in the traditional location of Tsukuba City. Instead, final submissions were coordinated and evaluated by DoDEA Europe JSHS judges.

The JSHS program — sponsored by the research offices of the U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force and the Academy of Applied Science — is designed to publicly recognize students for their outstanding achievements in science. By rewarding research excellence and connecting talented students, teachers, and over 100 research professionals at affiliated symposia, the JSHS program aims to widen the pool of trained talent prepared to conduct research and development of national importance. The JSHS program also provides high school students the support and resources they need to design and conduct original research in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (often referred to as STEM).

A student that competes in a JSHS research project is guided by an assigned mentor. Mentors are typically working professionals in a scientific field related to the students’ research projects. Students work with their mentors over the course of several months to develop a hypothesis, conduct formal research, analyze their results, and present and defend their findings before peers and judges at both the regional and, if selected, national levels of JSHS competition.

The National JSHS competition began Wednesday and concludes on May 1. The top 18 presenters will win additional undergraduate scholarships and advance to the final competition at the London International Youth Science Forum (LIYSF) scheduled for July 27 - Aug. 10. LIYSF will be hosted by the Imperial College at the University of London.

About DoDEA Pacific Student Activities:
In addition to the regional Junior Science and Humanities Symposium, DoDEA Pacific sponsors 24 other unique Far East athletic and scholastic opportunities throughout the school year. Scholastic events include Far East Journalism, Science and Research Academy, MathematicaFest, LinguaFest, and many more while athletic competition includes tennis, cheerleading, cross country, track and field, football, baseball, wrestling, among others. Far East events also include several art and music offerings such as the Film and Entertainment Arts Festival, Creative Expressions, Culinary Arts, Honor Music Festival, etc.

Far East events reinforce DoDEA core curriculum by providing students area-wide festivals, symposia and competitions to showcase their creative, academic and athletic talents. The events are coordinated and managed by the DoDEA Pacific area office with guidance provided by the Far East Activities and Athletic Councils.
          
DoDEA Pacific provides a comprehensive preK-12 education to the children of military and eligible civilian personnel families serving throughout Asia. The 48 schools in DoDEA Pacific are comprised of more than 24,000 students and 3,100 full-time professional educators and support staff. The schools are geographically organized into four districts: Guam, Japan, Okinawa and South Korea.

Additional information on JSHS.

Additional information on DoDEA Pacific.