2024 Governor's Celebration of Innovation Future Innovators and Teacher of the Year Awardees Announced by the Arizona Technology Council

PHOENIX - Sept. 19, 2024 - PRLog -- The Arizona Technology Council and the Arizona Commerce Authority today announced the winners of the Future Innovators of the Year and Teacher of the Year awards for the 2024 Governor's Celebration of Innovation (GCOI). These esteemed awards celebrate the top talent in Arizona's science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education community, as well as the remarkable teachers who motivate their students to reach their goals. The students and educators will be recognized during GCOI, scheduled for Wednesday, November 13, 2024, from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. at Chateau Luxe, 1175 E. Lone Cactus Drive, Phoenix.

"Supporting STEM talent in our state is essential to nurturing our innovation ecosystem, which is why I take great pride in celebrating the Future Innovators and Teacher of the Year Award winners," said Steven G. Zylstra, president and CEO of the Council and SciTech Institute. "Today's youth are the future leaders of Arizona's technology industry, and it's an honor to recognize these gifted individuals along with the outstanding teachers who are fostering an interest in the incredible opportunity that a career in STEM offers."

"This year's Innovators and Teacher of the Year award winners are contributing to Arizona's thriving innovation ecosystem," said Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. "These innovators and teachers showcase Arizona's entrepreneurial spirit and we are proud to celebrate these outstanding winners at the 2024 the Governor's Celebration of Innovation Awards alongside the Arizona Technology Council."

The Future Innovator of the Year Award winners represent top-tier participants of the Arizona Science and Engineering Fair (grades 9-12) for 2024. The winning students will receive $1,500 scholarships each to further enhance their education while honorable mentions will receive $500 scholarships each. Similarly, the winning Teacher of the Year will receive a $1,500 cash award while the honorable mention honoree will receive a $500 cash award. Listed below are the winners and honorable mentions, as well as the titles of each innovator's award-winning project.

Future Innovators of the Year Award Winners:

• Rishabh Sreepathy, Grade 10, Desert Mountain High School, Scottsdale - FungiBug: Detection of Fungal Infection via A Rapid, Accurate, Handheld, Small Volume Blood Diagnostic Device
• Aditya Lakshminarasimhan, Grade 11, BASIS Scottsdale - Elucidating Respiratory Syncytial Virus-Host Protein Interactions: Graph Attention Networks (GAT) and Structural Visualization
• Brad Wu, Grade 10, Arizona College Prep High School, Chandler - A Rigid-Elastic Hybrid Finger Exoskeleton Rehabilitation System (FERS) for Stroke Patients with Motor Impairment
• Vinesh Kothari, Grade 12, BASIS Mesa - Development and Life Cycle Analysis of a Novel MineTailings Derived Cementitious System for Use in Sustainable, Multifunctional Applications

Future Innovators of the Year Honorable Mentions:

• Iraj Shroff, Grade 9, BASIS Chandler - Natural Aqua Purifier: A Novel and Sustainable Water Purification Approach Utilizing Natural Coagulants for Easy Implementation in Rural Regions
• Sohini Mallick, Grade 12, University High School, Tucson - The Function of p53 in Intestinal Epithelial Wound Healing

Teacher of the Year Award Winner:

• Michelle Landreville, Paradise Valley High School - CREST, Phoenix

Teacher of the Year Honorable Mention:

• Pradip Misra, Bagdad High School, Bagdad

The Future Innovator and Teacher of the Year award winners were evaluated and chosen by a selection committee independent of the Council. The committee includes members of the Arizona Council of Engineering and Scientific Associations, which supports, promotes and coordinates programs and activities of the engineering and science associations within the state through facilitated communication and leadership.

To learn more about GCOI and the Future Innovators and Teacher of the Year award winners, or to purchase tickets for the Council's flagship event, please visit https://www.aztechcouncil.org/event/2024-governors-celebration-of-innovation-awards/.