By Irvine City News staff

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Irvine Public Schools Foundation, a vital nonprofit in the city dedicated to enriching the education of Irvine students in public schools. IPSF’s annual fundraising event is the Spirit of Excellence Gala, which kicks off the anniversary celebration Oct. 22. It’s presented by FivePoint, honors Irvine citizens and companies and will be held at KIA Motors headquarters in Irvine.

The event itself promises to be a lot of fun, especially if the Spirit of Excellence in the Arts winner shows up: it’s Will Ferrell, a University High School grad who went on to some success as an actor and filmmaker, including as a student (of sorts) in “Old School.”

The rock band Thrice will be honored for excellence in music. The recently reunited members of the band are alums of Uni and Irvine High School. And the Spirit of Excellence Legacy Award will go to The Irvine Company for its dedication to education and support of IPSF.
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Those attending, bidding and giving generously at the event may see their donation doubled: The city council agreed unanimously to budget $1.34 million in matching grants for funds raised for IPSF between Oct. 22 and Nov. 22, with funds dedicated to lowering class sizes. The council also will match funds raised for Tustin and Santa Ana unified school districts, for a combined total of $1.5 million.

By Irvine City News staff

Science fairs have come a long way since the days of volcanos erupting with baking soda lava and handmade posters about the life cycle of a chicken, complete with hatching eggs. The Broadcom Foundation and the Society for Science and the Public recently announced 300 semifinalists in the Broadcom MASTERS science fair competition. Irvine 6th, 7th and 8th graders are among those who made the semifinals, out of more than 6,000 nominees and 2,343 applicants. Semifinalists are from 250 middle schools in 37 states. The most (54) semifinalists are from California, followed by Florida with 41, Texas with 29, New York with 17, and Pennsylvania with 16.
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Broadcom MASTERS (Math, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering for Rising Stars) recognizes students who follow their personal passions in science or engineering at 300 regional and state science fairs and inspires them to continue their studies in math and science throughout high school.
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“Broadcom MASTERS inspires middle school students from all walks of life to envision their future as scientists, engineers and innovators. We are delighted to see growing interest in STEM fields among both girls and boys,” said Paula Golden, president of the Broadcom Foundation.
 
Here are Irvine’s young science stars, along with their schools, grades and project titles:
 
Swethasai Palakur
Jeffery Trail Middle School, grade 7
Were Micelles or Vesicles Really the First Protobionts: A Study on Abiogenesis and the Origins of Life
 
Emily Hsi
Turtle Rock Elementary, grade 6
Increasing the Longevity of Cut Roses
Alexis Kim
Rancho San Joaquin Middle School, grade 8
The Effect of Ascorbic Acid and Phosphate on Copper Corrosion
 
Marta Meinardi
Vista Verde, grade 7
The Effects of Pollution on Pyrocystis fusiformis
 
Hiromi Nishida and Clara Szalay
Vista Verde, grade 7
Artificial Hormones Disrupt Non-Competitive Root Growth Patterns in Sibling Plants
(Editor’s note: Nishida and Szalay were a team on their project. Students who are nominated for a team project must fill out their own applications, so both team members don’t always make it to the same level in the competition.)
 
Two Irvine residents who attend school in North Tustin/Santa Ana are also semifinalists:
 
Ethan Zuo
Fairmont Private School,
grade: 6
The Effect of Parachute Size and Number on Spacecraft Acceleration During Descent
 
Sasha Ronaghi
Fairmont Private School,
grade: 8
Solving Ethiopia’s Water Crisis: Using a Water Filter to Remove Excess Fluoride