Irving High School’s School of Biomedical Sciences hosted its 6th annual science fair this past Thursday. More than a hundred students from Irving High School participated in the fair, including first-time competitor, Oscar Ledezma.

“I am beyond excited to be competing. I know that if I work hard, this fair can open so many doors for me,” he says. “It’s giving me the advantage I need to get into UT Southwestern and ultimately go into the field of clinical research. I am getting exposed to what I will be doing for the rest of my life.”

Because the stakes were high, Oscar brought his A game to the fair. His project focused on antibiotic resistance, looking to see if antibiotics help more than harm. To test this theory, Oscar used E. coli inside of blood to test how a 25% and 100% concentration of ampicillin would affect the E. coli. In the end, Oscar concluded that antibiotics help in the short term, but not in the long term.

Oscar’s research was one of many projects on display as a talented class of biomedical students presented their findings on various subjects. At the conclusion of the event, the time came for the judges panel to recognize their incredible work.

Oscar received honorable mention alongside the following student projects: 

  • Sara Losey’s How Does the Presence of Magnetism Affect Regeneration in Planaria. UT Southwestern presented Sara Losey the UTSU STARS Award for exemplifying an all-around great science and presentation.
  • Alisandra Bustos’ Effect of UV Radiation on Raw Meat. North Lake College presented Alisandra Bustos the North Lake College for the Most Outstanding Presentation. 
  • Alexander Abarca & Jenifer Argueta’s Testing Methods of Water Decontamination for Effectiveness. Irving ISD Signature Studies presented Alexander Abarca and Jenifer Argueta the Real World Connection Award for making the best connection to the real world.

In addition, the top projects were named as follows:

  • 1st place – Anahy Aguirre’s Comparing Protein Amounts in Red and White Meat at Different Cooking Stages
  • 2nd place – Ruben Picon’s How Does Oil Affect Radish Plants
  • 3rd place – Darlen Galeas & Leslie Cervantes Rojo’s Got Bacteria  

The three winning projects will compete in the Fort Worth Regional Science and Engineering Fair on February 23 and 24.

To view photos from the fair and of the winners, click here.