Chalk Talk: Poolesville Student is Semifinalist in Siemens Competition

Poolesville High School student Meghana Patel has been named a semifinalist in the Siemens Competition in math, science and technology, Montgomery County Public Schools System officials announced Thursday.

Patel was among the 12 MCPS students named as regional finalists or semifinalists, school officials said.

Neil Davey of Montgomery Blair High School was named a regional finalist and will compete in one of six regional events in November. Davey is the only public school student from Maryland who has been selected to compete in the regionals. Winners advance to the national finals in Washington, DC, in December, with a chance to win one of two grand prize scholarships of $100,000 each. 

Held each year, the Siemens Competition highlights outstanding high school students in the areas of science, math and technology. This year, 2,255 students registered for the competition, with a total of 1,504 projects submitted. Nationally, 322 students were named semifinalists and 93 were named regional finalists. 

Students in the Siemens Competition, which is administered by the College Board, are vying for college scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $100,000, in individual and team categories.

MCPS Siemens Competition Semifinalists are:

• Samir Durvasula, Montgomery Blair High School
• Danting Liu, Montgomery Blair High School
• Elizabeth Liu, Montgomery Blair High School
• Junsheng Ma, Montgomery Blair High School
• Charles Pasternak, Montgomery Blair High School
• Jinhie Skarda, Montgomery Blair High School
• Ashley Yuen, Montgomery Blair High School
• Samuel Zbarsky, Montgomery Blair High School
• Meghana Patel, Poolesville High School
• Chen Han, Thomas S. Wootton High School
• David Zhang, Richard Montgomery High School

For more information on the Siemens Competition, visitwww.siemens-foundation.org.