Students

By Nancy Parrish, Staff Writer

The competitors in the cellular and molecular biology category of the Frederick County Science and Engineering Fair on March 22–23 didn’t stand a chance against the Werner H. Kirsten student interns at the National Cancer Institute at Frederick.

These interns swept the entire category, with Madelyne Xiao, a rising intern, winning first place; Maria Hamscher, second place; Ashley Babyak and Dahlia Kronfli tying for third place; and Maham Ahmed receiving an honorable mention.

By Nancy Parrish, Staff Writer

The Werner H. Kirsten Student Internship Program (WHK SIP) has enrolled the largest class ever for the 2013–2014 academic year, with 66 students and 50 mentors. This enrollment reflects a 53 percent increase in students and a 56 percent increase in mentors, compared to 2012–2013 (43 students and 32 mentors), according to Julie Hartman, WHK SIP director.

By Ashley DeVine, Staff Writer

Summer interns learned how to read a scientific paper, present a poster, maintain a laboratory notebook, and much more, at the Science Skills Boot Camp in June.

“It was a great experience, and it was a great opportunity to meet some of the other interns also working on the campus,” said Alyssa Klein, a Werner H. Kirsten student intern in the Cellular Immunology Group, Laboratory of Molecular Immunoregulation. “The boot camp covered many topics essential to being a good scientist and science researcher.”

By Ashley DeVine, Staff Writer

Student intern Sam Pritt’s interest in improving geolocation led him to develop a project that won a top regional prize at the Siemens Competition in Math, Science, and Technology in November.

Pritt was awarded a $3,000 college scholarship, and he competed in the national competition in early December.