The Broadcom Foundation and the Society for Science & the Public recently announced the Top 300 Masters in the 10th annual Broadcom Masters — the nation’s premier Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) competition for middle school students. Among the honorees is Brianna Marturano of Wellington Landings Middle School.
The Broadcom Masters, a program of the Society for Science & the Public, seeks to inspire young scientists, engineers and innovators to solve the grand challenges of the 21st century.
Each of the Top 300 Masters will receive a $125 award from DoD STEM. With this new prize, the Department of Defense continues its support of youth in STEM, working toward a more diverse pipeline of highly qualified STEM professionals in the future.
The Top 300 Masters were selected from the largest pool of applicants the competition has seen, with 3,476 students from 42 states and Puerto Rico applying to the program. Science fairs across the country had to cancel their competitions in the spring of 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In reaction, the group opened up the Broadcom Masters competition to any student who registered to compete in a society-affiliated science fair. Previously, only students who are named in the top 10 percent of their science fair were eligible to enter.
Thirty of the top 300 Broadcom Masters will be selected as finalists by a panel of scientists, engineers and educators from around the nation on Sept. 16 and will be competing for more than $100,000, including the coveted $25,000 Samueli Prize, $10,000 DoD STEM Talent Award, the $10,000 Lemelson Award for Invention, the $10,000 Marconi/Samueli Award for Innovation and the $10,000 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Award for Health Advancement.
“I am honored to congratulate the top 300 Broadcom Masters during what is a very challenging time,” said Maya Ajmera, president and CEO of the Society for Science & the Public and publisher of Science News. “We are thrilled to be able to celebrate these amazing young scientists, who are poised to solve the world’s most intractable challenges.”
In addition to the $125 cash prize, the Top 300 Broadcom Masters will receive a prize package containing an award ribbon; semifinalist certificate of accomplishment; a Broadcom Masters backpack; a Broadcom Masters decal; a specialized Invention Journal courtesy of the Lemelson Foundation; a one-year subscription to Wolfram Mathematica software; a special prize from Jeff Glassman, CEO of Covington Capital Management; and a one-year family digital subscription to Science News magazine. In recognition of the role that teachers play in the success of their students, each designated teacher also will receive prizes. Learn more at www.broadcomfoundation.org/masters.
