Employees of Marathon Petroleum’s St. Paul Park refinery volunteered at the 85^th annual Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair in March. Four employees from the Technical Services department judged projects at the middle school and high school level and participated in the Q&A sessions with the students. The judges were impressed with the students’ work.

“I loved seeing their thought processes and interest in the scientific method – from testing lung capacity of musicians based on the instrument they play to gluten-free baking alternatives all the way to testing drag on different wing designs in a home-made wind tunnel,” said Daniel McGraw, Technical Services Manager at the St. Paul Park refinery. “I saw the interest in engineering and the scientific method is still alive and well within our youth, which is an exciting prospect.”

“The knowledge and experience of our judges help propel these young students forward, as they become future leaders in science, technology, engineering and math fields in Minnesota.”

Hundreds of middle and high school students across Minnesota presented original research to professionals in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math. They competed for awards valued at $20,000. Top students moved on to compete at the International Science and Engineering Fair.

“Judges provide critical feedback to students – feedback that helps them improve their presentation skills, produce better science experiments, and perhaps even think more critically about their work,” said Jennifer Hadley, Operations Manager of the Minnesota Academy of Science, which coordinates the science fair. “The knowledge and experience of our judges help propel these young students forward, as they become future leaders in science, technology, engineering and math fields in Minnesota.”