Cloquet Student Wins Broadcom Coding with Commitment Award at State Science Fair

[ST. PAUL, MN, April 9, 2021] -- Parker Sickmann, a seventh-grader at Cloquet Middle School, has won the Broadcom Coding with Commitment Award at the 84th annual Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair (SSEF). The Broadcom Coding with Commitment Award is a new recognition honoring a student whose project combines science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) knowledge with computation coding to address a community project.

Parker’s project, Infrared Alert: Using a Passive Infrared Sensor to Detect Motion, was recognized at the live SSEF award ceremony on March 30. His prize includes a $250 gift certificate and Raspberry Pi Foundation’s Official RP 400 Personal Computer Kit. A judge scoring Parker’s presentation characterized it as a “really interesting project with a clear application to real life.”

“The Broadcom Coding with Commitment Award acknowledges important trends we see in science fair and coding spaces: young people are seeking to solve problems that impact them personally or in their community such as health, sanitation, energy, climate change and other challenges set out in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals,” said Paula Golden, President of the Broadcom Foundation. 

The 2021 SSEF was hosted virtually by the Minnesota Academy of Science (MAS) from March 23-30. The Broadcom Foundation is an important sponsor of the SSEF. “Support from the Broadcom Foundation is vital to our ability to encourage and inspire student STEM researchers in Minnesota,'' said MAS Executive Director Lara Maupin. Full SSEF results are available at mnmas.org.

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The Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair is a program of the Minnesota Academy of Science sponsored by Seagate Technology, the Minnesota Department of Education, Ecolab, Broadcom Foundation, General Mills, and the Hardenbergh Foundation.
Emily Shepard, MAS Communications Specialist
Sara Gomez, SSEF Program Director
Lara Maupin, MAS Executive Director