The premier sponsor of the Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair, Seagate Technology, is the global leader in data storage solutions. Seagate develops products that enable people and businesses around the world to create, share, and preserve their most critical memories and business data. Seagate’s sponsorship has provided critical support for the Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair for 25 years!

“Our involvement in science fairs is an investment in hands-on science education and is intended to inspire students to pursue careers in STEM. We know that participating in events like this can be a valuable stepping stone to a future career in a STEM field.”

— Dr. Nikki Shaffer, Seagate representative at the 2022 Science Fair awards ceremony

Seagate sponsors three awards at the 2022 Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair: the Seagate Excellence in Science Mentoring Award, the Seagate Rising Star Award, and the Seagate Emerging Scientist Award.

The Seagate Excellence in Science Mentoring Award spotlights two outstanding science teachers who find creative ways to nurture students’ interest in scientific research and discovery. Hala Bazzi (Al-Amal School in Fridley) and Kristen Piehl (Visitation School in Mendota Heights) each received $1,000 and a Seagate portable hard drive. Their schools will also receive $1,000.

The Seagate Rising Star Award recognizes two emerging student scientists whose projects not only exemplify excellence in their category but also demonstrate high degrees of difficulty, complexity, innovation, and effective communication. High school student Elizabeth Levinshteyn (Blaine), received a $2,000 award, trophy, and a Segate portable hard drive for her research project titled A Look Into the TINY Earth: Finding Antibiotic Producing Bacteria in Yellowstone Soil. Middle school student Milan Darji (Eden Prairie), received a $1,500 award, trophy, and a Seagate portable hard drive for his work on There’s Not An App For That! A Novel Clinical Assessment Tool To Predict Heart Failure Patient Outcomes.

The Seagate Emerging Scientist Award recognizes excellent STEM research conducted by students competing for the first time. The top 10% of first-year students receive trophies. The 2022 Seagate Emerging Scientist winners are: Aiden Korby (Cloquet), Ainsley Mick (Coon Rapids), Sarah Dingli (Rochester), Jack Wagner (Rochester), Gabriella Olson (Minneapolis), Asher O'Brien (Mankato), Makena Mbuba (Otsego), Indira Sivaraj (Elk River), Ava Kallunki (Elk River), John Liu (St. Paul), Ivianna Duquaine (Rochester), Josie Lee (St. Paul), Kellen Groth, Amina Zahid (Blaine), Josie Dederichs (Edina), Ziyi (Rick) Qian (Plymouth), Karen Nakamura (Woodbury), Aedin Yu (Eden Prairie) & Mohit Agarwal (Eden Prairie), Linnea Cooley (St. Paul), Danielle Wang (Rochester), Jared Geppert (Blaine), Ethan Chen (Eden Prairie), and Ruth Mellin (St. Paul) & Alexander Moore (St. Paul).