Scientist Spotlight: Cynthia Chapple
The Academy of Science - St. Louis is sharing the stories of scientists and engineers who are advancing St. Louis as a scientific powerhouse.
Today, we are featuring Cynthia Chapple, Founder and Executive Director of Black Girls Do STEM. Cynthia Chapple is an innovative scientist, advocate for black girls and women, and a champion of equity. She founded this organization to offer exploration of STEM career pathways through hands-on, engaging curriculum in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics to middle and high school black girls to expose them to career pathways and empower them to become STEM professionals. She looks for ways in which she can act as a conduit, exposing young black girls to STEM industries and a diversity, equity, and inclusion voice within the STEM workforce space to create welcoming policies, practices, and cultures for Black people and women to thrive.
Cynthia was the recipient of The Academy's Deborah Patterson Award for Broadening Participation in STEM as part of the 28th Outstanding St. Louis Scientists Awards.
Academy of Science - St. Louis
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Connecting science and the community, advancing public understanding of science, inspiring the next generation of scientists and science advocates.
06/16/2026
We are so proud of Aditya and Gershom's groundbreaking work! Thank you to Broadcom Foundation for supporting these young innovators' research!
Congratulations Aditya and Gershom, Broadcom Coding with Commitment® winners at Academy of Science K-12 Regional St. Louis Science Fair!
Broadcom Coding with Commitment® recognizes students in middle school who combine STEM learning with coding to solve a community problem they care about that aligns with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
Their project “VisionRipe: Know What to Eat, Not When to Waste” is an app that scans a fruit or vegetable with the user's phone camera and utilizes AI to determine if produce is ripe enough to consume or flags it to be disposed of. Their project aligns with United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #2 Zero Hunger.
Broadcom Coding with Commitment® provides a catalyst for students to learn basic coding and AI as essential problem-solving tools in STEM and fosters active civic engagement by “thinking globally while acting locally.”
Aditya and Gershom said, "Coding turned our idea into a real product. We used React Native and Expo to build an actual IPhone app - learning as we went and figuring things out. That process taught us more about problem-solving than anything we have done in a classroom."
Learn more here: https://broadcomfoundation.org/programs/broadcom-coding-with-commitment/
Academy of Science - St. Louis
Scientist Spotlight: Katie Murphy, Ph.D.
The Academy of Science - St. Louis is sharing the stories of scientists and engineers who are advancing St. Louis as a scientific powerhouse.
Today, we are featuring Katie Murphy, Ph.D., Director of Phenotyping and a Principal Investigator at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center. Katie's independent research group develops and deploys innovative, high-throughput technologies to measure whole-plant traits. Katie has also been recognized for her role as an advocate and mentor to young scientists and is a skilled scientific communicator. Katie was the recipient of The Academy's Science Educator Award as part of the 28th Outstanding St. Louis Scientists Awards.
Hear more about Katie's professional journey in her Outstanding St. Louis Scientist interview!
05/27/2026
Mark your calendars! The The Academy of Science's 2027 St. Louis Science Fair will take place March 8–13, 2027 at Saint Louis University!
Project registration opens August 31, 2026. More information coming soon.
Stay up-to-date on STL Science Fair details at our website: https://academyofsciencestl.org/science-fair/
05/22/2026
Congratulations to these students on their amazing science fair projects! 👏 Keep up the good work and we'll see you at next year's fair!
05/21/2026
We love to see our science fair students shine! Congratulations all!
05/20/2026
Scientist Spotlight: Nadia Shakoor, Ph.D.
The Academy of Science - St. Louis is sharing the stories of scientists and engineers who are advancing St. Louis as a scientific powerhouse.
Today, we are featuring Nadia Shakoor, Ph.D., Principal Investigator at the Danforth Plant Science Center and co-founder of Agrela Ecosystems. Nadia was the recipient of The Academy's inaugural Innovation Award as part of the 28th Outstanding St. Louis Scientists Awards. Hear more about Nadia's professional journey in her Outstanding St. Louis Scientist interview or read more about her work here: https://academyofsciencestl.org/news/nadia-shakoor-ph-d/
2026 Outstanding St Louis Scientists Award: Dr. Nadia Shakoor Learn more about The Academy of Science's 28th Outstanding St. Louis Scientists Awards Innovation Award recipient: Nadia Shakoor, Ph.D.
05/16/2026
The Academy of Science - St. Louis is thrilled to welcome home and congratulate the 2026 STL Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) finalists after an amazing week in Phoenix, AZ!
Ayush Vasireddy was recognized with a second-place finish in the Chemistry project category, a result that places his work in the top 2% of Chemistry projects in the entire world!
Ayush's project was also recognized with three Special Awards! He received the Arizona State University ISEF Scholarship, International Precious Metals Institute Award, and the YM American Academy Award.
Sky Jacobson represented St. Louis in the Translational Medicine Category making new connections throughout the week and sharing his research with the global scientific community.
Ayush and Sky participated as ISEF finalists after presenting their projects at The Academy of Science's Honors Division finalist round in February. You can see more about the Honors Division results here: https://academyofsciencestl.org/2026-honors-fair-results/
Congratulations to both Ayush and Sky on their incredible achievements!
Society for Science
05/05/2026
We are so grateful for our Special Awards sponsors like Greater St. Louis Dental Society!
04/29/2026
The Academy of Science, in partnership with The Boeing Company, proudly awarded 25 scholarships last Friday to the next generation of STEM leaders. Just like athletes celebrate their signing day, these students got their moment to shine, marking their commitment to pursuing STEM fields. We can't wait to see how these students help advance St. Louis as a science powerhouse!
Thank you to Webster University for hosting!
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