Three Blanchester High School students have received STEM and entrepreneurship scholar money.

Juniors Ainsley Whitaker, Emma Falgner, and Leah Boegeman were the recipients of STEM Commercialization Plan Scholarship money.

Boegeman received $10,000, while Whitaker and Falgner each received $5,000.

Funded by the State of Ohio through the Department of Higher Education and operated as a program of The Ohio Academy of Science, Believe in Ohio is a STEM and entrepreneurship program that teaches students how to commercialize products and services and create business plans that are driven by innovation.

A total of 37 STEM Commercialization and STEM Business Plans were awarded with $277,500 in scholarships at the Believe in Ohio State Competition. These scholarships can only be used to attend an Ohio college, university, or technical college. In 2022, the Believe in Ohio program awarded $468,500 scholarships in total.

“This year’s projects were not only amazing, but also very inspiring”, said Michael E. Woytek, Executive Director for The Ohio Academy of Science.

• Boegeman’s plan was titled “Vivid-Corrective Contacts.”

• Whitaker’s was “Electro-Sensors and Cutoff Valves for Toxic Carbon from Motor Vehicles.”

• Falgner’s was “Thermo Smart Blanket: Temperature Regulated Sleep Tracking Blanket.”

Believe in Ohio is a free, comprehensive, curriculum-based, STEM and entrepreneurship program for Ohio high school students. The program is designed to create a “Culture of Innovation” and to prepare students to meet the demands of a rapidly changing labor market and become contributors to Ohio’s innovation economy.

Believe in Ohio is a program of The Ohio Academy of Science and was collaboratively developed with Entrepreneurial Engagement Ohio.

For more information, visit www.believeinohio.org.