Jackson Progress-Argus

Mariah Sims, a sixth-grader at Henderson Middle School and one of 22 blue-ribbon winners in the science fair, poses with her project.

Jackson — Nearly two dozen science fair projects will be going on to the regional competition, after winning blue ribbons in the Henderson Middle School science fair.

Frieda Aiken, who teaches science at Henderson, said that out of roughly 50 projects completed by students last semester in grades six through eight, 22 were selected for blue ribbons by a panel of judges. Those blue-ribbon projects will go Feb. 14 to the Griffin Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA) Regional Science and Engineering Fair, she said.

All of the projects were on display in the cafeteria of Henderson Middle School on Thursday, during the school’s own science fair.

“They all did a good job with these projects,” said Jeanette Patterson, who has a daughter in sixth-grade.

“The students in this group, represented by these projects, are awesome,” Aiken added.

In addition to the 22 blue-ribbon projects, which achieved scores between 90 and 100, there were several Best of Fair winners in two categories: physical science and life science.

Winning Best of Fair for sixth-grade in physical science was Rustin Starker, with the project “Which Nut Has the Most Potential Energy?”

The seventh-grade winner in physical science was Tori Smith, with the project “Race Your Marbles to Discover a Liquid’s Viscosity.”

The eighth-grade winner in physical science was Destiny Durden, with the project “Which is Better: Home-made or Store Bought Lip Gloss?”

Best of Fair in life sciences for sixth-grade went to MyKayla Usher, with “Do Different Types of Orange Juice Have Different Amounts of Vitamin C?”

Seventh-grader Jordan Drummond won Best of Fair in life science as well, for “Which Handwashing Technique Works Best in Cold Water vs. Warm Water?”

Judges for the fair were Beryl Budd, of the Georgia Forestry Commission; Jeremy Hilderbrand, of Dauset Trails Nature Center; Jarod Weston, of Dauset Trails Nature Center; Christina Rogers, of Dauset Trails Nature Center; Jennifer Vasil, of Westbury Medical Care Home; Kristen Boyd, a biologist and veterinary technician; and Kim Staples, of Henderson Middle School.