La Jolla Students Win National and State Science Awards

Two of ’s advanced science students received Igniting Creative Energy awards from Johnston Controls on Friday. The ICE is a national educational competition in which students submit ways to be more environmentally conscious.

More than 800 applicants submitted ideas nationwide, and LJHS won two of the 11 awards. The students were surprised in class by their families, who have waited nearly a month to reveal they won.

Freshman Adam Herkso-Ronatas won the national award for a video he produced about weatherization and Jaena Han, a senior, won the state award for a drawing that demonstrated energy-saving tips. Johnson Controls presented them with solar powered backpacks that have charging capabilities, courtesy of National Energy Foundation.

Adam will join the other national winners on a trip to Washington D.C. as part of his prize, where the U.S. Energy Efficiency Forum will formally honor him for his video. While he’s there, he will get to meet with national leaders and energy policymakers. He was also presented with a camera, which he can use to continue making movies.

Adam, who turned 15 only two weeks ago, has made nearly 50 videos for a production company he started with his friend, Darian Spencer. Last year, he made a documentary about Latin language in the modern era and each weekend he makes a short film for his Youtube site.

“I’ve been interested filmmaking since I was 8,” he said. “I really wanted to combine filmmaking with this topic since it’s a really unique opportunity to observe weatherization.”

Adam is no stranger to awards; in December he won a Green Skills for Life video competition and in fifth grade he received the Hope of America award. His parents, Judit and Akos, said they were very proud of the work he’s accomplished.

Adam’s classmate, Jaena, also obtained a $1,000 grant for the school in addition to her solar-powered backpack. She will be attending Stanford University in the fall, where she is pursuing a major in biology.

“I wanted to draw a person who was thinking about all the ways they can save energy,” Jaena said. Her illustration shows a girl daydreaming about ways to be environmentally conscious by depicting people riding bikes and growing their own vegetables, among other ways to be eco-friendly.

Science teacher Martin Teachworth encouraged his students to submit their work to this competition. “It’s pretty impressive for you knuckleheads,” Teachworth joked to his class during the informal award ceremony.

Since Teachworth joined the teaching staff at LJHS, his students have won the ICE award three times. In the past, he also won the teacher award from Johnson Controls for his passionate teaching style.

Vice Principal Walter Fairley was also in attendance at the awards ceremony and said he was proud of the student’s endeavors. “I’m excited to see what these two young people will accomplish,” he said. “The work you guys are doing here is just tremendous.”