Salome Njeri and Esther Amimo Anyanzwa both students of teacher Peter Tabichi who recently won the global teacher prize are finalists in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair(ISEF).
The two, who invented a device that helps the visually impaired to learn maths and science under the mentorship of the award-winning teacher, are among the last ten at ISEF.
The event that has been ongoing in Pheonix USA brought together hundreds of students from all over the world to compete with projects that aim to improve the STEM subjects.
“Proud of my students Esther and Salome for being selected among the 10 finalists who are representing Kenya in the Intel ISEF being held in Phoenix (USA) this week. Such participation boosts innovations as well as improve performance of STEM subjects. Wishing them all the best,” Tabichi wrote on his twitter handle.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke on email, a source close to the teacher divulged that the two girls have endured hardship in their education.
The two girls reportedly walk a distance of up to 7Km to school on a daily basis but worked hard and managed to overcome the challenges to represent their school and the country in one of the largest science fairs in the world.
The fair brought nearly 2,000 student scientists from more than 80 countries, regions, and territories, together under one roof.
The winners of each category in the fair are awarded a shared prize and money of approximately Ksh400 million.
In 2018 the two top winners of the Intel ISEF each went home with approximately Ksh50 million.
In addition to the top winners, approximately 600 finalists received awards and prizes for their innovative research, including 24 “Best of Category” winners, who each received a Ksh500,000 prize in addition to their Ksh300,000 first place award. The Intel Foundation also awarded a Ksh100,000 grant to each winner’s school and to the affiliated fair they represent.
