Student places 2nd in national STEM competition

When Sara Kaufman needed a question to answer for her science fair project, she drew inspiration from her mother.

“The issue I came up with is that roofs fly off during hurricanes, the American Heritage student said. “My mom is a retired pilot, so I decided to use principles from an airplane.”

Kaufman’s project, “The Effects of Wind Mitigation Devices on Gabled Roofs,” ended up advancing to the Broadcom MASTERS, a prestigious middle school STEM competition in Washington, D.C. The 12-year-old Cooper City resident earned second place in the Science category and $2,500 to be used at a STEM summer camp.

“We were thrilled to present Sara with the second place math award in the Broadcom MASTERS,” President and CEO of the Society for Science & the Public Maya Ajmera said. “We were impressed by Sara’s math skills and her project, which seeks to protect homes impacted by hurricanes in Florida.”

For a student who struggled with math for a while in elementary school, this was a crowning moment.

“I was ecstatic,” Kaufman recalled. “Until recently, math had always been one my weaker subjects, so it was amazing to be recognized for my potential.”

Kaufman was one of 30 top STEM middle school students from around the country to participate in the competition. She was one of only three 12-year-olds in attendance — most of the competitors were between 13 and 15 years old. Fifteen boys and girls were chosen from over 2,000 applicants.

According to the Census Bureau and statistics from the National Girls Collaborative Project and National Science Foundation, women are still underrepresented in the STEM field. With a goal to one day become a robotic engineer, that’s something Kaufman wants to help change.

“I am proud of myself for overcoming the status quo,” she said. “It feels great to be a young female leader in a time when girls are finally being accepted into STEM by the world.”

Kaufman’s mom, Nadine Leonard, said can’t help but feel overwhelmingly proud of her daughter.

“Sara’s father was a scientist and inventor who passed away when she was only five years old. She probably got a lot of her scientific and mathematical prowess from him,” Leonard said. “But as a retired airline pilot, I like to think that she is learning from me that there does not have to be a gender glass ceiling. If she wants to become a robotics engineer from MIT or any place else, there’s no reason why she can’t do it.”

Kaufman says the plan for now is to earn a Ph.D. in medicine from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on an ROTC scholarship — “so that I can go to college for free and, after serving in the military for a while, come out as a veteran.”

Wherever she lands, Leonard said she’s along for the ride.

“I’m her biggest fan and I will keep cheering her on no matter where her dreams may take her.”

ebloch@sun-sentinel.com