COCHISE COUNTY, Ariz. (KGUN) — Buena High School students dominated the 42nd annual Youth Engineering and Science Fair in Sierra Vista, hosted by Sulphur Springs Valley Cooperative (SSVEC) Foundation.
Seven Buena High School students earned grand prize trips to an international science competition, while a fellow Buena student took home a $5,000 scholarship at the conclusion of the 42nd annual Youth Engineering and Science (YES) Fair on Friday, Feb. 27, 2026.
Sponsored by the Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative (SSVEC) Foundation, the week-long fair honored students and their teachers in grades fifth through 12th for their innovative and informative science projects. More than 350 parents, teachers and supporters attended the awards ceremony at the Community Innovations Center in Sierra Vista. A total of 227 students participated, with $50,000 in awards distributed throughout the competition.
Buena High School student Landon Martinez captured the top cash award of the evening — a $5,000 scholarship — after compiling the most overall points for projects he has entered in the fair since he started the competition in the fifth grade.
Seven students, all attending Buena High School, captured grand prize honors in the high school division, earning all-expense paid trips to the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), scheduled for May 9 through May 15 at the convention center in Phoenix.
Daniel Dilone, a sophomore at Buena, was awarded a grand prize for his project, entitled "Two-Phase Electrochemical Detection of L-Tryptophan as a Kynurenic Acid Analog." Together with Buena High School advisor Beverly Adams, Dilone will join more than 1,800 students in ninth through 12th grades at the international fair.
Buena High School juniors Quintin Lawrence, Jack Campbell, and Alejandro Romero will also attend the Regeneron fair after earning a grand prize for their project, entitled "Solar Soaring," advised by Amy Martinez of Buena High School Engineering.
The final grand prize was awarded to Buena seniors Jessalyn Lopez, Braden Alexander, and Ethan Juarez for their project, entitled "All Terrain Trash Robot," also advised by Amy Martinez.
"It's always impressive when the community, parents, and educators come out to celebrate the academic achievements of our local students," Kristin Gray, Community Relations Manager at SSVEC, said. "We truly appreciate the judges who volunteered their time to review each project, and our teachers did a great job encouraging their students to participate."
Displays were set up beginning Monday, Feb. 23, at the innovation center. On Wednesday, multiple judges interviewed high school students about their work and their interest in the topic of their presentation. Thursday, the fair was open to the public, offering the opportunity for people to view each student project.
In addition to the projects, several organizations brought science-related displays for public review, including Gray Hawk Animal Exhibits, Bisbee Science Lab, and Kartchner Caverns.
Financial awards presented by the SSVEC Foundation are not generated from member electric bills. The foundation generates most of its funding from uncollected Member Equity payments. When former members leave the SSVEC service area and fail to provide a forwarding address, or when repeated efforts to contact a former member fail, those Member Equity funds are turned over to the foundation and used to fulfill its mission supporting local youth programs.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
----
STAY IN TOUCH WITH US ANYTIME, ANYWHERE
- Download our free app for Roku, FireTV, AppleTV, Alexa, and mobile devices.
- Sign up for daily newsletters emailed to you
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Twitter
