Two Westview High School freshmen earned spots among the nation's top 300 young scientists in the 2026 Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge.

Lasya Singaraju and Shanran Lee, both ninth graders at Westview, were selected from nearly 2,000 applicants across 47 states and five territories, the Society for Science announced Sept. 2. A third Beaverton School District student, seventh grader Vivasvan Kuruveri at Stoller Middle School, also made the cut.

The competition is billed as the nation's premier STEM contest for middle school students. All three BSD students developed their projects and qualified while in middle school last spring. Singaraju and Lee were eighth graders at Stoller when they earned their spots through the Beaverton-Hillsboro STEM Expo, according to the official program book. They have since moved to Westview for ninth grade.

Singaraju's project, "Nature's Cleanse," explores turning kitchen scraps into a safer water supply. Lee developed a cost-effective method for detecting nanoplastics. Kuruveri built a photoresistor-based circuit for spectroscopic ripeness detection, qualifying through the Northwest Science Expo.

To reach the Top 300, students must place in the top 10 percent of a Society-affiliated local science fair. The BSD pipeline funnels students from school-level competitions to the district's qualifying STEM expo, then to the Northwest Science Expo regional fair, according to the district's expo page.

Each Top 300 honoree receives a $125 award.

A panel of scientists, engineers and educators will select 30 finalists, to be announced Wednesday, Sept. 16. Those 30 will compete for more than $100,000 in awards, including a $25,000 Thermo Fisher Scientific ASCEND Award, during Finals Week in Washington, D.C., from Oct. 23 through Oct. 28.

"Their curiosity, creativity and determination to tackle some of our most pressing challenges … show what's possible when young people are empowered to pursue their ideas," Maya Ajmera, president and CEO of Society for Science, said in the Sept. 2 announcement.

The Beaverton School District noted Sept. 8 that the selection reflects the students' dedication and passion for discovery. The Top 300 this year represent 34 states, Puerto Rico and Guam.

Families can watch for the finalist announcement Wednesday, Sept. 16, at noon Eastern time on the Society for Science website.