February 19, 2026
Media advisory: See unique projects at Region 8 Science Fair Feb. 24
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Reporters, photographers and news crews are welcome to cover the 2026 Illinois Junior Academy of Science Region 8 Science Fair on Tuesday, Feb. 24. The event, on the second floor of Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Student Center, will bring more than 150 students in grades 7-12 from throughout the region.
The students are competing in 19 different project categories as diverse as aerospace science to physics and consumer science to zoology. Student projects judging is during two sessions: 8:45-11 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Participants are vying for thousands of dollars in prize money for themselves and their schools, along with the opportunity to advance to the state competition in April. The announcement of award winners begins at 5 p.m. in Neckers Building, Room 240.
For more information, contact Vina Castelli, lecturer in the School of Statistical and Mathematical Sciences, at vina@siu.edu or 618-453-5302.