Morris ’23 places at International Science Fair

ATLANTA, Ga.- St. Patrick Catholic High School is proud to announce that Emerson Morris placed fourth in her category at the International Science Fair in Atlanta, Georgia. Morris was in the Microbiology category.

“We are extremely proud of Emerson for this prestigious accomplishment,” Principal Dr. Matt Buckley said. “She put countless hours into her research, not only for the science fair, but to find actual answers as to why this was happening in our coastal waters. I continue to be impressed by Emerson’s hard work and dedication to the science field.”

Morris’ project had to do with the flesh-eating bacteria in coastal waters, Microcystis aeruginoa.  When the Bonne Carre Spillway opened and flooded coastal waters with fresh water, this organism grew out of control.  It is related to the Vibrio bacterium which is extremely dangerous.  Her project worked with changing the pH of the water infested with this bacterium and how it would stunt the growth of the organism.

The International Science and Engineering Fair was founded in 1950 by Science Service and was sponsored by the Intel Corporation from 1997 to 2019. More than 1500 students from roughly 70 countries and territories competed in the fair for scholarships, tuition grants, internships, scientific field trips and the grand prizes.

Emerson was the only person in Mississippi to place at the International Science Fair. She received a monetary award of $500.