Yuma students selected for national STEM festival [Video]

YUMA, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) — Three high school students from Harvest Preparatory Academy in Yuma have been chosen as National STEM Champions because of their innovative projects.

Their projects focus on sustainability and reducing waste. They’ll be representing Arizona in Washington, D.C., at the STEM festival in April, where they will showcase their project to top government and corporate leaders.

They’ll be alongside 126 students from across the U.S. who were also chosen as National Champions by EXPLR and the U.S. Department of Education.

One of the students chosen from Arizona is Christopher Miranda, a 12th grader at Harvest Preparatory Academy. He was inspired by his love for outer space and built a Martian robot. “I basically supplemented an algae called cholera vulgaris,” said Miranda.

He engineered a system to produce oxygen on Mars, eliminating hazardous by-products that are used today to produce oxygen in outer space. “I love to invent things and create things that can help people in the future,” said …