Katie Wheeler

High School Prize for Scientific Excellence 2014 Home Logistics for Ceremony 2014 Winners Photos

Katie Wheeler is currently a senior enrolled in the full International Baccalaureate Program at Desert Academy. Katie developed her passion for science in tenth grade when she joined an extra chemistry class to help her learn the material. Taking double chemistry helped Katie reach her learning goals and also gave her confidence in the field of science. To her, science is one of the greatest sources of knowledge and gives her certainty in a world filled with questions. For her Extended Essay, Katie chose to conduct an experiment to determine the limiting reagent of the Briggs-Rauscher reaction, an oscillating reaction whose exact mechanism remains unknown yet one that is considered one of the most dazzling displays of the wonder of chemistry. Katie will be attending Eckerd College in August, where she has earned a $76,000 trustee scholarship. In college, Katie intends to pursue a degree in either human nutrition or environmental studies with a minor in biology as well as a license to instruct yoga.