Stallings Island Middle School - Georgia Regional Middle School Science Bowl
Coach Deborah Hundt, a teacher for over 25 years, is a seventh-grade life science teacher that thoroughly enjoys teaching middle grade students. She is the coach of the Academic team, Science Bowl team, and Envirothon/Eco-teams. She has also established a bird watching team that competes at a state event each spring. She sponsors a S.A.R.A. club that promotes sustainable agriculture and responsible agriculture projects in and outside of the classroom. Her greatest desire is for all students to become stewards of the land and water resources, as well as to become active in school and community projects that promote awareness of these resources. She is very proud to coach the past four regional and state champion Science Bowl teams for Georgia.
Coach Vicki Tarleton is a former AP high school math teacher and current principal at Stallings Island Middle. She has become a champion and cheerleader for our Science Bowl teams. She offers her time and math tutoring to encourage success for our teams. In her "spare" time, she pops-in to practice sessions and helps the team members prepare for the rigor of the competition questions. She designs math questions, times and reads questions, and works out the questions with the team members. She is also a computer science geek and dog lover!
Jerry Fan is an eighth-grade student at Stallings Island Middle School, whose favorite sciences are physics, chemistry, biology, and math. Jerry wants to pursue a career in engineering after finishing his dream college, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He won first place two years ago at the Science Bee and History Bee Regionals in Georgia. He was also a member of the Science Bowl team last year, reaching the top 20 ranks in the nationals competition. Jerry Fan is a piano student of nearing nine years, a previous viola student, and a current choir student. As a choir student, he was the only boy who made All State Choir for GMEA. Jerry also participates in Boy Scouts, at the rank of Life Scout. Jerry Fan also runs track competitively on the school track team. Jerry is the current team captain and has been a member of the Science Bowl team for the past two years.
George Zhou is an eighth-grade student fascinated with math and computer science. He is enthusiastic about competing in the subjects he loves. He was the 2019 Model UN school winner and won the 2017 county Spelling Bee. He currently holds the position of Augusta Chapter Champion of MATHCOUNTS 2021 and was also the chapter champion in 2020. Outside of academics, George was the first chair snare for GMEA District X band. He also enjoys running for the school’s track team and studying chess. In his free time, he goes on outdoor adventures as a Boy Scout in Troop 119. He is currently a Life Scout and aspires to reach Eagle before he turns fourteen. George has been on the Science Bowl team for the past two years.
David Wang is a seventh-grade student and first year active member on the team. He has a quiet nature, but contributes accuracy and a great depth of knowledge in questions related to chemistry, biology, physical/earth science, high school math and geometry. He placed second in the local MATHCOUNTS chapter competition. He will join two other Science Bowl team members in the state and hopefully the national competition this academic school year. He is an active member of the school cyber team and chess club. He also finds time to read novels, solve Rubik's cubes and practice with his virtual karate class as a black belt. In the future, he would like to become a software engineer with SpaceX.
Eliana Benevides is a seventh-grade student and first year Science Bowl team member. She has a great passion for learning and excelling in life science and geometry. As the only girl on the team, she has contributed her accuracy in math and broad knowledge of science. She has been honored for academic excellence in her grade level with the highest average and scholar athlete awards. She has won awards for her participation in Model United Nations, Math Olympiad, Perennial Math, Word Masters, and the Science Fair competitions. She loves to cook, take care of her dogs, and practice as a black belt with her virtual karate class. She never lets a question go unanswered in science or a math problem go unsolved! She is a motivator and inspiration to each member of the team.
Steven Pang is a seventh-grade student and a first year member of the Science Bowl team. He is passionate about all things earth science, especially dinosaurs. As an avid reader, one of his favorite books is Wings of Fire. He is involved in Boy Scouts, the Chess Club and the cyber team. He has competed and won recognition to advance in the National Science Bee. He has participated and competed in the regional Cyber team, Spelling Bee, and Battle of the Books competitions.
