The Los Angeles County Science & Engineering Fair (LACSEF) is aware that the recent wildfires have brought significant challenges to many in our community. In light of these disruptions including evacuations, school closures, and limited access to resources, many have understandably raised concerns about students’ ability to fully engage with their projects and participate in the fair. LACSEF is working to support school site coordinators and any students who may need assistance in order to complete their projects or continue their participation.
The 75th annual LACSEF will take place March 9-10, 2025, at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall. The event will host approximately 1,000 students in grades 6-12 from over 125 schools across LA County. LACSEF is a qualifying fair for the California State Science and Engineering Fair (CSEF), Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge (JIC) and the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF).
Over the years, many local and state science fairs throughout the United States have been scaled back, experienced a decline in participation, moved online or been canceled due to funding and enrollment issues. During the COVID pandemic, the LACSEF was held virtually for 3 years, causing a slip in student enrollment and sponsorship. However since the fair came back to a traditional format in 2023, enrollment has surged but donations and sponsors remained flat. LA County, despite recent struggles, takes great pride in still running one of the more successful science fairs in the country. The LACSEF’s mission is to increase literacy and foster diversity, equity, and inclusion in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education and related fields for over 900,000 middle and high school students throughout Los Angeles County. The LACSEF is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and is overseen by a volunteer executive board. Eric Hartung serves as the president of LACSEF. A donations page and sponsorship information can be found on our website.
The LACSEF is currently seeking qualified volunteer judges. Judges are needed Monday, March 10, 2025, 7am-4pm at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Anyone with an engineering or science background (any of the sciences including ecology, psychology, math and computer science) can serve as a judge. An undergrad in science or five years work experience in a STEM field can judge for the middle school levels (6-8th grade projects) and if the individual has a masters or PhD with research experience, can serve as a judge for the senior level (9-12th grade projects). Judge registration is now open, please visit www.lascifair.org for more information.
