Berkshire senior Charlie Millard '18 has been named a 2018 Regeneron Science Talent Search scholar. The announcement was made on the company's website Tuesday.
Millard was chosen as one of just 300 semifinalists among more than 1,800 high school students from across the country who submitted their scientific work to the competition, the nation's oldest and most prestigious.
"I've always loved science and it feels great to see my passion bear results," he said after learning the news
Millard and six other Advanced Math/Science Research (AMSR) students at Berkshire applied to the competition in November. Millard is the ninth Berkshire student to be named a semifinalist in the past nine years.
"Charlie is extremely deserving of this accolade, and I am very proud that he was selected to be considered further," said Dr. April Burch, AMSR director.
Millard (Southport, Conn.) has worked under the mentorship of Dr. Shannon Whirledge of Yale University on his project, entitled "Evaluating the Mechanism of Action of Ulipristal Acetate In Uterine Fibroid Cells."
"I have never had a student who had such an incredibly diverse and rich scientific background," Dr. Burch added. "My sincere hope is that this Regeneron STS experience, the forthcoming paper with Dr. Whirledge's lab on Charlie's summer work at Yale, and his experience in the AMSR program at Berkshire are the memories Charlie holds most fondly in retrospect once he has achieved his future goals of becoming a PhD-level scientist."
Semifinalists earn a $2,000 award, as well as an additional $2,000 for their school, according to Regeneron.
"I want to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Burch for everything she's done," Millard added.
"I could not have completed my work without her guidance. I would also like to thank Dr. Shannon Whirledge, my mentor, whose lab made this project possible. I'd also like to thank Mr. Schleunes and Berkshire for having the foresight to create the AMSR program. Lastly, I'd like to thank my parents for fostering my love of science and encouraging me to pursue my dreams."
Previous competition winners include Nobel Prize and National Medal of Science recipients.
40 finalists will be announced on January 23. (Click here to read the announcement.)