Lexington’s 2021 school science fair canceled amid county’s COVID-19 surge

A surge of positive cases of COVID-19 has led organizers to cancel the 2021 Kentucky American Water / Fayette County Public Schools District Science Fair, according to a Monday announcement.

“We feel this decision was necessary to best protect the safety of more than 650 students, their families, our school communities, and over 400 adult volunteers who support the event,” David Helm, Fayette district K-12 science instructional specialist., said in a news release.

The city’s new infections hit record highs at the end of October, the same month Lexington set a COVID-19 death record, the Herald-Leader reported Monday.

Postponing the local contests slated for Feb. 13, 2020 would not have allowed sufficient time before the next stage of competition, and a virtual event was not feasible because of the logistical challenges, technology equity, and limited time frame, officials said.

Helm hopes to work out a plan with coordinators of the Central Kentucky Regional Science & Engineering Fair that allows Fayette County’s high school students to compete at the regional level, where they can qualify for the spring’s International Science and Engineering Fair. He is also trying to find a way for interested middle school and elementary students to participate in the regional.