PUSD Students’ Bug Work Awarded Big Time

Article and Photo courtesy of SIERRA MADRE MIDDLE SCHOOL and PUSD MAY 30, 2023

Several Sierra Madre Middle School (SMMS) students are being recognized for their insect insights and research on mosquito-borne diseases. At last week’s PUSD Board Meeting, leaders from the San Gabriel Valley Vector Control District presented “Vector Inspector of the Year” awards to 24 SMMS students, the most of any participating school. The awards stem from months of work studying specimens found in the students’ own backyards as part of Operation Mosquito G.R.I.D. (Growth, Reduction & Increased Detection).

The program also introduces students to potential career paths and allows them to use the same equipment and observational techniques as professional ecologists. In March, PUSD announced that their science teacher, Ravishanth Dev Anandhan (Mr. Dev), became the first PUSD teacher to receive the Public Health Teacher of the Year Award 2022. Congratulations to Mr. Dev and his awesome students!

Sierra Madre Middle School, 160 N. Canon Avenue, Sierra Madre, (626) 396-5910 or visit https://www.pusd.us/Page/47.