Virtual Judging
Judges and Volunteers are at the heart of the STEM Fair. Without their support the event could not take place. If you would like to volunteer as a judge, please fill out the form below.
The primary role of a judge is to lend their expertise to review the quality of student work while at the same time providing students with a positive and supportive STEM Fair experience.
In order to be a STEM Fair judge, you must be considered “qualified” in the STEM Fair category. In order to be considered “qualified,” one of the following must be true:
- You possess a minimum of a Bachelors’ Degree or higher in the category
- You have extensive related work experience in the field (5+ years)
- You are a credential teacher
Judges can expect to spend approximately 10-12 hours reviewing projects the week prior to the STEM Fair. On the day of the STEM Fair, judges will need to be available from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. virtually. They will also have to complete scoring rubrics for all entries assigned to them (approximately 10-15 total).
Judge Expectations
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Feb. 25, 2026 — 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Judges' Virtual Orientation
Time Commitment: 1.5 hours -
Feb. 25 to Mar. 6, 2026
Initial Project Review and Selection
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Judges assigned to a team of 2-3 that will focus on doing an initial review of projects submitted within a science category. Projects are submitted as a gslide presentation and there are usually 15-20 slides per project.
Approximately 15-20 projects are typically submitted per category that will need to be reviewed. - Judges will individually select a maximum of 6 projects per grade level (6th, 7th and 8th) to push forward to the Interview Phase STEM fair and submit selection via google form to STEM Fair Coordinator.
- Judges will score on rubric all projects that are not moved forward to Interview Phase of the STEM Fair
- Each judge will score submitted 5th grade projects using rubric (there are usually 3-4 5th grade projects). 5th graders are provided with rubric scores because they do not participate in STEM fair so this is a way to give them feedback.
- Stem Fair Coordinator culls data to determine top 6 per grade level per category to send through to the STEM Fair.
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Judges assigned to a team of 2-3 that will focus on doing an initial review of projects submitted within a science category. Projects are submitted as a gslide presentation and there are usually 15-20 slides per project.
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Mar. 14, 2026 — 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Virtual STEM Fair
- In judging teams, judges will hold interviews of students. Depending on schedule, the day sometimes ends earlier for judges.
- Judges determine 1st, 2nd and Honorable Mentions for their category as a team.
- Judges complete scoring rubric for each of the students they interview.