Junior Sarah Sachar recently received an honorable mention in the American Society of Human Genetics’ (ASHG) 11th Annual DNA Day Essay Contest for her paper encouraging the postponement of adolescent testing for myotonic dystrophy.

The theme of the contest was to choose an adult onset condition or disease and to determine whether adolescents should be encouraged to participate in predictive testing.

“I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I won anything,” Sachar said. “I was just planning on doing it to complete my MTS requirements.”

Sachar entered the contest with the intention of merely fulfilling the MTS (Math Science and Technology Signature Program) contest requirement. She received $100 and a certificate for her achievement.

Molecular Genetics teacher Virginia Brown helped by reviewing the paper and sponsoring the entry for the contest.

“We read through it together, but she did all the research and writing,” Brown said. “I’m very proud. She did an excellent job both with the writing and with the science.”