[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 87 (Thursday, May 22, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S3111]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS
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RECOGNIZING BENTONVILLE STUDENTS' STEM COMPETITION PERFORMANCE
Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize three
exceptional students from Bentonville West High School: Ronak Pai,
LalitAditya Kameshwaran, and Veera Sai Joshik Unnam for winning the
Samsung Solve for Tomorrow national competition.
The students, identifying a lack of affordable, nonintensive oral
cancer screenings across the Natural State, dedicated their time and
efforts to crafting a solution. Inspired by the direct experiences of
their close family, friends, and loved ones who struggled to receive
oral health care in both Arkansas and around the world, the trio
conducted research and met with local dentists, as well as health
providers, computer scientists, and cancer experts in hopes of making a
difference.
They quickly discovered that oral cancer is one of the deadliest
forms of cancer, as it can be difficult to diagnose and treat. That led
them to compile thousands of images of mouth cancers and subsequently
train an artificial intelligence model to develop an application that
can detect and classify stages of oral cancer.
In February, their Oral Care app secured a statewide win, delivering
a $12,000 technology prize package that included new computers for
their school community, as well as the opportunity to showcase their
work and compete on the national stage.
Ronak, LalitAditya, and Veera presented Oral Care to a panel of
judges in Washington, DC, in April and earned the Community Choice
Award against nine other teams.
As national winners, the students secured another prize package of
$100,000 for Bentonville West, including more technology and classroom
resources.
I am proud to celebrate these three exceptional students whose
efforts have benefited their communities and have the potential to
better the lives of people around the world. It is exciting to see
young Arkansans recognized on the national stage. Ronak, LalitAditya,
and Veera have showed not only their unique entrepreneurial and
technological skills but a desire to create a brighter, healthier
future.
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