Isabella Fernandes-Santinho

Isabella Fernandes-Santinho is a junior at High Tech High School in Secaucus. They are a founding member of Questionable Engineering, a community based FIRST Robotics Competition team. Isabella leads the design and build of secondary systems on the robot and as operator, controls those systems during competitions, which included the FIRST World Championships in Houston, where the team was named Rookie All-Stars for its division. Isabella’s interest in gardening and sustainability led them to serve as a 4-H Sustainability Ambassador and Youth Urban Farm Club member at a local community garden. Outside STEM, Isabella fosters kittens for an animal shelter; and is the outreach director of their school’s mutual aid group, Students in Action, director of debate for Junior State of America, vice-president of the Chess Club, and a peer leader. Isabella has been an active Girl Scout for 10 years and served as a Girl Scouts delegate at the 66th session of the United Nation’s Commission on the Status of Women. Isabella’s main STEM interests are in robotics and material science engineering. In the future, Isabella hopes to work in the engineering field and collaborate with others to create robotic systems that build a more equitable and greener future.