The generosity of a retired dentist from Ardmore has prevented elimination of a 47-year-old tradition for Oklahoma science students — at least for a year.
Retired dentist James Young wrote a check on Thursday for $50,000 after learning that funding for the Oklahoma State Science and Engineering Fair would vanish in 2018.
The six regional and one statewide science and engineering fairs were among the casualties of the elimination of $38.2 million in public support for public school activities.
Young is a former science teacher in the Cleveland public school system northwest of Tulsa and says he understands how much the fairs mean to kids.
The state fair featured 216 students and 196 projects this year. As many as 8,000 students have participated in the science fairs in previous years.