2025 Governor’s Celebration of Innovation Future Innovators and Teacher of the Year Awardees Announced by the Arizona Technology Council
State’s Technology Community Will Celebrate Top STEM Students and Educators on November 12
PHOENIX, September 17, 2025 — The Arizona Technology Council and the Arizona Commerce Authority today announced the winners of the Future Innovators of the Year and Teacher of the Year awards to be honored at the 2025 Governor’s Celebration of Innovation (GCOI). These awards highlight the brightest students in Arizona’s science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) community, as well as the teachers who inspire them to succeed. The students and educators will be recognized during GCOI, scheduled for Wednesday, November 12, 2025, from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. at Chateau Luxe, 1175 E. Lone Cactus Drive, Phoenix.
“Arizona’s future depends on cultivating young innovators and celebrating the teachers who spark their passion for STEM,” said Steven G. Zylstra, president and CEO of the Council and SciTech Institute. “The Future Innovators and Teacher of the Year represent the next wave of leaders shaping our innovation ecosystem, and it’s a privilege to recognize their achievements.”
“The Future Innovators and Teacher of the Year award winners are helping shape the future of Arizona’s innovation landscape,” said Sandra Watson, President and CEO, Arizona Commerce Authority. “Their accomplishments reflect Arizona’s vibrant innovation ecosystem, and we’re proud to recognize them in partnership with the Arizona Technology Council.”
The Future Innovator of the Year winners represent outstanding participants of the Arizona Science and Engineering Fair (grades 9-12). Winners will receive $1,500 scholarships to advance their education while honorable mentions will receive $500 scholarships. The Teacher of the Year will receive a $1,500 cash award while the honorable mention will receive a $500 award.
Future Innovators of the Year Award Winners
- Siyaa Poddar, Grade 12, Arizona College Prep High School (Chandler)
Project: Developing a Rapid, Colorimetric Metal Organic Framework for Airborne Silica and Uranium Detection: A Novel Approach to Pollutant Monitoring and Health Risk Assessment in Indigenous Communities for Sjogren’s Syndrome - Shireen Arora, Grade 9, BASIS Chandler
Project: The Efficacy of Consumption of Ashwagandha on Mitigation of Alzheimer’s Disease Pathology: A Drosophila melanogaster Model - Elias Chang, Grade 12, BASIS Mesa
Project: From 2D to 3D: Enhancing Lung Nodule Segmentation in Computed Tomography Scans with Anatomy-Based Self-Supervised Learning - Ananya Lakkaraju, Grade 10, Hamilton High School (Chandler)
Project: A Novel Machine Learning Method and Drug for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Depression
Future Innovators of the Year Honorable Mentions
- Akshay Karthik, Grade 11, Hamilton High School
Project: THETA: Triangulated Hand-State Estimation for Teleoperation and Automation in Robotic Hand Control - Ganeshsai Talluri, Grade 11, BASIS Peoria
Project: A Novel Multi-Omics Deep Learning Framework for Spatiotemporal Cerebral Cortex Localization and Expression
Teacher of the Year Award Winner
- Amber Struthers, Tempe High School & Corona del Sol High School (Tempe)
Teacher of the Year Honorable Mention
- Pradip C. Misra, Bagdad High School
The Future Innovator and Teacher of the Year Award winners were evaluated and chosen by a selection committee independent of the Council. The committee included members of the Arizona Council of Engineering and Scientific Associations, which supports, promotes and coordinates programs and activities of the engineering and science associations within the state through facilitated communication and leadership.
To learn more about GCOI and the Future Innovators and Teacher of the Year award winners, or to purchase tickets for the Council’s flagship event, please visit https://www.aztechcouncil.org/event/2025-governors-celebration-of-innovation-awards/
About the Arizona Technology Council
The Arizona Technology Council is Arizona’s premier trade association for science and technology companies. Recognized as comprising a diverse professional business community, Council members work towards furthering the advancement of technology in Arizona through leadership, education, legislation and social action. The Council offers numerous events, educational forums and business conferences that bring together leaders, managers, employees and visionaries to make an impact on the technology industry. These interactions contribute to the Council’s culture of growing member businesses and transforming technology in Arizona. To become a member or to learn more about the Arizona Technology Council, please visit aztechcouncil.org.
About the Arizona Commerce Authority
The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) is the state’s leading economic development organization with a streamlined mission to grow and strengthen Arizona’s economy. The ACA uses a three-pronged approach to advance the overall economy: attract, expand, create — attract out-of-state companies to establish operations in Arizona; work with existing companies to expand their business in Arizona and beyond; and help entrepreneurs create new Arizona businesses in targeted industries. For more information, please visit azcommerce.com and follow the ACA on Twitter at @azcommerce.