Miriam Ross, a sophomore at University Laboratory High School in Urbana, has been designated as one of twenty inaugural winners of the Celebrating High School Innovators Award for the state of Illinois in 2014-2015. Miriam is working with Prof. Scott Silverman and his graduate students on identification of DNA catalysts for degradation of the amino acid phenylalanine. The award recognizes innovation by high school students in a broad range of science and arts disciplines and is sponsored by the iFoundry of the UIUC College of Engineering. Awardees will be recognized at an award dinner and networking event in May 2015.