Phoenixville Girl Advances In 'America's Favorite Student' Contest

PHOENIXVILLE, PA — A Phoenixville Middle School student has advanced to the next round of the national "America's Favorite Student" competition.

The Bill Nye-sponsored event will award the winner $20,000. Winners are determined by public voting, though additional votes can be bought with donations to charity.

Organizers say the event aims to celebrate student curiosity and achievement while also raising funds for the Planetary Society, a large space education nonprofit.

The opening round, from March 12 through March 26, whittled down four different groups of 48 down to 20.

The current round will drop that top 20 down to a top 15. Daylen currently sits in third place. There are just over three days left to vote.

The top 15 round is a followed by a top 10 round, a top 5 round, and then finally a round that selects the winner of each of the four groups. Quarterfinal, semifinal, and championship rounds follow, with the winner determined on May 21.

According to her bio on the competition page, Daylen loves activities like best buddies, painting, crew, orchestra, and basketball. She also is a part of Unified PE, working with special needs students. Her favorite subject is history.

"I love to know what has happened in our nations past and learn from it," she shared. "I also love history because it allows me to connect things from the past to now, and see the differences and similarities."

She said that she would use the prize money to fund her dream of attending Virginia Tech, and pursuing a career in interior design.

Winners also get the chance to meet Bill Nye.

To vote for Daylen, see here.