"Get out there and make your mark," Austin ISD Superintendent Meria Carstarphen told students and other SXSWedu 2014 Education Expo attendees on March 4.

Carstarphen said it is how students use the information they learn that will make the world a better place to live. She encouraged visitors to walk through the expo, a free public event displaying new concepts and education resources, many of which were related to science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM.

"The future of our local economy really depends on things like new ideas and creativity. This is a place where we can think about new approaches to energy and health care, technology and other STEM fields and particularly education," she said. "We're hoping that ... this is the place where the genesis of ideas can actually start and that people who would not normally come together and talk about these things do come together and create new ideas."

The Austin Energy Regional Science Festival ended two weeks ago, with more than 600 middle and high school students and more than 2,000 elementary school students participating. A representative from the science fair encouraged attendees to participate in the next fair and introduced Jack Andraka, a student scientist who won first place for his science fair project—a paper sensor that can detect pancreatic cancer in minutes—at the 2012 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair.

Andraka described his first science fair in middle school as a "Hunger Games"-esque challenge where students competed to win prizes including laptops.

"At the beginning it was me going for the laptop. I mean, any kid would go for the laptop. But at the end, it was me going for the thrill of doing scientific discovery," he said.

After a close family friend died of pancreatic cancer when Andraka was 13, he began researching how that cancer is detected and learned the current method was an $800 test that had not been updated in the past 60 years.

"Armed with ninth grade biology, I decided to go out and change cancer diagnostics," he said.

Carstarphen said Andraka's extraordinary contributions to education and humanity set the example for students here.

"We have such an incredible opportunity right here in Austin," she said. "This is one of the most amazing cities to live and work in in the world."