GN students win in WAC science fair

The Island Now

Thirty-three young scientists from Great Neck North and South High Schools took awards at the WAC Lighting Foundation Invitational Science Fair. 

Schools were invited to compete, displaying research projects in such categories as computer science, molecular biology, behavioral science, chemistry, and physics. Projects were judged by academicians and professionals from the NY Metro area. Students competed individually, or in teams, in one of two grade categories: seniors (grade 12) or underclassmen (grades 9–11).

Science Fair faculty advisors/science research teachers were Alan Schorn, Anita Tseng, and Dr. Marie van Nieuwenhuizen for North High students; and Dr. Carol Hersh, Sepideh Roozdar, and Dr. James Truglio, and  social studies teacher Michelle Sorise for South High students. 

First Place

First Place winners included: Great Neck North High underclassman Omid Cohensedgh in Behavioral Science; and Great Neck South High senior Nahae Kim and underclasswoman Radhika Viswanathan, both in General Biology.

Second Place Awards

Second Place was won by North High seniors Deriam Chirinos in Physics and Astronomy, and Julia Zhuang in Earth and Environmental Science; and underclasswomen Ayelet Abitbul and Clara Sava-Segal, both in Behavioral Science.

South High underclass teams Lelina Chang and Cristina Lai, and Kyutae (John) Kim and Jay Zussman won in General Biology.

Third Place Awards

Senior Sean Pierre and underclasswoman Jessy Lin from North High each took Third Place in Prototype Engineering.

South High senior Lauren Shum took a Third Place in Earth and Environmental Sciences, as did underclasswoman Christine Chung in General Biology.

Merit Awards

Awards of Merit went to North High underclassmen Yinny Chan in Earth and Environmental Science, and Ashley Radparvar in General Biology.

South High underclasswomen Christine An and Katie Tan in General Biology, and Alanna Fichtel in Behavioral Science each took Awards of Merit.

Honorable Mentions

North High senior Gabriella Haghighi and underclasswomen Sage Rosenthal and Cuilee Sha took Honorable Mentions in General Biology, as did underclasswoman Yung Wei (Jessie) Hsiao in Chemistry.

Individual Honorable Mentions were won by South High underclassmen, Christine Lee in Behavioral Science, Margot Metz in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Zihan (Jeffrey) Wang in Earth and Environmental Sciences. South High underclass team winners were Robbin Jang and Melanie Ngo, and Jacob Mathai and Neil Thivalapill in General Biology; and Evangeline Giannopoulos and Alexander Putter in Behavioral Science.

Science Fair Corporate Sponsors

WAC Lighting is the current sponsor of the Research Association’s Annual Invitational Science Fair. They have promised sponsorship for the next four years. The Fair is held each April under the auspices of the Research Association. The Association is a consortium of 13 Long Island high schools represented by 13 science research teachers.

Past corporate sponsors for the Invitational Science Fair have included: LeaRonal Inc., research and investing; Rohm and Haas, chemical manufacturing; and Shipley Associates, management and development.

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