Every year, students and faculty in the Science and Language departments gather one night to celebrate several achievements its students realizes. Science Fair winners, Language National Honor Society inductees, and Lab Assistants are all honored for their hard work. The night begins with a gathering in the church, where Mrs. Kain announces the inductees into the Latin, Spanish, and French Honor Societies, and is followed by Mrs. Bergman announcing the winners of the science fair in each subject, and concludes with the announcing of Lab Assistants. This year was no different, with the recognition of Language National Honor Inductees coming first.
There were nearly 20 inductees this year, an impressive number, with the majority coming from the Spanish department; The remaining few were split equally between French and Latin. Becoming a member of this prestigious club is very difficult, as one must maintain a 94 or above for 8 quarters in a row. This impressive feat is something our Language director, Mrs. Kain, is very proud of. “It’s difficult to obtain the grades to stay in, and it’s a continued commitment because you agree to tutor kids who need help in languages. I’m very proud of our inductees.”
After, the winners of the science fair are announced. There were over forty winners this years, as there are five subjects, with three winners in each subject as well as honorable mentions. In Honors Chemistry, students individually created a project based on a pre approved subject by Mrs. Bergman. The first place winner in Honors Chemistry was Noelle Ventura, who did a “Comparison of the Solar Energy Generated by Monocrystalline and Polycrystalline Solar Panels”. In Physics, students were required to apply their knowledge of mechanical physical concepts. The first place winners in Physics were Sean Culley, Peter Jurlina, and PJ Keegan, with their project “Fling Kings Trebuchet”. In Forensic Science, Students were required to recreate a crime scene using accurate evidential science. The winners this year were Megan Maloney, Lynelle Scanlon, and Courtney Schmitt with their project “The Barn Blaze”. Lynelle Scanlon shared some of her emotions when learning she won the science fair, “We put a lot of effort into this project, but managed to have fun the entire time. We wanted to make sure our project was unique and we put forth a lot of effort. It is really rewarding to see my hardwork pay off.” In Anatomy, groups of students were assigned to recreate animals from skeletons, and the winners were Grace Armstrong and Bridget Burrus with “The Easter Bunny.” Lastly for Engineering, students were instructed to design and build a verification system for basic engineering principles. The winner this year were Jake Rowholt and Tim Theobald, who created a personalized 3D medical cast. This year, the robotics classes also created projects, but they were not judged at the fair. Mrs. Bergman was very pleased with this year’s science fair, noting how smoothly it ran despite the addition of two entirely new subjects. “The projects turned out great! I was really happy that we expanded the scope of the Science Fair with Engineering and Robotics.”.
by Alex Phipps ’17