John Jay Students Take Science Research Honors

Grace Mango’s investigation of the blue-green algal growth at her neighborhood lake, Lake Oscaleta, took top place in the Earth and Environmental Sciences category at the Westchester-Rockland Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (WRJSHS). She traces the genesis of her topic back to a conversation with Janet Andersen, a citizen-scientists and president of the Three Lakes Council in South Salem, three years ago.

Eliza Wein, currently the number one eBirder at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, won third place in WRJSHS’s Earth and Environmental Science category for her research on urban bird migration. Madeleine Panek’s research on age-related macular degeneration, inspired by a family member’s degenerative eye disease, placed third in the Cellular and Molecular Biology category.

Eliza reflects on how working with her mentor at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology not only developed her ability to communicate with professionals and present her work, it  strengthened her connection with the college of her choice.  “I was extremely fortunate to be accepted into Cornell early decision,” said Eliza. “I have every intent to keep up my research and engage with the ornithology community at Cornell.”

Sophia Kreckler placed first in the Local Speaker Session in Neurology for her work on ultrasound as an effective treatment for neurodegenerative diseases. She was drawn to the topic by her uncle’s struggle with Parkinson's Disease and now looks towards continuing her research in college. “Because of this class I have a clear idea of what I want to do in the future,” said Sophia.

After WRJSHS, Grace Mango proceeded to Update JSHS, where she took top honors in her field, placing 1st in the Environmental Science room! Her work was described by judges as "very scientific" and "excellent."  Grace presented and competed in the finals there, finishing in 4th place. She will proceed to the 59th National SHS on April 14 - 17 where she will present her work in a poster format. 

“I am incredibly proud of our Science department’s teachers, students and leaders,” said principal Dr. Steven Siciliano. “Under these circumstances especially, this is absolutely inspiring.”

Grace Mango placed first in the Earth and Environmental Sciences category and will move onto the Upstate JSHS where she will present her work for a chance to go to the National JSHS. Her work: Comparing the utilization of inorganic and organic phosphate in blue-green algal growth.

Madeleine Panek placed third in the Cellular and Molecular Biology category and will present a poster at the Upstate JSHS. Her work: The Influence of MicroRNAs in the Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition in Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Sofia Gil placed third in the Math/Computer Science category and will present a poster at the Upstate JSHS. Her work: Chemistry with Qubits: Modeling the Diels Alder Reaction Between Ethylene and Cyclopentadiene Using Quantum Technology.

Eliza Wein placed fourth in the Earth and Environmental Science category and will present a poster at the Upstate JSHS. Her work: Has seasonal timing of urban bird migration shifted in the last two decades? An exploration using weather surveillance radar data in ten US cities.

Quade Albert placed 5th in the Cellular and Molecular Biology category and is an alternate to present a poster at Upstate JSHS. His work: Genetic Engineering of the HIV-1 Capsid to Address the Orientation Problem During Cryo-electron Micrography.

Sophia Kreckler placed first in the Local Speaker Session in Neurology. Her work: Automated Quantification of Microglial Response after Focused Ultrasound-induced Opening of the Blood Brain Barrier.