[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 31 (Thursday, February 16, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E382-E383]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       LONG ISLAND'S OWN EINSTEINS

                                 ______


                         HON. MICHAEL P. FORBES

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 16, 1995
  Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, it is quite an honor for any Representative 
to have one finalist from the Westinghouse science competition from 
their district. I have the unique honor to represent two budding 
scientists recently named finalists for the Westinghouse science 
competition.
  Neil Catillo Srivastava, 17, of Ward Melville High School in East 
Setauket researched nitric oxide and its effect on cell movement and 
wound healing.
  Debleena Sengupta, 17, also of Ward Melville High School, completed a 
project in biochemistry that was designed to remove toxic metals, such 
as uranium, cost-efficiently from water.
  Their outstanding results were made possible by the effort of local 
high schools to establish and maintain intensive research courses, 
staffed by experienced teachers. Since the 1980's the number of high 
schools on Long Island offering such research courses have more than 
tripled; now 40 of 114 public high school are in my eastern Long Island 
district.
  High-technology medicine and environmental sciences are the wave of 
the future. On eastern Long Island, from Smithtown to Montauk and 
across the Nation, parents and teachers are working together to foster 
and support student's natural interest in the sciences. It is this 
natural interest that we must cultivate for the future of this Nation. 
Budding young scientists, like Neal and Debleena, illustrate the 
possibilities for years to come.
  Please, join me in recognizing the incredible success not only of 
Neil and Debleena, but also their teachers and all of eastern Long 
Island's quality schools. I submit for the Record an article in Newsday 
from January 25, 1995, that details their accomplishments.
                     [From Newsday, Jan. 25, 1995]

                        Long Island's Einsteins

                          (By John Hildebrand)
       Long Island led the nation yesterday in the number of 
     students named finalists in the Westinghouse science 
     competition, capturing nine slots out of 41, nearly double 
     the number produced by traditional powerhouse New York City.
       Honored for their research in fields ranging from genetics 
     to treatment of municipal wastewater, the Long Island high-
     school seniors were hailed by teachers and principals as 
     persistent, self-motivated students who had helped their 
     schools ``come of age.'' The nine finalist positions are the 
     most ever won by students on the Island, and surpassed the 
     city's total for the first time.
       Three of the Island's schools produced two finalists each--
     the same number as New York City's legendary Bronx High 
     School of Science. Island schools with twin finalists were 
     Ward Melville High School in East Setauket, John F. Kennedy 
     High School in Bellmore and Paul D. Schreiber High School in 
     Port Washington.
       Three other Island schools--Jericho, Long Beach and 
     Lawrence High Schools--had one finalist each. Jericho's Soo 
     Yeun Kim, who died in a car crash Nov. 28, was honored 
     posthumously--the first such award in the competition's 
     history.
       Results were announced yesterday from the science 
     competition's Washington, D.C., headquarters. All finalists 
     will receive cash awards of at least $1,000, and the top 10 
     will receive larger scholarships including a first prize of 
     $40,000.
       As news of the latest honors swept through school hallways, 
     results were attributed to efforts by local high schools to 
     establish intensive research courses, staffed by teachers 
     experienced in prepping students for competition. Since the 
     1980s, the number of high schools in the region offering such 
     opportunities to students has more than tripled, to a total 
     of about 40 of 114 public high schools on the Island.
       ``This says something about the caliber of Long Island 
     schools--we've come of age here in terms of the programs 
     we're offering,'' said Steven Kussin, principal of Lawrence 
     High School. He formerly taught at Brooklyn's Midwood High 
     School, another city school that traditionally excels in the 
     Westinghouse contest.
       Lawrence High School's winning student, Joel Wollman, 18, 
     had submitted a project involving extensive psychological 
     research.
       Like many colleagues, Kussin views the focus on science 
     research in his school as part of a broader movement that 
     also involves encouraging larger number of students to take 
     college-level Advanced Placement courses. ``Standards are 
     back, and the proof is in the pudding,'' the principal added.
       Local educators say this year's Westinghouse results are 
     all the more remarkable since the national contest has grown 
     increasingly competitive. Since 1985, the number of science 
     projects submitted by high-school seniors nationwide has 
     jumped more than 60 percent, to 1,660 this year. Local 
     teachers and principals generally voice satisfaction over 
     results, though some worry the competition and publicity 
     surrounding it could put undue pressure on some students.
       Finalists themselves accepted the backslaps of classmates 
     and teachers yesterday, while also trying to focus their 
     attention on midterm exams that are being administered this 
     week across New York State. Many school authorities said 
     official recognition would be extended to finalists as soon 
     as normal classes resume.
       ``I was just totally shocked,'' said one winner, Supinda 
     Bunyavanich, 17, of Port Washington, who received the news by 
     phone on Monday
      afternoon. ``I was having a snack and watching TV, and then 
     I was nearly screaming.''
       Another finalist, Daniel Sims, 17, of Bellmore said that 
     school officials ``went nuts'' when he called them with the 
     news after being notified himself by contest officials.
       For Lawrence's Joel Wollman, finalist status brought 
     special satisfaction The teenager long had endured good-
     natured ribbing from classmates over his psychological 
     research, which involved efforts to discover why one person's 
     yawning prompts the same behavior in others. ``Once I entered 
     the finals, all that stopped,'' the teenager said.
       Finalists were drawn from 300 national semifinalists, 
     including 41 on the Island. They will be flown to Washington 
     in March to compete before panels of eminent researchers for 
     $205,000 in scholarships. The competition, known as Science 
     Talent Search, draws funding from a foundation established by 
     Westinghouse Electric Corp.
       New York City, as usual, produced far more semifinalists 
     than the Island this year, with 84. But the advantage shifted 
     with the announcement of finalists--New York had five--an 
     irony not lost on educators who have seen Long Island schools 
     draw upon the experience of city high schools.
       ``What suburban schools are beginning to understand is that 
     if you want to win, you have to give teachers enough time to 
     work with students on their projects,'' said Stan Teitel, 
     coordinator for student research at Manhattan's Stuyvesant 
     High School. Stuyvesant produced 29 semifinalists, the 
     highest number for any school. It had two finalists.
       Directors of school research programs on the Island 
     acknowledge their debt to the city's schools, while adding 
     that their recent success is due to other factors as well. 
     Among these are the support of parents with enough money to 
     send their teenagers to summer research institutes on college 
     campuses, and the presence of local research centers, such as 
     the State University at Stony Brook, which supplement the 
     training provided by high schools. A majority of the Long 
     Island finalists attended such summer programs.
       ``It's Long Island coming into its own,'' said Melanie 
     Krieger, research coordinator at Ward Melville High School, 
     which produced 12 semifinalists this year. The schools' 
     finalists are Debleena Sengupta, 17, whose project dealt with 
     removal of metal contaminants from wastewater, and Neil 
     Castillo Srivastava, 17, who examined the use of nitric oxide 
     in healing wounds.
       Some of this year's local finalists drew on personal 
     experience for their projects. Reed Levine, 17, of Bellmore, 
     did an extensive study of ski accidents in an attempt to 
     improve safety, after a neighbor died in an accident. Tracy 
     Phillips, 17, of Long Beach, developed an electronic sensor 
     to help the sight-impaired count currency, in memory of a 
     brother who was blind and died young.
       But there was no award more poignant than that given 
     posthumously to Jericho's 
     [[Page E383]] Soo Yeun Kim. Jericho High School will receive 
     a special $5,000 grant in her name. The school's principal, 
     Mathew Mandery, said the news of Soo's award was welcome, but 
     it also brought back the sadness of her loss.
       ``I guess in moments like this, we are undeniably proud of 
     her accomplishments, but just wish she were here for us,'' he 
     said.
       As the number of students entering the Westinghouse 
     competition has mounted, teachers in both city and suburban 
     schools have tried to encourage students to look upon 
     research as an activity to be enjoyed for its own sake, 
     rather than for winning prizes. Ward Melville High School's 
     research program has adopted the motto, ``To Be In It Is to 
     Win It.'' The Bronx High School of Science takes a similar 
     approach.
       Some educators worry, nonetheless, that students who don't 
     win at least semifinalist status might become discouraged, 
     especially in light of the fact that many devote two or more 
     years to their projects. ``Kids who might have the potential 
     to be wonderful researchers later on might come away from 
     this experience with a bad taste in their mouth,'' said 
     Carole Greene, an assistant principal at Bronx Science.
       Others insist that most students involved in Westinghouse 
     competitions have wide enough interests that they are 
     unlikely to become unraveled over a single contest.
     

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