Hewlett High School team wins Siemens prize

For the second straight year, students from Hewlett High School have won the $100,000 grand prize in the team category of the prestigious Siemens Math, Science and Technology Competition, beating out five other regional finalist teams.

The senior winners, JiaWen Pei, Zainab Mahmood and Priyanka Wadgaonkar, were announced on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., where regional finalists had gathered to present their projects on Dec. 9.

“It was a bit surreal — I was shaking on stage,” said Pei, 17. “It is very rewarding. It shows all our hard work has paid off.”

“We were definitely very shocked,” said Mahmood, 17. “We tried our best. Everyone [we competed against] was amazing; we’re just very lucky, and we’re knowledgeable.”
Hewlett students Michael Green, Ayman Haider and Stephen Ng were regional finalists in this year’s competition, and the school had two sets of semifinalists: Samantha DiSalvo, Ryan Kenny and Amy Vitha, and Joshua Elbaz, Kenneth Collado and Sara Flamenco.

Last year, Hewlett High seniors Jeremy Appelbaum, William Gil and Allen Shin shared the $100,000 in award money, also in the team category.

“I’m in awe,” said Dr. Terence Bissoondial, who runs Hewlett’s research program. “Last year I thought it was unbelievable. I never though we’d get this far again. To win the grand prize consecutively has never been done in Siemens competitions.”

Hewlett-Woodmere School District Superintendent Dr. Joyce Bisso was in Washington, and observed the formal presentation of the projects to the judges last Sunday. She said she was impressed by how the students acquitted themselves, and with the work of Bissoondial. “They represented the Hewlett-Woodmere public schools community well with their deep knowledge of the complexity and meaning of their project,” Bisso said, adding that all of the research is conducted in the high school’s laboratory, and that projects demand a three-year commitment from the students. “Throughout the days and nights, Dr. Bissoondial was a constant advisor and coach. His pride in the accomplishments of his students was evident in every exchange.”

The students’ project, “The Isolation and Characterization of an Ozone Responsive Stress Related Protein (OZS) in Ceratopteris richardii,” showed that multiple copies of the gene OZS would increase plant resistance to ozone, resulting in greater crop yields. Their research was conducted over the course of three years. At the competition, the participants make a public 12-minute presentation and then are sequestered with the judges, who are experts in their fields, and answer a variety of questions about their work.

“Being part of the Siemens Competition was amazing,” said Wadgaonkar, 16. “It showed that we are thoroughly knowledgeable in our field.”

David Etzwiler, chief executive officer of the Siemens Foundation, said that the Hewlett team “demonstrated incredible commitment to the advancement of science, math and technology.” He added, “These students represent the future of our competitive global work force, and will propel our nation toward continued economic growth and success. We look forward to seeing their future accomplishments, in college and beyond.”

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