The scientists of tomorrow

Wantagh High School’s Science Olympiad team will return to the state competition in March after placing among the top six teams at the regional meet at the school last Saturday.

The all-day event at Wantagh High featured 44 teams from nearly two dozen high schools in eastern Nassau County. More than 600 students took part in 23 events testing their scientific knowledge. Syosset High School was the overall winner.

Several of the events were open to the public, such as the bridge-building competition in the main lobby. Students built bridges in advance, attached buckets to them and added sand until they broke. The Wright Stuff in the gymnasium had students flying rubber band-powered airplanes, while on the other side of the room, competitors tested their electric vehicles, which had to move a certain distance.

Other events included tests, labs and experiments. “You’re around other people who like what you like,” said Wantagh sophomore Michael Hennig, a first-year participant in Science Olympiad. He noted the tremendous amount of research and studying that must be done in advance.

“It’s a different kind of science than we do in school,” added sophomore Karen Kawecki. “It’s more hands-on.”

Wantagh had three teams entered in the competition, and its Team A placed fifth overall. It picked up 12 medals, including four gold for anatomy, cell biology, Disease Detectives and Game On.

Game On was a trial event last year and added on a permanent basis this year. Teams of two had 45 minutes to design a video game based on the theme “magic.” Peter Mountanos, who coordinated the event, said that students were judged based on the game’s creativity, originality, complexity and how well it worked. “It’s a really good opportunity to expose kids to programming,” he said.

Wantagh’s Team B earned 10 medals and Team C picked up six. Neighboring MacArthur High School’s top team finished 15th overall with four medals.

“They have a great time,” MacArthur Science Olympiad adviser David Friedman said of his students. “There’s a lot of camaraderie and they make new friends.”

MacArthur junior Laurie Elkowitz participated in two events, including Air Trajectory, in which she had to shoot a ping pong ball onto a target using an air cannon her team built in advance. She said she enjoyed seeing the machines made by students at other schools. “It’s good to see what works and what doesn’t work,” she said.

One of her teammates, junior Jake Iannacone, has participated in Science Olympiad since middle school. “I like that we can all show our knowledge in a competitive yet fun way,” he said.

This was the second year in a row Wantagh has hosted the regional competition. Wantagh’s Science Olympiad adviser, Rich Colavita, said that a lot of planning goes into it to make sure the day runs smoothly. Many of his colleagues in the science department helped out on Jan. 30.

Colavita said that while the students did help with some of the planning, they primarily focused on their events. “I think they worked more than I could have expected,” he said. “The amount of hours they put in really is amazing. They leave it all out there.”

Theresa Bianco, co-adviser of Farmingdale High School’s Science Olympiad club, which sent three teams, said Colavita and his colleagues at Wantagh should be commended for their work. “Well organized, well planned,” she said of the competition. “This is a great place to have it. Everyone’s been very helpful.”

Wantagh senior Emily Latif has participated in Science Olympiad for four years and has been at the regional competition at three different venues. None is better than Wantagh High, she said, adding that the entire team puts effort into making it a warm and welcoming environment for the students and teachers from other schools.

Junior Brian Tretter said that while Wantagh students have a slight advantage in knowing the layout of the school and being able to test their projects in the rooms where the competitions will be held, they still have to go out and work their hardest to win.

Kathy Cahill, chairwoman of Wantagh’s science department, said she was proud of the students for their hospitality. “We get such positive feedback from all of the other schools,” she said. “What makes this go well is everybody from Wantagh is invested in the success of this event. Everybody really puts forth their best effort.”

The state competition will be held March 11-12 in Syracuse.