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School Notebook: LI Winners Of Regional Science Olympiads
A team from Great Neck South High School won this year's Nassau West Regional Science Olympiad, which was held at Kellenberg Memorial High School in Uniondale. Pictured here are members of the school's three teams that competed in that tournament. Credit: Nicole Spinelli
Teams from Great Neck South, Syosset and Ward Melville high schools have taken the top spots in the high school division of this year's Long Island Regional Science Olympiads.
Eighty-six teams participated in one of the three competitions: Nassau East, Nassau West and Eastern Long Island regional tournaments. The three first-place teams — along with 16 other top-performing teams — have qualified for the state tournament next weekend in Syracuse.
In total, 13 high school regionals were held statewide with teams of up to 15 students demonstrating their knowledge in categories such as Disease Detectives and Rocks & Minerals.
"The team's outstanding performance not only highlights their exceptional abilities in the field of science, but also speaks to their immeasurably strong work ethic and passion for knowledge," said James Truglio, Great Neck South's co-adviser with Nicole Spinelli.
The other high school teams qualifying for the state tournament are:
From the Nassau West Regional: Chaminade in Mineola, John F. Kennedy in Bellmore, Manhasset, Roslyn and Paul D. Schreiber in Port Washington;
From the Nassau East Regional: Division Avenue in Levittown, Hicksville, Jericho and MacArthur in Levittown;
From the Eastern Long Island Regional: Bay Shore, Bayport-Blue Point, Half Hollow Hills East in Dix Hills, Hauppauge, Earl L. Vandermeulen in Port Jefferson and West Babylon, as well as The Stony Brook School.
"We had a historic number of Ward Melville students participate in this tournament, and we are thrilled to see our team enrollment at an all-time high," Ward Melville's Science Olympiad coaches Jenny Serigano and Mark Suesser said in a statement. "We want to commend our captains and team members for embodying the values of Ward Melville Science Olympiad by being fun-loving and positive while enhancing the tournament experience for other schools."
A stunt rider prepares to jump over Principal Kathryn McNally and Assistant Principal Kerry NeiraIn at Washington Drive Primary School in Centerport as part of a BMX event that rewarded students for collectively reading more than 2,000 hours as part of the Pick a Reading Partner week. Credit: Harborfields School District
COLD SPRING HARBOR
STEAM (and slime) Night
The Cold Spring Harbor School District held its first STEAM Night last month, attracting nearly 1,000 community members to explore the discipline encompassing science, technology, engineering, art and math.
The inaugural event consisted of stations set up throughout the high school that taught topics ranging from electric circuitry to the construction of geometric shapes. There were also stations to create magnetic marble runs as well as slime, ice cream and spin art.
"Cold Spring Harbor hopes to start a new tradition by offering this engaging and interactive event next year, not only to increase participation, but to create lasting memories," said Superintendent Jill Gierasch.
In Mastic Beach, Tangier Smith Elementary School collected hundreds of animal care items for local rescue groups as part of an Animal Appreciation Night that attracted nearly 400 community members. During the event, attendees learned about a variety of wildlife from organizations including the Long Island Rabbit Rescue Group and Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown. Credit: William Floyd School District
EAST ISLIP
Interim superintendent
Paul Manzo was appointed interim superintendent last month of the East Islip School District. He replaced John Dolan, who retired.
Manzo has served as the district's assistant superintendent for instruction and personnel since 2016. Before that, he spent 14 years with the Sachem Central School District, where he held positions including assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, and assistant superintendent for administration.
"It is an honor to be able to continue to support our administrators and staff as we provide our students with a quality education," Manzo said. "I look forward to the future and continuing this work and our journey on the pathway to excellence."
Mineola Middle School students stage a performance of "Mary Poppins"; the production included more than 150 cast and 30 crew members. Credit: Mineola School District
SEA CLIFFUniversal pre-K
The North Shore School District has launched a universal prekindergarten program that consists of three classes of about 15 students at Glen Head and Sea Cliff elementary schools and the YMCA at Glen Cove. Participants were determined by a universal lottery in December.
Funding was provided by a grant from the New York State Education Department's Office of Early Learning and the Office of State Aid.
"They are already a valuable part of our school community," Sea Cliff Interim Principal Megan McCormack said of the prekindergartners. "Our youngest students have met new friends and had a few visits and welcomes from our oldest students."
In Lynbrook, students at Marion Street Elementary School learn about the importance of local shellfish during a presentation about the Billion Oyster Project, a nonprofit organization that seeks to restore oysters to New York Harbor. The presentation was led by representatives from Nassau BOCES in association with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County. Credit: Lynbrook School District
WESTBURYWINS Academy
The Westbury School District has created an Everybody WINS Academy that offers a variety of learning opportunities for two hours each Saturday. WINS stands for "What I Need on Saturdays."
The academy, which is held at Park Avenue Elementary School, allows children in grades kindergarten to five to join a STEAM Academy, Debate Club, Theatre Club or Financial Literacy Club. STEAM stands for science, technology engineering, art and math.
"It is a pleasure to be part of the experience as our children learn about finances, express themselves through song and dance, learn to reason logically, and develop oral expression," the academy's lead teacher, Antoinette Campbell, and assistant lead teacher, Lisa Monzillo, said in a statement.
In Lynbrook, students at Marion Street Elementary School learn about the importance of local shellfish during a presentation about the Billion Oyster Project, a nonprofit organization that seeks to restore oysters to New York Harbor. The presentation was led by representatives from Nassau BOCES in association with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County. Credit: Lynbrook School District
ISLANDWIDE
Coca-Cola Scholars
Five Long Island students have been named among 250 regional finalists nationwide in the Coca-Cola Scholars Program.
The program will name 150 scholars this spring to receive $20,000 scholarships.
The regional finalists' next step is to participate in 20-minute interviews with a regional committee composed of previous scholarship recipients and a staff member of the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation.
Long Island's regional finalists and their high schools are:
Kevin Ou Yang and Rachel Woo, Great Neck South; Samir Batheja, Half Hollow Hills East in Dix Hills; Kevin Zhu, Jericho; and Sabrina Guo, Syosset.
This year's program received more than 91,000 applications from students nationwide who were evaluated on factors such as academic achievements, community service and leadership skills.
Students at South Bay Elementary School in West Babylon create arcade games out of cardboard in the school's cafeteria as part of Global School Play Day. Credit: West Babylon School District
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
Local Family Seeks Kidney For Son, 25
Gloucester native Greer Robert Viau, 25, the son of an artist and dance instructor, graduated college in 2020 anticipating a normal adult life.
The son of Bob and Donna Viau attended Gloucester public schools, attending East Gloucester Elementary, O'Maley Middle and Gloucester High. During high school, he worked at Bass Rocks Golf Club and for the Teen Artist Guild (TAG), a program at Cape Ann Art Haven.
"The boys grew up loving to fish with Bob in Gloucester Harbor. Our only family vacations were spent camping in Maine and Vermont in our beat-up pop-up," reminisced his mother.
After high school, Greer put himself through Salem State University, graduating with honors in computer science with a minor in math, before he entered the work world.
Then, last month, he learned his kidneys — he was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease in 2021 — had suddenly deteriorated to a point that he is now on a kidney transplant list.
His family now hopes to find a kidney donor match. They have reached out on social media, and continue to spread the word through friends and family. Greer's father designed large magnets for their vehicles that will have Greer's QR code and information about his need for a kidney.
"In doing this and spreading the word, the overall knowledge will not only hopefully help Greer, but others as well," said his mother. "We're telling the world and I know it's a huge ask, but there are willing people out there. This all has been so surreal, heartbreaking and challenging beyond belief. It feels like a weird twisted nightmare. My tears are heavy but being emotional doesn't mean I'm not strong."
She recounted how her son once said to the nurses: "She cries all the time. It would be weird if she didn't."
"In literally a moment — life changes that moment your child becomes sick, wrote Viau on her Facebook page. "I mean life changing, take your breath away, sick. When his life is in the hands of others to make the difference for him to grow older, have a job he loves, hike with his friends and fish with his dad and brother, and make pizza for his girlfriend."
Unexpected diagnosis
At an annual physical in 2021, Greer's doctor noticed some unexpected numbers in his lab work even though Greer felt fine. After repeating the blood work, Greer was referred to a nephrologist who ordered a biopsy. It revealed Greer was already in Stage 3 failure, more specifically collapsing focal segmental glomerulosclerosis. Doctors believe some undiagnosed virus settled in his body at some point and perhaps was the initial cause. Greer was put on medication and monitored regularly. The hope was that he could remain stable indefinitely.
He went on with his life, working hybrid at a job in robotics he loved and moved into his first apartment in Boston with his girlfriend. His best friend since kindergarten also moved in and life was good.
But that trajectory was to come to an abrupt halt. Greer got COVID-19 in December and then was part of a major layoff in mid-January 2023. Bouts of stomach aches prompted a visit to his primary care physician in late January, and new lab work revealed his condition had deteriorated. Another biopsy revealed more damage.
His nephrologist determined a transplant was no longer a matter of "if" but "when." He referred Greer to the Brigham and Women's transplant program. The family also attended a dialysis clinic to learn about that procedure.
"It has happened so fast, from being in a stable condition to this," said Donna Viau. "We are all dazed and asking how did this happen — the big "why" and I know many people ask themselves that in respect to their own lives regarding health. My son said to me: 'Mom, who is going to give me a kidney out of their body to save my life?' I said: Greer, there are a lot of people who believe in donations for many reasons and you don't know what their circumstances are.'"
Greer's team hoped he could be stabilized enough to stay off dialysis, but last month he became ill and went to Brigham's emergency room and was admitted for what turned out to be a five-day stay. The Viaus met with various members of the transplant team to learn about his future.
"They explained that this will be the journey for the rest of his life and may be the first of two, maybe three, transplants he will need in his lifetime because donated organs have a certain lifespan," said Donna Viau. "For now this is our priority to receive this first one. He was released on my birthday, Feb. 27, and returned to his apartment. His labs were now putting him in end-stage renal disease."
The rapid decline caused him to go on dialysis the first week in March.
Advocating donorship
Donna Viau said her husband is not a potential donor because of diabetes diagnosed in his 40s, and there are concerns about their 23-year-old son, Dylan, because of his age and the lack of knowledge about the source of Greer's illness. Donna is 63 and in the process of being tested.
"I'm nervous about this next test on March 24 but I hope for the best. Even if I'm not the right match for Greer, I would certainly do the voucher program to help someone else," she added. "There are various types of donorship, and the National Kidney Registry has been amazing at answering questions and advising individuals who are looking to donate for Greer. We continue to advocate and ask everyone to share all posts."
Donna Viau was assigned a "donor mentor" to help the family through this process, and her mentor is actually a rare double living donor, having donated a kidney eight years ago and later part of her liver.
"She talked about why she became a donor. She saw a magnet sign on someone's car and she called the number, which led to donorship," recounted Donna Viau. "It's an individualized process for each donor and each recipient."
The elder Viaus are self employed, and their work was hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Bob, who operates StudioVO Commercial & Fine Art, drives for a local taxi company, and Donna continues to teach dance and theater around the North Shore and Cape Ann.
"We are so grateful for the support, people testing for donorship, prayers, friendship, family and love," Donna Viau said.
For more details, visit Greer's microsite at www.Nkr.Org/ATE793.
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