Budding scientists at New Rochelle High School are getting a jump start on their careers and leapfrogging over future competition with the help of an innovative science program.
Nearly 100 students in 10th through 12th grades are part of the school’s Science Research Program that runs throughout the entire year. During the summer, students are paired with a scientific mentor that they find on their own and engage in ongoing scientific research. The mentors are found in a variety of settings including universities, hospitals, private research facilities, and with companies in scientific-based industries such as pharmaceuticals and biotechnology.
In the past year, students have worked with scientists at the biotechnology company Regeneron, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Students have also worked remotely with international scientists based as far away as Japan.
Jeff Wuebber, one of the program’s coordinators, said that more than 95 percent of students in the program enter into science majors in college, and many of the students who entered into the program at its outset are now doctoral students.
In early December, the school announced that five members of the Class of 2026, four of whom are part of the Science Research Program, have been named recipients of full, four-year QuestBridge scholarships and will be heading to top universities including Harvard, MIT, Northwestern, Colgate and the University of Pennsylvania. Questbridge scholarships support students for whom top-tier colleges are financially out of reach.
In a statement after the awards were announced, Wuebber said, “This recognition for our students is the result of our district’s wholehearted investment in and support of our program. What these students have accomplished is truly life-changing. We are so proud that the Science Research Program was able to contribute to their personal and academic growth that might not have otherwise been possible. This has been our vision since our program’s inception, and we look forward to its continued growth and success for future students.”
On a recent morning, students were spending time in the science lab working with genetic material for research on blood cancers and diabetes. Following a summer of research, the students will return to school to finish up their data analysis, write papers and enter prestigious science competitions such as the Regeneron Science Talent Search and the Westchester Science and Engineering Fair.
Breana Sinkfield-Tyler, a senior who has been in the program for three years, has done research at Weill Cornell Medical Center. She said that she is interested in becoming an MD/PhD student in college and hopes to study blood cancers, hematology and oncology.
“The science research program has really helped me to learn about what I was passionate about,” Sinkfield-Tyler said. “I think it’s really prepared me for my future and inspired me to take it even further when I’m in college and beyond.”
Claire Sehdeva, also a senior, and who has done research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, said that the program has given her the opportunity for experiences that high school students don’t usually get. She said that she’s worked in two different labs where she was the only high school student. “Everyone else was graduate students or working in the lab to get their PhDs.” She said she was able to obtain skills that she otherwise wouldn’t have been exposed to until later on in her education.
Erica Curran, who also directs the program, talks about how the program gives the students a leg up on other college-bound high school students pursuing careers in the sciences. “It definitely propels them to the top of a short list when it comes to applying for internships in college, even getting into college,” she said.
“It is incredibly inspirational and transformational for these students once they leave high school,” said Jeff Wuebber. “It’s not just college focused, it becomes something that they do in their later life once they leave college.”
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This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: New Rochelle High School budding scientists get jump start on careers
Reporting by Seth Harrison, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
