Student news: Junior Academy of Science awards, National Spanish Exam, dean's list and more

State science award winners

Several Fox Chapel Area School District students won awards in the virtual State Competition of the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science (PJAS).

District first-place state winners were seniors Jackson Romero and Sanjay Seshan; juniors Zoe Lakkis and Siddharth Yende; sophomores Lawrence Liu and Arvind Seshan; freshman Adhitya Thirumala; and eighth-graders Anna Delale-O’Connor and Etash Jhanji. Second-place awards went to freshman Lakshanya Rajaganapathi and eighth-grader Rohit Velankar.

They were among students in grades 7-12 from across Pennsylvania who competed.

Students researched their science projects for several months and each of the students was required to submit a voice-over PowerPoint presentation on the science project for a panel of judges.

National Spanish Exam

Shady Side Academy Senior School junior Lars Barkman achieved “Premio de Plata” recognition on the National Spanish Exam.

The silver medal signifies his placement in the 90th percentile nationwide.

The National Spanish Exam is a motivational contest to recognize student achievement in the study of Spanish and to stimulate further interest.

The online exam is given by about 4,000 middle and high school teachers throughout the country.

Dean’s list

• Samantha Elaine Williams was named to the spring 2021 dean’s list at Kutztown University. To be eligible for the dean’s list, an undergraduate student must be registered for at least 12 credits and have a minimum GPA of 3.60.

• James Balzer of Aspinwall and Patrick Poznik of Sharpsburg were named to the dean’s list for the spring 2021 semester at Slippery Rock University. The dean’s list consists of undergraduate students who earned an adjusted semester GPA of 3.5 or higher, based on a schedule of at least 12 newly attempted and earned credits.

Graduate

Jessica Hertzberg has earned a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering with honors from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta.

Hertzberg was among approximately 4,435 undergraduate and graduate students who earned their degrees during the Spring 2021 semester and were recognized during the Institute’s 260th commencement exercises May 7-8 at Bobby Dodd Stadium.

Spring musicals

Aquinas Academy’s middle school students performed Narnia plays from the works of C.S. Lewis, but unlike previous years, when there was one large middle school play, Director Mike Flynn chose to perform one play per grade in order to keep within social distancing guidelines.

The eighth-grade students performed The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; the seventh-grade students performed Prince Caspian; and the sixth-grade students performed The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

Flynn has directed 33 drama productions for Aquinas Academy. Senior Benjamin Stalder was the music director for all three plays. Maria Taglianetti and Brady Buchanan painted the scenery and designed the sets, respectively. Rosemary Meland provided costume design.