Rye Neck High School junior Maelle Aubry, who is a member of the Science Research Program, participated in the virtual Somers/Westlake Science Fair on June 5. She earned second place for her project, “How Can Vitamin E Mitigate the Effects of Alzheimer’s Disease,” in the Life Science category.

Throughout the year, Aubry, who is interested in neuroscience, has been connecting the aging Alzheimer’s brain to a plant model in hopes to mimic and demonstrate how vitamin E can lessen the effects of Alzheimer’s disease. Next year, she hopes to carry out her experiment with plants to test her theory.

“Maelle is a determined student working through COVID restrictions to develop an intricate project,” teacher Kristi Rachiele said. “Her research will allow her the ability to connect the effects of vitamin E on plants with her main focus on patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Her innovative ideas are exciting, and I look forward to the progress she will make next year.”

Approximately 494 students from 33 high school schools participated in the virtual science competition.

The Rye Neck school community celebrated its Class of 2021 members with a car parade on May 27. Having decorated their vehicles with balloons and signs, the students waved and smiled at spectators along the route from Harbor Island to the middle/high school campus.

A crowd of teachers, students, staff and administrators greeted the graduating seniors on campus, where Principal Tina Wilson read the name of each student.

Rye Neck High School students have been working diligently behind the scenes to produce Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Oklahoma!” as their spring musical. Filmed at various outdoor locations, including on campus and at Daniel Warren Elementary School, as well as the Jay Estate and Marshlands Conservancy, the one-of-a-kind filmed musical will be livestreamed on June 4-5.

The show features a wonderful cast and crew of Rye Neck students, and it is directed by Scott Harris, with film production by David Golden, choreography by Francesca DeAngelo, and music direction by Kathryn Krull. In addition, a group of Golden’s film students have been filming and editing the final project over the course of a few weeks.

“It couldn’t have been done without the dedication of our student cast and crew, who braved cold and rainy weather, rehearsals by cohort, lots of heavy lifting and learning an entirely new method of performance to bring this filmed musical to your home,” Harris said.

Harris said he was excited to share the musical with the community and described it as a labor of love among everyone involved in the production.

“Audiences will be thrilled to see this classic Broadway musical reimagined for student film and produced during pandemic times,” Harris said. “They’ll be blown away by the talent, professionalism and artistic wizardry on display.”

The musical will be livestreamed on June 4 at 7 p.m. and on June 5 at 1 p.m. To purchase your tickets, click here.

Rye Neck High School has named its distinguished seniors Gabriel Miller and Zachary Leontiou as valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively, of the Class of 2021. Both students said they were honored to receive the school’s top honors.

Miller said it was rewarding to see all of his hard work and love of learning over the years come to fruition. He attributed his success to the support of his teachers and friends, who have encouraged him to pursue his passions, always believed in him and never stopped cheering him on.

“My experience at Rye Neck has been one of community,” Miller said. “From the moment I entered Rye Neck Schools 13 years ago, I felt a sense of togetherness. Having the fortune of growing up with scores of classmates since kindergarten, seeing each other grow and pursue our varied interests is a unique experience that I am grateful Rye Neck gave me.”

Throughout high school, Miller has participated in an array of extracurricular activities and held a variety of leadership roles, including president of the Student Senate, class treasurer, and co-captain of the Mock Trial and Science Olympiad teams. He is the founder and president of the school’s Mu Alpha Theta chapter, a principal researcher for Action Research for Community Change, and a member of the Library Advisory Board.

Miller will attend Williams College in the fall, where he plans to explore the school’s political economy program.

Leontiou attributed his success to his strong work ethic and drive toward achieving his goals, as well as the support of his family, friends, classmates and teachers. He described Rye Neck as a tight-knit community of kind, generous and unique people, with whom he has forged meaningful relationships.

“Since I was very young, I have possessed a great deal of internal motivation to succeed academically,” Leontiou said. “Over time, I built confidence in my own capabilities which pushed me to work hard on a consistent basis. At this point, the work ethic and drive are established habits and I am grateful that they have culminated in receiving this honor.”

Throughout his high school career, Leontiou has participated in a multitude of activities. He is a member of the Student Senate, baseball team and stage crew for the high school musical. Outside of school, he is a volunteer with the local ambulance corp, tutors students in math, science and social studies, and has completed a genetic research internship at Burke Neurological Institute.

Leontiou will attend Brown University in the fall, where he plans to pursue his passions in biology, psychology and philosophy.

Members of Rye Neck High School’s Mock Trial team participated in Law Day, held virtually on May 18. During the annual event, the students presented the case of Macca Elery McLaughlin vs. Lee and Robbie McLaughlin, in which the virtual jury found the defendants, Lee and Robbie McLaughlin, guilty of breaching their fiduciary duties.

“The students did an excellent job of presenting their case and it was a close decision,” social studies teacher and team coach Marcella Scalise said.

Organized by the Westchester Women’s Bar Association and the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the event featured presentations from several legal professionals, including Deputy U.S. Marshal Chris Potok, Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jennifer Ong and FBI special agent Pao Mei Fisher, who discussed their careers and respective roles in the legal system.

“The students learned firsthand accounts of what it is like to be in these positions and the process to get there,” Scalise said.

The Law Day program is designed to educate participants about civics and government to help them understand their role as informed, active citizens in the legal system.

Rye Neck High School students who have been studying the engineering process designed, built and tested their own model rockets. The project was part of a culminating activity in teacher Lori Penesis’ Introduction to Engineering class.

Throughout the learning experience, the students used Tinkercad, a free computer automated design program, to gain a variety of skills, including shaping custom objects, cutting holes in objects, aligning different shapes and increasing or decreasing smoothness. Then, they manufactured each rocket part by hand, using Tinkercad with a 3D printer.

“Students got to choose the length of the body tube, which means that measuring what they wanted to do was extremely important in order to produce a rocket that would be stable when it flies,” Penesis said. “The students really impressed me with their ability to refine their shapes.”

In addition, the students learned about rocket flight stability and gravity as the restoring force, and gained a deeper understanding of the importance of the location of the center of gravity and center of pressure. As they prepared to launch, they also learned about the safety procedures and protocols used by the National Association of Rocketry model rockets.

Penesis said the project was designed to encourage students to think critically, take precise measurements and break down a larger problem into simpler steps.

Rye Neck students showed off their creativity and commitment to their community by participating in the Village of Mamaroneck Coyote Task Force’s “Coyote Safety” poster contest. Forty-eight students submitted their posters, which incorporated images and informative text.

“We saw a wide breadth of style, color and approach,” said Rye Neck Middle School Principal Dr. Eric Lutinski, who organized the contest in collaboration with F.E. Bellows Elementary School Principal Michael Scarantino, the PTSA and the Village of Mamaroneck. “Some students used modern graphic techniques, some used hand drawings, and there was variation in the balance between text and imagery.”

The contest, which was open to K-12 students, was designed to increase student awareness and involvement, address the presence of coyotes in the area and promote safe practices. The students’ posters were judged for clarity of message and artistic effort by Dr. Lutinski and art teachers across the district. The winning posters are on display in each school’s hallways and are projected on video monitors. In addition, the PTSA provided prizes for each first-place winner and runner-up.

Congratulations to the following contest winners:

Daniel Warren Elementary School
• First place – J.R. Diskin, a second grader.
• Second place – Takuto Yoshida, a second grader.
• Third place – Abel Yameogo, a first grader.

F.E. Bellows Elementary School
• First place – Immanuel Tan, a fifth grader.
• Second place – Adriana Pejcic, a fifth grader.
• Third place – Sloane Diskin, a fourth grader.

Rye Neck Middle School
• First place – Airi Ino, a sixth grader.
• Second place – Taylor Vroom, a seventh grader.
• Third place – Kaho Matsumoto, an eighth grader.

Rye Neck High School
• First place – Sofie Thonhauser, a senior.
• Second place – Hikaru Noda, a junior.
• Third place – Monica Kosakowski, a freshman.

Rye Neck High School senior Gabriel Miller, who is a member of the National Math Honor Society, has been awarded a 2021 Mu Alpha Theta Scholarship by the organization. He is one of 13 high school students to receive the scholarship this year.

Miller was selected to receive the competitive scholarship by excelling in mathematics, providing exemplary leadership and loyalty to his Mu Alpha Theta chapter and providing service in the field of mathematics.

He is president and one of the founders of the Mu Alpha Theta chapter at his school. He plans on further pursuing his interests in government and mathematics in college.