40th Annual Science Day at Riverside Elementary

Riverside Elementary School is celebrating its 40th annual Science Day with a whole week of science-related activities, bringing in top scientists from a variety of fields to share their knowledge with students and help inspire them in their scientific studies.

“Fun with Physics” with  Princeton University Physics Professor Christopher G. Tully kicked off the week on Monday with a presentation of feats of physics, a demonstration of the phenomenon of quantum levitation, and an examination of the world of electromagnetic forces.  The students experienced an unusual glimpse of the unseen world of quantum mechanics and a look at how different the world can be when the laws of physics are unleashed. 

Members of Undergraduate Women in Physics assisted in the demonstrations and gave their perspectives on being future scientists.

On Tuesday, the official Science Day, all the Riverside students participated in a round-robin event for the whole day, where parents and community members shared their science expertise, from bubbles to rockets to genetics to chemistry.

On Wednesday, Michael Lemonick, science writer for Time Magazine and Scientific American and a former Riverside student, will talk with students from grades three, four, and five about a career in scientific writing.  And on Thursday morning astronaut Greg Olsen will address a general assembly at Riverside.

Women’s College Club Awards Scholarships

The Women’s College Club of Princeton (WCCP) has awarded $32,000 in scholarships to recipients from four Princeton high schools. 

The Florence Bell Hillier Award was presented by J. Robert Hillier to Leah
Williamson of Princeton High School (PHS), who will attend Savannah College of Art and Design.  The Ramona S. Peyton Award was presented by Murray Peyton to Jenna Venturi of Stuart Country Day School, who will attend the Eastman School of Music.  The Marjory White Memorial Scholarship was granted to Eliz Dikener of PHS, who will attend Boston University. 

The Luna Kayser Scholarship was given to Fedlyne Cleophat of PHS, who will attend Rider University. The Harriet Peterson Award was given to Nayha Zahid of PHS, who will attend Gettysburg College.  The Molly Updike Award was given to Alexa Almodovar of PHS, who will attend the University of Pittsburgh.

The WCCP scholarships were given to Thara Ahmed-Sule of the Hun School, who will attend Temple University, and to Princeton Day School students Kayla Bland, who will attend American University, and Rebecca Kuzmicz, who will attend Marist.  Recipients of the WCCC scholarships from PHS are Savannah Green, who will attend Rowan University, and Mary Mena, who will attend the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia. 

Mayor’s Task Force Presents “Straight Talk”

Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert’s Task Force on Teen Stress and Mental Health will hold a program entitled “Straight Talk: A Student’s Narrative on Adversity and Resilience” next Tuesday, May 29 from 7-9 p.m. in the Main Meeting Room at Witherspoon Hall, 400 Witherspoon Street. 

Featuring a young adult speaker who will describe his fall from high-achieving scholar athlete to depression and anxiety and back, the program will be presented by Philadelphia-based Minding Your Mind, an educational resource for teens and their families that seeks to acknowledge mental health issues and educate teens, families, and school professionals. 

A mental health professional from Minding Your Mind will offer information and guidance for students and families, and community organizations will also be present to offer resources.

The program is one response Mayor Lempert’s task force has developed as it seeks to address the stress and anxiety faced by many Princeton teens.  The mayor and Princeton Youth and Community Services Director Gary DeBlasio created the task force last fall following a number of suicides and attempted suicides by Princeton-area teens in competitive academic environments. 

PDS Elementary School Chess Players Win National Recognition

Twelve Princeton Day School (PDS) chess players competed in different sections of the National Elementary (K-6) Championship in Nashville, Tennessee, May 10-14, under the supervision of Woman International Master Coach Tatiana Duarte Brea and a group of dedicated parents.

The K-1 Under 500 rated team of Ethan Fede, Sloane Schwendinger, Arav Munjal,  Akshay Pillai, and Aditya Pillai finished fourth, and Fede individually tied for third place with six out of seven wins, according to PDS coach Bonnie Waitzkin.  The K-3 Under 700 rated team of Elijah Morris, Shreya Munjal, and Elias Nicozisis was 25th out of 54 teams.  In the K-3 blitz tournament, the PDS team of Gio Juarez, Elijah Morris, Elias Nicozisis, and Anya Jha placed seventh.

In April, PDS seventh grader Winston Ni was named National Junior High Champion (K-8) in Atlanta, Georgia, winning all his games in the K-8 championship section.

Holocaust Survivor Speaks to Pennington Eighth Graders

Holocaust survivor Maud Dahme spoke to eighth-graders at The Pennington School on May 11, as part of an interdisciplinary unit on the Holocaust.  Born in Amersfoort, the Netherlands, Dahme and her younger sister, ages 6 and 4 at the time, were Dutch Jewish “hidden children” who survived because they were sheltered by Christian families.

Dahme’s family moved to the United States in 1950, where Dahme became a force in education, holding a variety of local and state posts. Silent for many years about her experiences, she finally decided to speak out when she realized that even someone she knew personally denied the existence of the Holocaust.

For more than 30 years Dahme has been a passionate advocate of holocaust education.  She has been featured in a PBS documentary and at the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C.  “We survived because people cared,” Dahme told the students.  “We are here to care for each other.” 

Pointing out that genocide is still occurring in various parts of the world, she urged the students to remember that “on the inside we are all the same.”