Garden City Student Places Second In National Science Contest

Garden City Middle School eighth grader Caroline Crouchley was named the second-place winner in the 3M Young Scientist Challenge, the nation’s premier middle school science competition recognizing scientific thinking, communication and curiosity in students grades 5-8.

Caroline developed a sustainable method of public transportation that utilizes renewable energy sources for trains, rather than fossil fuels. Her project, “Improving Lives: A Light at the End of the Tunnel,” focuses on reducing transportation emissions globally. Caroline said her inspiration came from the large amount of traffic on Long Island she has experienced and the resulting air quality advisories she has seen.

“It really made me think about the quality of the air I am breathing,” she said. “Reducing transportation emissions is one of the most important steps in fighting air pollution and global warming. Public transportation such as trains is a great start to reducing our emissions.”

Caroline built a new train prototype powered by solar energy that is stored in a battery. From this she created and stored compressed air to ultimately power the train. In June, Caroline was named one of 10 national finalists in the 3M competition. Over the summer and this fall, she worked with a 3M mentor, Kandyce Bohannon. Teachers Dr. Steve Gordon, Mike Stano, Dr. Paris Zaferiou and Garden City 6-12 Science Curriculum Coordinator Dr. Elena Cascio have also helped Caroline at different stages of her project.

“Caroline worked hard on her project and it is wonderful that her creativity and perseverance were recognized,” said Cascio. “We are really proud of her accomplishments!”

For advancing to the finals, Caroline was awarded a prize of $1,000. Additionally, she, along with the other two top winners, were invited to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

“Congratulations to Caroline, who is an extremely talented student,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kusum Sinha. “Her ingenuity in addressing a real world environmental concern is inspiring and promising for the future of global sustainability. This achievement is very impressive, and we are all very proud of her.”