Woodhull Intermediate School fifth grader Andrew Knowles and sixth grader Noah Morris have been accepted into The Institute for Creative Problem Solving for Gifted and Talented Students Saturday morning program held on the campus of SUNY College at Old Westbury.
The Institute was established to improve the problem solving skills of a select group of 75 high ability students in grades 5-10 on Long Island. It chooses 25 students from Nassau and Suffolk Counties to participate in each of the three grade level divisions out of more than 800 students from all of Long Island.
Maryann Daly, the Huntington School District’s SEARCH chairperson and a teacher in the program nominated 36 of her fifth and sixth grade Math Olympiad students to take the Institute’s rigorous qualifying exam.
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“The exam was difficult and the competition was tough,” Mrs. Daly said. I based my nominations on the students’ academic performance in the classroom and on assessments, their ability to succeed in the Math Olympiad meets held throughout the school year and most of all, on their work ethic.”
Messrs. Knowles and Morris will attend a series of 20 Saturday classes of 2 ½ hours each during the 2013/14 academic year on the SUNY Old Westbury campus. A group of professors will work with the students. “Congratulations to these two young men who have distinguished themselves and our school district in achieving this prestigious honor,” Mrs. Daly said.
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The Huntington pair will study creative problem solving in the areas of math, engineering and science. Each participant who completes the Institute’s program will officially be designated as a “Long Island Young Scholar of Mathematics” and be awarded a certificate of accomplishment.
“The participants will broaden their backgrounds in mathematics, sharpen their thinking skills and develop their problem solving ability,” according to brochure published by the Institute. “Educating these special children will make a major contribution to their pursuit of excellence in science and mathematics.”
The program was founded and coordinated for nearly two decades by Dr. Jong Pil Lee, who worked as a SUNY Old Westbury professor for many years and was recognized for his distinguished service. “Since his untimely passing in December 2011, his dedicated staff and colleagues have continued his most important work,” Mrs. Daly said.
