Peekskill Students Win at Westchester Science & Engineering Fair

Peekskill Science Research (PSR) students participated in the Westchester Science and Engineering Fair (WESEF) held on Saturday, March 17 at Sleepy Hollow High School. Students took part in the fair under the direction of Peekskill High School Science Research teacher Ms. Erum Hadi. Competing with close to 600 participants from across Westchester and Putnam counties, PSR participants won 4 awards in various categories and made Peekskill proud, once again.

PHS senior Jessie Zhanay became the first PHS student to place at the competitive WESEF. Her project titled, "Benthic Macroinvertebrates as Determinants of Freshwater Quality" won her second place and $100 in the Environmental Science category. To place in this fair means that the student has achieved excellence (close to 100%) in their poster display and project presentation.

At the event, Zhanay also won the Stockholm Junior Water Prize for her unique contribution to the study of preserving water supplies. The Stockholm award instantly qualifies her to apply to the state level competition for this award.

Shawn Jimerson's project titled, "Cord Blood Transplantation for Patients with Malignant and Non-Malignant Diseases” won him the Greg Horace Award for the most creative and innovative approach in scientific research and a gift of $50. Jimerson researched the use of stem cells retrieved from umbilical cord and placenta, which bypasses the use of ethically contested embryos.

Two more students also contributed to Peekskill’s success at the fair. Robert Chacha and Nicolas Holman's team poster titled, "The Impact of Population Density on Microplastic Pollution Near Hudson River Shorelines" in the Environmental category, also won the Stockholm Junior Water Prize for their unique contribution to the study of preserving our water supplies. The two students have also qualified to apply to the state level competition for this award.