Community Middle School students placed first in the state competition of We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution. The competition consisted of four-minute speeches and six minutes of questions-and-answers for each area. The education program, established in 1987, is funded by congressional appropriation to the U.S. Department of Education.
Students prepare for the event by completing a semester instructional program using special materials. Sample questions include: What were the founders’ basic ideas about government? What shaped the founders’ thinking about government? What happened at the Philadelphia Convention? How was the Constitution used to establish our government? How does the Constitution protect our basic rights? What are the responsibilities of citizens?
Team members included Mariesa Cay, Karthik Chandra, Aahana Chatterjee, Allie Dignan, Alexander Inkiow, Veenay Komaragiri, Nishita Kommana, Aravind Konero, Nain Ladak, Ethan Liaw, Ankit Malit, Zehra Madhavan, Christopher Markisz, Timothy McFarlane, Nikita Nangia, Drew Nelson, Sunket Nikam, Pia Pal, Romi Pal, Rohan Patlola, Nikhil Phatak, Abigail Pinto, Ayanna Posipanko, Aakash Rai, Shruthi Radhakrishnan, Sonya Rao, Philip Sang, Arjun Shah, Ryder Van Dyke, Mathew Varghese, Ritu Vyas, Brianna Watson, and Raymond Zhang.
“Middle school principals from Senegal and Serbia attended the hearings, as they were interested in learning about middle school programs,” says Eileen Chubik-Kwis, a teacher at CMS. “All the CMS students found the competition challenging and competitive.”
Imagining
The Future
The ninth annual Chemagination contest, sponsored by the Trenton and Princeton sections of the American Chemical Society, was held Saturday, April 9, at Princeton University. The contest was designed to develop scientific knowledge as well as creativity, teamwork, and problem solving.
Teams of high school students were asked to imagine that they were in the year 2036 and had made a chemistry related discovery that improved people’s lives. They were to write an article about the innovation for ChemMatters Magazine and design the issue cover as well.
First place honors were awarded to two teams from North. They include Alternate Energy: “The Power of the Whale,” with Jessica Li, Sanjana Padmanabhan, and Pranitha Rayapudi; and New Materials: “Nature’s Power Plant, the Ongoing Story of Mankind’s Quest to Harness the Sun, and What it Means for You,” with Peter Chi, Anup Regunathan, and Saavanth Velury.
Both teams advance to the regional Chemagination contest at the Middle Atlantic Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society on Saturday, May 21, at the University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland.
A second place award went to Alternate Energy: “Fueling Future Technology,” with Sheena Desai, Robbie Luttrell, and Harinee Suthakar, also High School North. Julie Norato advised the teams from High School North.
Help for Diabetes
Peter Stein, M.D., of Princeton Junction was recently honored for working with clinical trials for JANUVIA, a once-daily pill that helps patients with type 2 diabetes control glucose in conjunction with diet and exercise. The ceremony was held April 14 at Liberty Science Center.
JANUVIA was the first medicine approved by the FDA to inhibit the enzyme DPP-4. By inhibiting DPP-4, JANUVIA helps prevent the degrading of a natural hormone that signals the pancreas to release insulin. Today JANUVIA is being prescribed to millions of patients with type 2 diabetes and demonstrates Merck’s commitment to develop therapies to improve human health around the world.
“JANUVIA demonstrates our company’s tremendous commitment to pharmaceutical innovation and the benefits we bring to patients and physicians who struggle with type 2 diabetes every day,” says Peter S. Kim, Ph.D., president, Merck Research Laboratories.
New Director
Judy Shouse Levy of West Windsor has been appointed executive director for Meals on Wheels of Trenton/Ewing, a member of the national Meals on Wheels Association of America. The organization provides 175 meals per day to the aged and homebound in the Trenton and Ewing areas.
Levy is former president and secretary of Families In Transition, a trustee of the board of Delaware Valley Christian Camp, and has volunteered for Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic), Community Christian Choir, and Girls Scouts of America. A graduate of Texas Tech University and Brooklyn Law School, she is married to David Levy, and they have two children.
“Meals on Wheels of Trenton/Ewing provides a vital service to the community as they work to provide meals to the elderly and homebound. As the economy continues to struggle, the poor and elderly are the ones most severely affected. Meals on Wheels is here to provide a caring face to those who are helpless to provide basic needs for themselves,” says Levy. “I look forward to working to help keep Meals on Wheels healthy and vital in the future.”
For information on becoming a volunteer or to make a donation call 609-695-3483 or visit www.mmte.org.
Young Performers
Jenna Venturi, 10, of Plainsboro is currently a member of the Children’s Chorus at New York City Opera. A fifth grade student at Stuart School, she recently sang the German aria, An Die Musik, in competition. She was awarded first place in the Classical category in her age group. She also competed in Virtuoso, which is one English and one foreign language piece from different time periods. Since there was no age limit she competed with high school students and two college freshmen — and she placed fifth.
Venturi performs in Stuart’s musical on Saturday, May 7, at 2 p.m. Her classmates, Viviana Vera and Tanya Matthew, both of West Windsor, will also be performing.
In College
Brown University: Susan Yue, a graduate of High School South, a Plainsboro resident, and a junior, is one of the 60 Truman Scholars selected from among 602 candidates nominated by 264 colleges and universities. They were elected by 17 independent selection panels on the basis of leadership potential, intellectual ability, and likelihood of making a difference.
California Institute of Technology: Atharv Vaish, a graduate of High School North, Class of 2010, is in the inaugural class of Turing Fellows for the summer of 2011. The fellowship program matches outstanding computer science and engineering students with paid summer internships at leading technology startups in New York City.
The program will host events to educate Turing Fellows on entrepreneurship, build relationships with outstanding technical mentors, and deepen ties to the New York startup community. Finally, upon successful completion of their internships, they each receive a $5,000 scholarship. Details on the program can be found at www.nycturingfellows.org.
Medical
Director Named
Dr. Carolyn Gaukler of West Windsor is the new medical director of Capital Health’s Palliative Care Program. A specialist in internal medicine she will lead the programs at both Capital Health Regional Medical Center and Capital Health-Mercer.
“Our program at Capital Health is committed to maximizing a patient’s quality of life during ongoing treatment for acute, traumatic, or multiple, chronic illnesses,” says Gaukler. “By concentrating on the patient and family as a unit, we are better able to help manage distressing physical and emotional symptoms.”
