April 1999
MAHS, St. Joseph Students Take Top Honors at M-Y Fair
It has been said the home team has the advantage.
But for more than a decade, not one McKeesport Area School District student nabbed “The Best of Show” at the Mon-Yough Science Fair.
Until last night.
Lauren Sendek, McKeesport Area High School student, captured the senior division show award using those playful pieces most children obsess over at one point or another: Legos.
Her project, “A Lego Robotic Microscope” however, was anything but child’s play.
Sendek volunteered at the Department of Pathology at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in 1998 and concluded capturing images on slides should be more efficient by using a “low cost robotic microscope readily available ‘off the shelf’”.
After eight modules, 10 revisions and 150 hours of work, Sendek’s mission was a success.
Also taking “Best of Show” was Stephanie Ann Nola of St. Joseph Regional in Port Vue for her project, “Transmission of Plant Disease.”
As per suggestion of Johnston’s Greenhouse, Nola researched and concluded certain diseases can be transferred among plants.
There were some tasty projects too, such as Jessica Raynak’s “Truth About Chocolate” third-place winner, where her entire sixth grade class at Elizabeth Forward Middle School sampled various chocolates to determine if the most expensive chocolate was indeed the best.
Keith Haselfhoff, a second-place winner of Francis McClure Middle School in the Junior Science Division, was curious, and researched “Will the Bunny Keep Going and Going?” and tested various brand-name batteries.
His study concluded the bunny be the first one to stop.
Winners of the Mon-Yough Science Fair, presented by Mon-Yough Chamber President, Ronald Ott, were:
Junior Division
Biology/Animal
First place: Michael Adam Cichowicz of St. Elizabeth for “How Do Snakes Respond to Stimuli”
Second place: Kristen Wynn of Francis McClure Middle School for “Human Insulation”
Third place: Melissa Milko of Francis McClure Middle School for “Cryogenics”
Honorable Mention: Amber Sorieralski of St. Claire of Assisi for “Take A Breather”
Biology/Plant
First: Stephanie Nola of St. Joseph Regional for “Transmission of Plant Disease”
Second: Sam Lazur of St. Therese for “Plant Growth Under Colored Lights”
Third: Laura Palko of St. Elizabeth for “Does the Water Matter”
HM: Amy Yarborough of South Allegheny for “Hydroponics, Food Growth of the Future”
Chemistry
First: Aaron Pankiewicz of St. Michael for “Oxidation and Corrosion”
Second: Evan Thorsen and Doug Bentley of St. Therese for “Sorting Molecules with Electricity”
Third: Tanya Reynolds of St. Joseph for “Toxic Dyes”
HM: Elisabeth Askoff of South Allegheny for “To C or Not to See”
Engineering
First: Sean Jackson of St. Joseph for “Bi-Metal Junctions How They Work”
Second: Andrew DeCapria of St. Joseph for “Bridges Standing Under Stress”
Third: Susan Frankiewicz of Queen of Angels for “Break a Brick”
HM: Aaron Molinaro of St. Joseph for “Which Metal Deteriorates Faster”
Consumer Science
First: Courtney Charba of St. Michael for “Testing Antacids”
Second: Keith Haselhoff of Francis McClure Middle School for “Will the Bunny Keep Going and Going”
Third: Jessica Raynak of Elizabeth Forward Middle School for “The Truth About Chocolate”
HM: Charles Howell of St. Agnes for “Give Me Relief Fast”
Microbiology
First: Colleen Tremont of St. Joseph for “Microbial Growth Factors”
Second: Michael Kaliszewski of St. Elizabeth for “What Product Kills Germs Best”
Third: Jacob Chemsak of St. Joseph for “The Best Hand Sanitizer”
HM: Michael Morgan of St. Agnes for “Germ Warfare”
Physics/Mathematics
First: Michael Borland of Queen of Angels for “Admixtures — Strength of Concrete”
Second: Kristen Stash of St. Joseph for “Current Events”
Third: Geoffrey Puchalski of St. Agnes for “Lights, Lasers and Reflection”
HM: Matt Cleary of Francis McClure Middle School for “Steel-Bot”
***
Senior Division
Biology
First: Jonathan Gillespie of McKeesport High School for “Effects of Heat on Monarch Pupatio”
Second: Adrienne Warhola of South Allegheny for “To Slag or Not to Slag”
Third: Michael Kochuba of South Allegheny for “Soil Enhancement”
HM: Melissa Marzoch of South Allegheny for “Antioxidants vs. Cancer”
Chemistry
First: Patricia Plan of South Allegheny for “Body Wars: Calcium vs. Vitamin C”
Second: Steven Pokansky of Serra Catholic High School for “Test Peculiar Properties of Polymer”
Third: Angela Boal of South Allegheny for “Teasing Tension”
HM: Sean Mizener and Daveen Kurutz of Wilson Christian Academy for “How Do You Spell Relief”
Earth Science
First: Matthew Slafka of Serra Catholic High School for “Lost in Space — Can Plants Grow Up”
Second: Terry Kocsis of Steel Center Vo-Tech for “Space Age Construction”
Third: Vito Fiore of South Allegheny for “Pollution and Climate Trends”
HM: Heidi Smedley of South Allegheny for “Industry’s Effect of Water”
Physics/Math
First: Jessica Benson of Serra Catholic for “The Angle of Respose”
Second: Brien Hemminger of South Allegheny for “All Tied Up”
Third: Christopher Cooke of South Allegheny for “Electric Crystals”
HM: Erin Schorr of Serra Catholic for “Determining Surface Tension”
Engineering
First: Lauren Sendek of McKeesport Area High School for “A Lego Robotic Microscope”
Second: Michelle Meighan of Serra Catholic for “Pothole Prevention”
Third: Craig Sinning of Steel Center Vo-Tech for “Dueling Typist”
Best of Show, Senior Division: Lauren Sendek of McKeesport Area High School for “A Lego Robotic Microscope”
Best of Show, Junior Division: Stephanie Ann Nola of St. Joseph Regional for “Transmission of Plant Disease”
Special Awards were also given by organizations who helped sponsor the fair.
A monetary donation was given by Quest Diagnostic to Matthew Matyasovsky of South Allegheny for “Death From Below” and to Micky Pesanka of St. Therese for “Killer Bacteria”.
Mellon Bank award $30 to Jessica Benson from Serra Catholic High School for “The Angle of Repose.”
Daniel DeCapria of St. Joseph for “Chromatography — Color in Motion”, Cassandra Waite of McKeesport High School for “What’s Eating the Titanic” and Charlotte Gillespie of McKeesport High School for “The Quality of Sound Insulation” all received a Pittsburgh Monopoly game from Mellon Bank.
Jeff Ruhe of St. Michael for “Lift and Turn: Controlling an Airplane” was awarded a football autographed by the Pittsburgh Steelers from the Pittsburgh Steelers Football Club.
The Mon-Yough Science Fair is co-sponsored by the Mon-Yough Chamber of Commerce and The Daily News Publishing Co.
Committee members were: Janet Cipullo of South Hills Health Systems; Sister Bernadette Washy CR — Quest Diagnostics; Julius Simon of Elizabeth Forward Middle School; Ronald Squibb of Alvah M. Squibb Co., Inc.; Raymond Probst of McKeesport Hospital; Jennifer Sabol-Grinberg of The Daily News Publishing Co.; Virginia McCullough, retired; Dorothy Latta, retired; Linda Curinga of South Hills Health System; Everett Elliot of Goodwill Industries Employment Help Center; Dr. JoAnne Burley, Penn State McKeesport CEO and Sandy Breakiron, of the Regional Business Alliance and coordinator of the fair.
Participating schools this year were: Cornell Middle School; East Allegheny Junior/Senior High School; Elizabeth Forward Middle School; Francis McClure Middle School; McKeesport Area High School; McKeesport Central Catholic; Queen of Angels Regional Catholic School; Serra Catholic High School; South Allegheny Middle School; South Allegheny Senior High School; St. Agnes; St. Clare of Assisi; St. Elizabeth; St. Joseph Regional; St. Michael; St. Therese; Steel Center Area Vocational Technical School.
