With Help of Rep. Israel, Two Manhasset HS Students to Attend White House Science Fair

Melville, NY—Today, Congressman Steve Israel (NY-03) announced that Manhasset High School seniors Kimberly Te and Christine Yoo, grand prize winners of the Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology, were accepted to attend the 6th White House Science Fair on April 13th at the White House. After bringing the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) Director Ellen Williams to Manhasset to meet the students in January, Rep. Israel supported their candidacy for the White House Science Fair.

“What an incredible honor for two outstanding young women,” said Rep. Steve Israel. “Kimberly and Christine continue to serve as an inspiration for young people who want to use their talents to make a difference in the world. All of Long Island is extremely proud of them and their teachers for challenging them to reach the top. I commend the President for recognizing how important investing in science and spurring innovation among students is to our entire country.”

"Kimberly and I were absolutely shocked that we were invited to the White House Science Fair because it is something we always imagined doing but never realized that it would become a reality,” said Christine Yoo. “We are humbled to be attending and we are so excited to meet the rest of the attendees and just have an actual conversation with President Obama. The fact that this is the last White House Science Fair under his administration makes the experience even more special."

"We were completely shocked and honored to be invited,” said Kimberly Te “We are so grateful to be invited for our work and just being recognized for all of our hard work. We are so excited to share our passion in STEM with the other attendees. We are thrilled to be representing girls in the Science and Engineering Field."

“I was elated to find out that Kimberly and Christine have been invited to attend the White House Science Fair!” said Alison Huenger, Director of the Science Research Program at Manhasset High School. “This has been an incredible journey for not only Kimberly and Christine, but our Science Research Program! I am so proud of everything that Kimberly and Christine have accomplished over the past four years.  I am excited that Kimberly and Christine will be able to experience this prestigious event and meet likeminded individuals who share their passions for STEM.”

“This is an incredibly exciting opportunity for Kimberly and Christine, and I cannot imagine any students that are more deserving,” said Thomas Elkins, K-12 Coordinator for Science, Health, & Technology at Manhasset Public Schools. “They are a perfect representation of what a true scientist should be: curious, dedicated, and genuinely concerned about their world. This is the culmination of four years of hard work and dedication, and they are ideal representatives for our research program and students in general. We could not be more proud of them as both students and people.”

In January, Rep. Israel brought ARPA-E Director Ellen Williams to Manhasset Secondary School to meet Kimberly and Christine. After the visit, Rep. Israel supported the students’ candidacy to attend this year’s White House Science Fair.

Kimberly and Christine’s designed a system that uses loofah sponges to soak up and degrade oil from oil spills and then turns the otherwise unusable material into a source of clean energy.  Their project, “mud power”, won the Grand Prize in the National Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology in December 2015.

The 6th White House Science fair on April 13th will highlight the ingenuity and entrepreneurship of the next generation of scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and innovators. More than 100 students attending this year's Science Fair were invited to explain how they are working to fix some of America’s greatest challenges - from combatting climate change, to uncovering new ways to fight cancer, to discovering ways to reach farther beyond our atmosphere as a part of the Mars generation.

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