PPictured: First Row: Mrs. Shannon Falcheck, Advisor, Callie Mason, Marissa Yamulla, Shreeya Parikh, Siya Patel, Arianny Nieves, and Ms. Michele Tyburski, Advisor. Second Row: Mr, Michael Mele, Advisor, Diane Kim, Winni Zheng, Madelyn Young, Yeleiny Paniagua, Gabrielle Carsia, Arushi Solgama, and Yoreimy Aponte Third Row: Ava Genetti, Megan Yamulla, Riley Mason, Sharon Zhueng, Alexis Bleiler, Yaslin Tejeda, and Katherine Arias. Fourth Row: Philip Benyo, Samantha Gatts, Cedrah Abdulrahman, Alexa Fazio, Christina Chrin, Madalynn Young, and Anna Zaroda. Fifth Row: Andrew Pedri, Gavin Serock, Jackson Moore, Zachary Naugle, Ian Composto, Gavyn Corchado, and Cassidy McDermott. Sixth Row: David Yamulla, Joseph Mayernik, Sharon Parikh, Rishi Patel, Gabriel Horvath, and Kiyan Paknezhad. Absent from Photo: Georgia Washko, Kenedy Lutz, Olivia Moore, and Angelina Seebaictured: Best of the Best competitors stand with their Advisor Mrs. Katherine Zucco (front left). First row: Marissa Yamulla (center) and Maia Laverty (right). Second Row (left to right): Gabe Horvath, Ian Composto, and Philip Benyo. Caleb Skuba was missing from the picture.

Head of School Mrs. Theresa Long is proud to announce that MMI Preparatory School students had an outstanding showing at the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science (PJAS) competition held on Saturday, March 1 at Wilkes University. MMI’s 44 participating students earned an impressive 34 first-place awards, 11 second-place awards, and one third-place award, with several students achieving top honors.

Among the first-place award recipients, six students earned perfect scores: Cedrah Abdulrahman ’26, Philip Benyo ’27, Shreeya Parikh ’28, Arushi Solgama ’26, Winni Zheng ’25, and Sharon Zhuang ’27. Additionally, three students received Excellence Awards, a prestigious recognition given to only 12 upper school and 12 middle school students for demonstrating the highest level of project performance: Rishi Patel ’26 (Biochemistry), Shreeya Parikh ’28 (Chemistry), and Kiyan Paknezhad ’25 (Engineering). Perseverance Awards were earned by Diane Kim ’25 for three years of PJAS projects and Kiyan Paknezhad ’25 for four years of competition. Kiyan also earned a Wilkes University Scholarship, one of only two students selected through an extensive application and interview process.

All first-place award winners will advance to the state-level competition at Pennsylvania State University’s main campus in May. The following students earned first-place awards and have advanced to the state-level competition: Cedrah Abdulrahman ’26 (Botany), Philip Benyo ’27 (Microbiology), Alexis Bleiler ’26 (Biochemistry), Gabriella Carsia ’28 (Earth Space), Christina Chrin ’27 (Biology), Ian Composto ’27 (Biochemistry), Alexa Fazio ’27 (Biology), Ava Genetti ’26 (Microbiology), Diane Kim ’25 (Biology), Calli Mason ’28 (Biochemistry), Riley Mason ’30 (Ecology), Joseph Mayernik ’26 (Biochemistry), Cassidy McDermott ’26 (Biochemistry), Olivia Moore ’28 (Microbiology), Zachary Naugle ’28 (Math), Arianny Nieves ’28 (Biology), Kiyan Paknezhad ’25 (two first-place projects in Engineering), Yeleiny Paniagua ’26 (Biology), Shreeya Parikh ’28 (Chemistry), Sharan Parikh ’26 (Math), Rishi Patel ’26 (Biochemistry), Gavin Serock ’28 (Physics), Ruhani Shah ’27 (Biochemistry), Arushi Solgama ’26 (Ecology), David Yamulla ’26 (Biology), Megan Yamulla ’30 (Chemistry), Marissa Yamulla ’28 (Ecology), Madelyn Young ’26 (Biochemistry), Madalynn Young ’28 (Ecology), Anna Zaroda ’27 (Math), Winni Zheng ’25 (Microbiology and Behavioral), and Sharon Zhuang ’27 (Biology).

Second-place awards were earned by: Yoreimy Aponte ’27 (Behavioral), Katherine Arias ’27 (Biochemistry), Samantha Gatts ’26 (Biology), Gabriel Horvath ’26 (Biochemistry), Kenedy Lutz ’27 (Biochemistry), Jackson Moore ’28 (Biology), Siya Patel ’28 (Microbiology), Andrew Pedri ’28 (Ecology), Angelina Seeba ’27 (Behavioral), Yaselin Tejeda Nivar ’29 (Biochemistry), and Georgia Washko ’26 (Biology). 

The third-place award was given to Gavyn Corchado ’27 (Computer Science).

MMI’s PJAS program is led by Advisor Mr. Michael Mele, who emphasized the critical thinking and communication skills students develop through this experience. “PJAS challenges students to design and conduct independent research, analyze data, and present their findings in a professional setting,” said Mr. Mele. “These skills -problem-solving, scientific inquiry, and public speaking – are essential not only in STEM fields but in any future career.”

“The level of success our students achieved at PJAS is remarkable,” said Mrs. Theresa Long, Head of School. “To have 44 students competing out of the 506 total participants speaks volumes about the strength of our science program and the dedication of our faculty and students. I could not be prouder of their hard work and accomplishments. A special thank you to Mr. Michael Mele for his incredible commitment as PJAS advisor. His dedication and countless hours of mentoring and preparation make this success possible.”

MMI faculty members Mrs. Shannon Falcheck, Ms. Michele Tyburski, Dr. Heather Grimm, Dr. Tammy Chrin, Mr. Tony Bianco, and Mrs. Melissa Zaroda provided lab support, project reviews, and mentorship throughout the research process, ensuring students were well-prepared for the competition. In addition, Mrs. Shannon Falcheck, Ms. Michele Tyburski, and Dr. Tammy Chrin served as volunteer judges at the event, evaluating student presentations and providing expert feedback.

With a strong presence at PJAS and continued success at the regional and state levels, MMI Preparatory School remains committed to fostering excellence in STEM education and research. To learn more about academics at MMI, visit https://www.mmiprep.org/academics/.