Way to Go! Island Trees student wins LI Brain Bee
Sheryl Lin, center, a senior at Island Trees High School, was the winner of this year's Long Island Brain Bee. She is pictured here with Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School sophomore Dara Neumann, right, and junior Hannah Quintin, who placed second and third, respectively. Credit: Angela Ferrante
A student from Island Trees High School in Levittown took the top spot in this year's Long Island Brain Bee.
Sheryl Lin, a senior, won first place in the annual science competition, which included a multiple-choice exam on brain facts, a laboratory demonstration, and a test to identify anatomical structures and functions in actual human brain specimens. Contestants also participated in a charades-style round in which they identified brain disorders, treatments and diagnostic tools based on skits performed by medical students.
This year's bee included more than 50 students representing 22 high schools from Long Island and New York City. It was held in February at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell.
"This is the first time my school has entered the Brain Bee, and we won," Lin said. "It is a proud moment."
As the winner, Lin was eligible to compete against other regional champions at the national level, which was slated to take place at the Northeast Ohio Medical University in late March. That competition was canceled because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School sophomore Dara Neumann and junior Hannah Quintin placed second and third in the local bee, respectively.
"Our science teacher and students from our school who have participated in the past helped us a lot in preparing for the contest," Neumann said.
— MICHAEL R. EBERT
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
