Celebrating LI student's Intel prize

The chants of "Mich-ELLE," "Mich-ELLE" -- interspersed with occasional shouts of "Mazel tov!" -- arose as soon as the Hackmans' sport utility vehicle pulled into their driveway in Kings Point.

Wednesday afternoon's return of Michelle Hackman from Washington, D.C. -- where she won a $75,000 second-place prize in the Intel science competition Tuesday -- wasn't just a personal triumph. For about three dozen relatives and friends in the Great Neck area's close-knit Iranian-Jewish community, it was reason for communal celebration.

"Every time somebody gets engaged, we have a party like this," said Hackman, 17. "But we've never done it for a science competition before. I'm really excited about it, and I hope other people will be inspired."

Above the doorway of the Hackmans' spacious stucco home, a red-and-white banner proclaimed "WOW, Michelle. Great Neck Is So Proud of You."

As the 12th-grader alighted from the van, she was surrounded by siblings, cousins and a TV news crew from Manhattan. Some dabbed their eyes, recalling how much effort went into the yearlong research project. Hackman, a senior at Great Neck North High School, has been blind since childhood. Much of her research -- designed to measure teenagers' attachment to their cell phones -- was done with the help of computer software that reads printed text aloud.

"We're all crying with happiness," said an aunt, Soheila Sharf.

Great Neck's Iranians -- many prefer to be called Persians -- are no strangers to adversity. The majority, including Michelle's parents, emigrated in the late 1970s when revolutionaries led by conservative Muslim clerics took over Iran.

About 6,000 Iranians live in the Great Neck-Kings Point area, according to the latest U.S. Census estimates. Many, including the Hackmans (an Anglicized version of Hakimian) run successful family businesses.

Bernard Kaplan, the longtime principal of Great Neck North High, said Iranians are among the latest of many immigrant waves to settle in the district.

"Each group has brought in its own rich culture, but all share one common theme -- a great respect for education," Kaplan said. "Certainly, the Persian community has that, and, in addition, there's a very, very deep commitment to family, a sense of loyalty and a generosity of spirit that is part of the culture."

Few extended families are closer than the Hackmans. About 30 members gather every Friday for Shabbat dinners, and everyone can recount family histories.

Wednesday, Shiva Etessumi, a cousin, recalled Michelle's confidence even as a small child who had recently lost her sight.

"She was running around our house, up the stairs and down. And she was flipping off the diving board," Etessumi said. "She was so brave."