Alumni, School Take Action to Increase Diversity

Alumni Action Group Inspires, Prepares Students

This spring, a group of alumni led by Josh Silverman, TJ ’94 (below right), co-owner of Edge Ed, a tutoring and test-preparation business located near the school, formed an independent group with the purpose of taking tangible steps to improve diversity at TJ.

At the TJ PTSA’s annual Diversity Committee event, held this year on June 4th and organized by Renee Jones, Parent ’16, and Michele Gonzales, Parent ’16, alumni from the group spoke about their background, TJ experience, career path, and commitment to expanding the number of students from underrepresented groups at TJ.

Participants on the Diversity Committee student panel, from left to right, freshmen Danielle Castro, Jennifer Hernandez, and Maxwell Jones. Not pictured, Jake Gonzalez, TJ ’16, Paula Jaramillo, TJ ’16, Randall Jones, TJ ’16, and Angel Peprah, TJ ’18.

Erren Lester, TJ ’95 (top), said that it was students on his TJ bus — students who knew much more than he did — who spurred his interest in Computer Science. He is presently serving as a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow and is also a Trustee of Carnegie Mellon University, from which he received both a BS in Computer Science and an MBA.

The TJ Alumni Action Group, which also includes students, current and former faculty, and others from the TJ community, promised comprehensive support to interested families, including application assistance, summer and fall test preparation sessions, mentoring, tutoring, transportation, and translation, all at no charge.

At Silverman’s summer test-prep session, a two-week course held in late July and early August at Edge Ed’s spacious new Backlick Road location, students learned how to approach logic problems, reviewed algebra skills, and received test-taking pointers (right). In addition to multiple practice quizzes and section review tests provided during the courses, Silverman will also offer a mock exam — with immediate feedback — on the afternoon before the TJ admission test in December.

For more information or to get involved, follow the group on Facebook at TJ Action Group and on Twitter @TJActionGroup.

Left to right, LIFT mentors Anne Nguyen, TJ ’19, Fatima Gunter-Rahman, TJ ’17, and Rithvik Gundlapalli, TJ ’19, help Assistant Principal Shawn Frank, right, lead a LIFT session (not pictured, mentor Rebecca Linick, TJ ’16). Photos courtesy Nicolae Ciorogan, Cooke Foundation

Jack Kent Cooke’s LIFT Program Aims to Repeat Success

Thanks to the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, 62 rising 8th graders sampled TJ’s Middle School Tech Institute (MSTI) offerings this summer as part of an effort to prepare and encourage them to apply and be admitted to TJ. The Foundation’s “Learning through Inquiry, Fellowship, and Tutoring” (LIFT) grant, now in its second year, is providing low-income students with MSTI scholarships, TJ test-prep sessions, materials, and academic advising in an effort to increase their numbers at TJ (see Nov. 2015 issue).

MSTI student shows his “Photoshop Bootcamp” project to Astrik Tenney, Cooke Foundation Program Manager.

Last year the LIFT program made significant progress toward its goal of at least tripling the percentage of low-income students at TJ over two years. The number of students eligible for free or reduced lunch who were admitted to TJ climbed from four to ten, with eight of those ten coming through the LIFT program. Seven of the eight admitted LIFT scholars will enroll in this fall’s freshman class.

In addition, for the sixth year in a row, Northrop Grumman provided 100 scholarships so that rising 7th graders from under-represented minority groups could attend MSTI free of charge.
MSTI provides middle-schoolers with an exciting introduction to TJ’s unique approach to STEM learning. All classes, from the engineering problems tackled in this summer’s brand-new course, “Reinventing the Wheel,” to the ever-popular “Got an App for That?” focus on hands-on problem-solving, collaboration, and exposure to real-world STEM applications.

Young TJ Grads Stay Involved in Local Outreach

Whether students were more interested in the mechanics of flight or the possibility of alien life, this summer’s week-long NeuroInspire and AeroInspire/AstroInspire classes — with five themed days from “brains” to “photography” — were sure to encourage further learning.

NeuroInspire co-founders and 2013 grads Nathan Kodama (on left in photo, above right) and Sid Sivakumar (on right) returned from Case Western University, where they are rising seniors, to lead the four-hour “Founders Program,” held at Glasgow MS starting each day at 7:30am. TJ classmate Suhas Gondi, another co-founder, took a day off from his internship to help out on “computer” day. Glasgow Principal — and former TJ Assistant Principal —  Shawn DeRose participated on “music” day and found funds to cover the cost of supplies for the free class. Rounding out the group of volunteers were Matt Conley, TJ ’13, and McLean HS seniors Willie Kodama, Brian Min, and Lucy Zheng.

At the end of every day, the two classes combined for a closing “story” led by an instructor. On Friday, “food” day, the fun began with an interactive exercise on the five tastes followed by an elaborate meal. The day ended with Nathan Kodama sharing his path from environmental science in middle school to neuroscience in high school to physics in college. “Don’t expect to find your passion immediately,” he told the kids, “just keep following your interests and you’ll find it.”

Alums Who “Came for the Sports”

Andrew Seliskar, TJ ’15 (pictured at right, courtesy NBC), was in good company at this summer’s Omaha, Nebraska US Olympic Swim Trials. He came in seventh in the finals of the 200 Individual Medley and eighth in the 200 Butterfly finals, both of which were won by the most decorated Olympian in history, Michael Phelps, who went on to win Gold in both events in Rio.

Seliskar, who led TJ to a State Swim & Dive Championship in 2015 and now swims for University of California, Berkeley (Cal), was the number one male swim recruit during his senior year, alongside top female recruit and international swim sensation, Katie Ledecky.

Christo Landry, TJ ’04, who was part of a standout 2002 team that captured the TJ Mens Cross-Country State Championship, now runs professionally for Mizuno. At right (courtesy NBC), seconds after the start of this year’s 10K Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, he’s third, directly behind eventual winner and 2012 Olympic 10K Silver medalist Galen Rupp, who came in 5th in Rio (but nabbed a bronze medal in the Marathon). Landry finished in 15th place at the trials, two places higher than his 2012 attempt.

Campaign Purchases Remake TJ

Senior Research Lab Equipment    $1,725,500

Astronomy – console for future planetarium, high-performance computers for simulations* – $22.5K

Biotechnology – bioinformatics package, training, and supplies for genome machine,* fluorescence In Situ hybridization probes, sequencing kits, DNA electrophoresis instrument and kits, bioanalyzer, hand-held PCR,* more – $100K

Chemical Analysis – fluorometer, potentiostat, replacement laser for Raman spectrometer, flame photometer, field sampler, chemical filters, electrophoresis supplies, journal access, glassware,* plotter printer, more – $115K

Communication Systems – software-defined radios, USB emulators, binaural microphone – $13K

Computer Systems – carbon flywheel inertial uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system, 75” and 60” LED displays, CPUs, video cards, coprocessors, network components – $173K

Energy Systems – pneumatic kits, energy sensors, cable kits, spectrometers, voltage regulators, power converters, amp breakers, fuel cells, computer, specialized lab furniture – $88K

Engineering Design – laser cutter, 3D printer, filtration system, specialized lab furniture – $102K

Microelectronics – specialized function generators, specialized oscilloscopes, multimeters, breadboards, auxiliary workstation lights,* power supplies, tool sets, probes, parts cabinet – $118K

Mobile App – Android phones & tablets, Bluetooth beacons, graphic cards, memory cards – $17K

Neuroscience – confocal microscope, fluorescent cell imager, bioamplifiers, microelectrode arrays, adapters – $294K

Oceanography – underwater tow body with snorkel camera,* remotely-operated submersible, PCR machine, sensors, 3D sonar mapping system, specialized lab furniture, aquarium parts – $60K

Prototyping – CNC router system w/ dust collection and additional fixtures and programs, welders,* lathe, drill press, bandsaws, storage racks, tools, spray booth, pneumatic tapping device, lab furniture, more – $330K

Quantum Physics – nuclear magnetic resonance tomograph, smart optical tables with anti-vibration system – $136K

Robotics – quadcopter, Raspberry Pi 2 kits, Jetson TK1 vision development platform, bench lathe, tools, wireless antennas, drill press, soldering irons, oscilloscopes, multimeters, specialized lab furniture, more – $105K

Shared – storage shelves – $52K

* Items ordered using 2016 Junior Lab Appeal funds. The remainder of those funds will be used to support senior research projects.

JUMP (underclassmen multidisciplinary) Lab Equipment  $46,000

UV/Vis Spectrophotometer – $23K
Safety shower & eyewash station – $14K
Hot plate, UV crosslinker, workstation – $4K
Miscellaneous supplies – $5K

Science & Technology Classroom Equipment   $192,000

IBET Design & Tech – laser cutters, furniture, storage – $150K

IBET Biology – centrifuge, incubator, still, distilled-water maker, icemaker, more – $16K

Physics – oscilloscopes, power supplies, batteries, more -$26K

All-School Technology  $61,000

Wall-mounted projectors – $37K
24” LED monitors – $10K
Laser printers – 4K
Computer hardware – $10K

Humanities, Arts, Athletics, Other    $305,000

Humanities & Journalism – online book collections, furniture, filing cabinets, computer safe, camera supplies – $42K

Math – furniture, filing cabinets, presentation station – $21K

World Language – furniture, filing cabinets – $4K

Music – music stands & racks, conductor stand & system – $15K

Athletics** – soccer goal, basketball scorer’s table, baseball/softball windscreen, high-jump pit, elliptical, stationary bikes, free weights, rebounder, trampoline; treatment tables, electrotherapy cart, ice machine, hot packs, other trainer supplies; storage, dishwasher; engineering and soil samples required to prepare for turf fields – $88K

Administration – tables & chairs for testing and events, carpeting, partition for JUMP Lab – $122K

“Green” – Dyson Airblade restroom hand dryers – $13K

**Not all items have been ordered as of this writing.

Final Push Must Fulfill Remaining Needs

Needs Lists are working documents that may not reflect all current needs and are updated as the school year progresses.

Science & Technology Needs List                    $612,000

Chemical Analysis Lab – Raman sampling system; gas chromatograph mass spectrometer, accessories, and library database; 3-year maintenance and warranty plans for new equipment; chemical storage venting $279K

Oceanography Lab – Cyclops sensors, integrator, sounding rigs; portable generator; submersible fluorometer; submersible data logger – $72K

Prototyping Lab – CNC waterjet, CNC mill – $225K

Biology & Chemistry Classrooms – laptop carts – $36K

Humanities, Arts, Athletics, Other Needs List   $691,500

Humanities – laptop carts – $69K

Math – interactive pen tablets – $1K

Library – furniture, laptop carts – $35.5K

Music – performance chairs, music folder racks – $36K

Athletics – required contributions toward stadium turf field and additional turf field; stadium restroom facilities – $500K

Custodial – updated equipment – $50K

Thanking Our Generous Donors and Volunteers

Campaign Donor List

Alumni Donor List & Data

TJ Partnership Fund 2015-2016 Volunteers

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Officers:

Chair: Srikant Sastry, Parent ’17
Vice Chair: Miguel Browne, Parent ’18
Secretary: Charlie Givans, Parent ’19
Treasurer: Nicole Morson ’07

Representatives:

Principal: Evan Glazer, ex officio
School Liaison: Tinell Priddy, Asst. Principal for Science & Tech.
Faculty Representative: Lee Ann Hennig, Astronomy Lab Director
Alumni Association Representative: Jennifer Jordan ’94
PTSA President: Silvija Strikis, Parent ’18, ex officio
Colonial Athletic Boosters Rep: Heather Erskine, Parent ’18

Committee Chairs:

Capital Campaign Chair: Mark Skolnik, Parent ’11
Communications Chair: Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ’14, ’17
Events Chair: vacant
Finance and Audit Committee Chair: vacant
Volunteer Chair: Ashok Anant, Parent ’17

Advisory Board Chairs:

Alumni Association Board Chair: Deb Carstoiu ’92, Parent ’19
Corporate Advisory Board Chair: Michael Martinka ’87, Parent ’17,
Co-Chair: Ram Mattapalli, Parent ’18
Parent Advisory Board Chair: Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18

CORPORATE ADVISORY BOARD

Chair: Michael Martinka ’87, Parent ’17, Ntrepid
Co-Chair: Ram Mattapalli, Parent ’18, Zolon Tech
Deb Carstoiu ’92, Parent ’19, Crop Life International
Ingrid Constantine, Parent ’17, CoSolutions, Inc. Natalie Givans, Parent ’19, Booz Allen Hamilton
Hardish Nandra, Parent ’13, ’19, Microsoft
Srikant Sastry, Parent ’17, PF Board Chair, Grant Thornton
Ramji Venkatachari, Parent ’17, Insystech, Inc.

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD

Chair: Jennifer Jordan ’94
Rachana Bhide ’97
Chelsea Cantrell ’06
Deb Carstoiu ’92, Parent ’19
David DyTang ’08
Beth Finn ’94
Michelle Gates ’02
Sonal Goda ’95
Kevin Gormley ’95
Han Kim ’10
Martine Kusiak ’91
Nick Turner ’96
Shauneen Garrahan Werlinger ’03
Liz Zagraniski ’04
Ted Zagraniski ’00

ALUMNI EVENT VOLUNTEERS

’95 Reunion (10/10/15)

Co-Chairs:
Sonal Goda
Tirzah (Fitzkee) Lollar
Barbara (Opal) McCluer
Sara Towner

Tour Guides:
Principal Evan Glazer
Jennifer Lee ’16
Christina Wei ‘16

’90 Reunion (10/24/15)

Co-Chairs:
Elizabeth Fong
Jocelyn Leu
Larry Roadcap

Tour Guides:
Aniketh Danakonda ’18
Aaron Gu ’17
Joyce Hong ’16

NYC Happy Hour (11/12/15)

Yext Hosts:
Alok Bushan ’98
Derek Lee ’98
Howard Lerman ’98

Flag Football & BBQ (11/27/15)

JJ Bolton, Parent ’17
Tim & Mindy Conway, Parents ’16
Ray & Leslie Lemanski, Parents ’16

Alumni Day (11/28/15)

Chair: Deb Carstoiu ’92, Parent ’19
Alumni panelists:
Juliana Heitz ’93
Ryan Heitz ’93
Eric Jao ’93
Nicole Tucker-Smith ’95
Mark Gray-Mendes ’03, Moderator

Student panelists:
Andrew Li ’16
Cheryl Mensah ’16
James Park ’16
Ted Zagraniski ’00, Moderator

National Honor Society tour guides:
Katelyn Etemad ’16
Angela Goyal ’16
Virginia Pan ’16
Eric Phan ’16
Taejas Srinivasan ’16
Kaila Stein ’16
Shirley Wang ’16

Other:
Sonal Goda ’95
Kamila Goldin ’09
Jennifer Jordan ’94
Michael Martinka ’87, Parent ’17
Tamara Metz ’99

’00 Reunion (11/28/15)

Co-Chairs:
Tammy Bjelland
Jacqueline Ferris Zeller
Cassie Melnikow Syckes
Lesley Park Newman

’05 Reunion (11/28/15)

Co-Chairs: Jennifer Goodnight & Nick Stroup

’10 Reunion (11/28/15)

Co-Chairs:
Luke Cheng
Han Kim
Amanda Lew
Lenny Li
Victoria Stringfellow

Bay Area Meet-up (2/26/16)

Thumbtack Host: Sander Daniels ’01

EVENT & APPEAL VOLUNTEERS

Freshman Orientation (9/3/15)

Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ‘14, ’17
Jo Koeniger, Parent ’16

Freshman Parent Reception (9/19/15)

Chair: Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ‘14, ’17
Huaying Davis, Parent ’19
Rebecca Goldin, Parent ’18, ’19
Nancy Kao, Parent ’16, ’19
Jo Koeniger, Parent ’16
Carleen Wood-Thomas, Parent ’14, ’17, ’19
Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18

Back-to-School Night (9/30/15)

Co-Chairs: Ashok Anant, Parent ’17, and Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18
Katherine Barbano, TJ ’18
Cece Chu, TJ ’17
Laura Chu, TJ ’17
Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ‘14, ’17
Kaylee Kim, Parent ’18
Jo Koeniger, Parent ’16
Vicky Li, TJ ’17
Timothy Liu, TJ ’18
Shawn Lukas, Parent ’15
Carla Martinese, Parent ’16
Linh Nham, Parent ’17
Richard Pan, TJ ’18
Charles Wang, TJ ’18
Jessica Wang, TJ ’17
James Xiao, TJ ’18
Emily Zou, TJ ’17

Internship Fair (1/20/16)

Chair: Michael Martinka TJ ’87, Parent ’17
Ingrid Constantine, Parent ’17
Eileen Kropf & Career Center volunteers
Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18

International Partner Visits (11/15, 1/16)

Chair: Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18
Jane Yang Li, Parent ’09, ’14
Chinese Community volunteers

Lunar New Year Celebration (2/20/16)

Chair: Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18
Planning Committee:
Huaying Davis, Parent ’19
Yongqing Lu, Parent ’17, ’17
Stan Niu, Parent ’17
Jerri Xu, Parent ’17
Abby Yan, Parent ’18
Yuyan Zhou, Parent ’16
Danielle Zhu, Parent ’16, ’18
Peter Zou & Linh Nham, Parents ’17

Decoration, hospitality, other:
Barbara Chen, Parent ’19
Jay Cheng & Laura Luo, Parents ’17
Lan Fan, Parent ’17, ’18
Rebecca Goldin, Parent ’18, ’19
Jing Gu, Parent ’16
Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ’14, ’17
Sarah Kang, Parent ’19
Yuping Li, Parent ’16
Thuy Nguyen, Parent ’16, ’18
Greg Ni, Parent ’19
Lian Wan, Parent ’18
Peter & Jane Wu, Parents ’19
Frank Xia, Parent ’19
Min Yan, Parent ’17
Fang Zhou, Parent ’19

Student panelists:
Laura Chu, TJ ’17
Andrew Howard, TJ ’16
Andrew Huang, TJ ’16
Thuy-Vi Nguyen, TJ ’16
Will Ryu, TJ ’16
Matthew Sun, TJ ’16

Photographer: Andy Zhao, TJ ’16

Dome Celebration (3/10/16)

Registration, set-up, hospitality:
Ashok Anant, Parent ’17
Anusha Holavanahali, TJ ’17
Sharon Kim, TJ ’17
Chandra Krishnamoorthy, Parent ’18
Eldon Luk, TJ ’17
Ravi Nara, Parent ’17, ’18
Linh Nham, Parent ’17
Aadith Vittala, TJ ’17
Vanya Vojvodic, TJ ’16
Olivia Zhang, TJ ’16
Edward Zhou, TJ ’16

Jefferson Society tour guides:
Aaron Gu, TJ ’17
Amee Kapadia, TJ ’17
Maya Khanna, TJ ’17
Satvika Kumar, TJ ’16
Jennifer Lee, TJ ’16
Timothy Liu, TJ ’18
Dan Qi, TJ ’17
Christina Wei, TJ ’16
Jessica York, TJ ’18

Photographer: Frank Ding, TJ ’18

Junior Lab Appeal (March 2016)

Chair: Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ’14, ’17
Astronomy: Sara Franko, Parent ’17;
Jean Schiro-Zavela, Parent ’17
Biotechnology: Ashok Anant, Parent ’17;
Carmita Sequiera, Parent ’17, ’19
Chemical Analysis: Kim Do, Parent ’15, ’17; Janet Mays, Parent ’17, ’19
Computer Sys.: Lan Fan, Parent ’17, ’18, Yongqing Lu, Parent ’17, ’17
Carleen Wood-Thomas, Parent ’14, ’17, ’19
Energy Systems: Oksana Yoon, Parent ’17
Engineering Design: Stamo Georgiou,
Parent ’10, ’12, ’17
Mobile App: Ingrid Constantine, Parent ’17;
Bridgette Khoo, Parent ’17;
Hong Yan, Parent ’05, ’13, ’17
Neuroscience: Gerry Cox, Parent ’17;
Nadia Omais, Parent ’17, ’18; Ravi Nara,
Parent ’17, ’18; Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18
Oceanography: Patricia Connally, Parent ’17; Linh Nham, Parent ’17
Prototyping: Suzie Bastian, Parent ‘15, ’17
Quantum Physics: Carrie Cuddy, Parent ’17
Robotics: Manjula Prindiprolu, Parent ’17

Freshman Welcome (4/26/16)

Ashok Anant, Parent ’17
Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ’14, ’17
Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18

Cluster Party Reps (Spring 2016)

Chair: Hilde Kahn, Parent ’12, ’14, ’17
Ashok Anant, Parent ’17
Patricia Connally, Parent ’17
Ram Mattapalli, Parent ’18
Thuy Nguyen, Parent ’16, ’18
Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18

tjSTAR Reception (6/1/16)

Ashok Anant, Parent ’17
Amee Kapadia, TJ ’17
Anjna Nair, TJ ’16
Nancy Yang, Parent ’17, ’18

OFFICE VOLUNTEERS

Ingrid Constantine, Parent ’17
Jo Koeniger, Parent ’16
Ramji Venkatachari, Parent ’17

WEBMASTER

Susanna Bradbury, TJ ’17

Deb Carstoiu, TJ ’92, Parent ’19, right, with her daughter Talia Carstoiu, TJ ’19.

TJ Grad Returns as Active TJ Parent

As a parent, it’s fulfilling to see your children share your interests and passions — for me, it’s been particularly exciting to see my teenage daughter share my interest in the sciences, especially biotechnology and genetics, as well as follow in my academic footsteps as a TJ student.  My first year back at TJ in over 20 years has given me many opportunities to reconnect with old classmates and reminisce about TJ’s early days, as well as to marvel at the physical changes the school has undergone and the diverse academic and artistic talents and accomplishments of the student population.

—    Deb Shih Carstoiu, Class of 1992

Q:             How did your TJ experience shape your academic and career path?

A:              While science reigns supreme at TJ, I am constantly amazed at the number of artistic and creatively talented students here. During my time at TJ, I was as interested in literature and journalism as I was in biotechnology and biology — and professionally, I’ve been lucky to find a career path that lets me blend my love and understanding of science with my passion for communications, marketing, and writing.  Today, I’m working in science communications — essentially taking science and complicated subjects and simplifying and explaining them so the benefits of complex technologies can be better understood, which helps pave the way for their acceptance.  Science communications has been a great blend of two interests that, on the surface, seem miles apart.  I’m excited to see that today’s freshmen participate in IBET, a course that combines biology, technology, and English because tomorrow’s scientists need to understand how to talk about their work in a way that audiences can understand.

Deb Carstoiu after her graduation from TJ in 1992.

Q:             How has TJ changed since you were a student?

A:              When you come up to the school on Braddock Road, it seems just like the old TJ — there’s still that metal sculpture of the man pulling the doors open (and I recall one senior class prank of putting a toilet seat under him).  But once you come around the corner, it’s a completely different place — there’s the dome, the columns, a completely different façade, and inside, the lockers are gone, there are common areas, 3D printers as far as the eye can see, and even an oceanography lab.  Despite the extensive facelift, TJ, at its core, still focuses on the sciences, and on integrity, respect, and giving students unprecedented opportunities.

Q:             Did you ever think that you’d be a TJ parent?

A:              I never consciously thought about becoming a TJ parent — I believe TJ is a unique place and a great fit for some students, but it’s not for everybody.  My daughter followed my academic footsteps and was in the same AAP program that I was in at Langston Hughes Middle School, and then went on to TJ.  I admit, the TJ admissions process has become a lot harder and more competitive than it was in my time!  I would have been equally happy for her to have attended our base high school, but I’m truly excited that she’s sharing the TJ legacy because it’s a great fit for her: It lets her study the things she’s really interested in, and it challenges her every day.  A few weeks ago, she came home and was excited to tell us about her first dissection — a sheep heart — which she did in Biology Society, an eighth period club, and it reminded me of what an exciting and groundbreaking place TJ was in those first early years and how many unique things we had access to and could experience at the school.  My daughter is very much like me — a student who appreciates both science and the arts — and I’m excited she’s at a school where she can dissect organs and learn graphic design all in the same day!

Q:             What has being a TJ parent been like?

A:              Before becoming a TJ parent, I wasn’t very involved — the school was always just on the wrong side of the Beltway for a visit, and having two children and a job with international responsibility didn’t leave me with a lot of time.  Knowing that I was going to be the parent of a student at a commuter school was the impetus I needed to get involved with the Alumni Association (TJAA) and other school organizations.  Since my comeback at the school’s Alumni Career Fair last spring, I’ve become a TJAA Board Co-Chair, a member of TJ’s Partnership Fund, a class of 2019 parent liaison, and a cheer mom — and while it’s been a little overwhelming at times juggling all these groups and their activities, it’s been very rewarding volunteering and being an active part of the TJ community.  Being a cheer mom gave me an excuse to attend all the home JV football games and work the concession stand during the Homecoming Game (two things I never did as a TJ student).  Supporting the Partnership Fund has given me a chance to participate in school events, including the recent Techstravaganza, where I was proud of the way that TJ students encouraged younger students’ interest in STEM activities.  Serving as “class mom” has given me a great opportunity to meet other parents and families across all the classes.  Being on the TJAA has helped me reconnect with old classmates and be part of a community with a unique shared experience that is 10,000+ strong.  As a current TJ parent, I see lots of opportunities to tap into the extensive and diverse alumni community.  Alumni could volunteer at school events, serve as mentors or scientific advisors to students, or just share their academic and career experiences.  One of my goals in becoming active at the school is to help “bridge the gap” by bringing alumni and parents closer together to support the school— we can definitely be creative in finding unique ways to get alumni engaged with the school and its students!

Dr. Ashley Jones: Part of TJ’s Unique Chemistry

In the latest installment of our “Alums Who Never Left” series, Dr. Ashley Jones, TJ ’91, who has taught Chemistry at TJ since 2004, talks about the TJ faculty who inspired her and how she aims to inspire others.

Q: Can you start us off with a biographical digest?

“A member of the TJ Class of 1991, the third class at what was then a recently minted magnet high school, I mixed at TJ with a high concentration of fellow nerds (commiserators in the awkwardness of adolescence and some souls as introverted as I was), stumbled upon passions for chemistry and Latin, and found outlets in choir and literary magazine. In 1995, I graduated from William and Mary with a BS in chemistry and a minor in math. After W&M, I took my education abroad through a formative odyssey of chemistry, history, literature, and French language at Université de Montpellier in France and traveled through Western Europe. I attended graduate school at Cornell University, earning MS and PhD degrees in bioorganic/polymer chemistry. Following a stretch of language and culture studies in Germany, further travels in Europe, and work as a reading and math tutor at an academic skills center in Fairfax, I was hired by FCPS. I spent an eye-opening first year at Falls Church High School in 2003-04, teaching chemistry and representing science faculty on the AVID support team. Since 2004, I have taught and grown at TJ.

Q: When did you first think you wanted to be a teacher and how did that choice come into focus?

“The prospect of becoming a teacher intrigued me since childhood, when I delighted in playing school. This happy pastime centered on inventing ‘lessons’ and immobilizing one or both of my (often reluctant) younger siblings in front of a chalkboard in the rec room. My piano teachers and choir directors also inspired me while helping me develop as a musician, ensemble member, and performer. During college, I spent two summers interning at an education-focused council in Washington, DC, researching state-specific standards for K-12 science education and editing exams that deliver high school equivalency credentials and volunteered as a reading and math tutor for adult learners in the Williamsburg area. However, it was my teaching assistantships at Cornell that crystallized teaching as my professional path. In allocating my energies among absorbing material for my own chemistry courses, conducting thesis research, and teaching general chemistry lab sections, I loved learning more chemistry, debating pedagogy, and striving to make deep concepts accessible. In my mind, teaching is a craft in which connecting with people is the bottom line.

Q: You have been a mentor to so many TJ students. Could you tell us about the TJ science teachers who had an impact on your learning and career path?

“My evolution as a follower of chemistry, from college to graduate school and into the present, continues to be influenced by examples of compelling TJ mentors. Biology had captivated me as a freshman, but I knew almost nothing about chemistry when as a sophomore I walked into a first period Chem I class led by the personable and spirited Omar Acio [Dr. Acio just retired in June 2016]. The beauty of chemistry as a symbolic language, alongside the undeniable logic of stoichiometry, soon exerted an iron grip on my psyche. With whatever measure of cheerful diligence could be mustered in the throes of a grueling TJ junior year, I plowed through A.P. Chem. Shepherded by Charlotte Follansbee, a role model as a woman chemist and as a person, I cherished A.P. Chem for its mileage as an elective that shed light on certain ‘why’ musings from Chem I and drew momentum from classmates who were also avowed chemistry enthusiasts.

“For my senior tech lab, I plunged into what was scheduled in that era as a year-long two-period block package of Chemical Analysis Laboratory coupled with Introductory Organic Chemistry. John Liebermann was the legendary master of the Chem Analysis Lab, a realm that students affectionately dubbed ‘Lieberland.’ He worked tirelessly to immerse TJers in college-level chemistry, from lectures to labor-intensive problem sets and tough exams to multi-stage experiments and lengthy lab reports that regularly necessitated spectral characterization of chemical substances. ‘Lieberland’ was an atmosphere in which the abilities and talents of TJ students were honored and nurtured through demanding chemistry inquisitions, day-in and day-out, including after-school and summer avenues for extended work on research projects for science competitions. Dr. Liebermann exhibited a drive to diversify his own command of chemistry and pedagogy through currency with technical literature, a commitment to upholding rigorous expectations for student learning and achievement, an uncanny intuition for decrypting and responding to individual attributes of learners (from brilliant to unremarkable to skeptical), an inimitable wit, and a disarming sense of humor. He left an enduring impression.

“I happened to be completing my inaugural FCPS year at Falls Church HS when Charlotte Follansbee was nearing retirement at TJ. Her advocacy was key to my obtaining a transfer interview. At that time, it was not an inevitable decision for me to make the move from Falls Church HS to TJ. I was younger than most TJ faculty then, and concerned about handling the needs of vocal and precocious TJ learners. Responsibilities threatened to be daunting, with daily lessons and lab preps, 8^th period involvement, and a potential deluge of requests for recommendation letters for summer internships and college apps. At the same time, I felt drawn toward the unique chance to dive into dialogue and scholarship — on chemistry and larger learning — in a modern incarnation of the setting where I first met chemistry. Ultimately, burning curiosity outweighed apprehensions.

Q: What is the best part about teaching at TJ?

“Through twelve years of teaching chemistry at TJ as well as sponsoring Chemistry Society and Red Cross Youth Task Force during 8^th period, I have been blessed to work with sharp and inquisitive teenagers who pose thought-provoking questions about chemistry and about life. Students’ relentless inquiries and optimism with regard to innovations in STEM domains push me to persevere with learning and communicating, crusades that I treasure, and to gain insights from the wisdom of faculty colleagues.

Q: Only a tiny fraction of your students will use chemistry in their future jobs. What do you hope that students get from your classes?

“Among the most fulfilling dimensions of teaching at TJ has been my effort to bolster links between Chem I and A.P. Chem. I constantly revisit how to tackle each level of chemistry by contextualizing fundamentals in the elementary course and overarching principles and extensions in the elective college-level course. Chemistry learners tend to confront obstacles in transitioning from macroscopic to particulate to symbolic representations. I relish dreaming up concept-based mnemonics, lessons, labs, and whiteboard visualizations that integrate structural models of molecules, particle drawings, and vocabulary hooks to reinforce ‘big ideas’ that recur as themes.

“‘Chemophobia’ has arisen as a disturbing malady in the general public, and chemistry disciples have a duty to articulate how the creative endeavors of chemists and chemical engineers foster improvements in quality of life for people around the globe. Introducing a first-year learner to chemistry as a vast discipline, when Chem I is a core requirement and most TJ students will not pursue chemistry further, is a crucial mission. At the same time, guiding a second-year learner through deeper conceptual investigations in an elective course offers a distinctive echelon of challenge that is stimulating in entirely different ways. I feel motivated by grappling with these dynamic challenges, enjoying the autonomy to design activities and assessments with varied emphases, and attending summer institutes and conferences on chemical education to exchange viewpoints and strategies with university professors and other high school teachers.

“Chemists see chemistry as ‘the central science’ – a far-reaching field that interfaces with and enables progress in biology, physics, environmental science, agriculture, engineering, materials science, informatics, law, economics, public policy, and other spheres. In daily chemistry classes, I aim for TJ students, especially those who will never touch chemistry again, to sample methods that chemists harness to advance frontiers of knowledge about matter, from analysis of chemical data to solving problems through calculations, from posing questions to be addressed by experiments to communicating evidence-based arguments through proficiency in writing and speaking. Critical questions include: How does chemistry illuminate everyday phenomena by means of molecular-based views? How does chemistry marry the descriptive (qualitative) and the numerical (quantitative)? How does chemistry reveal and unite an array of versatile patterns in nature?

“When former students visit TJ or send updates about their academic and professional adventures, I am constantly amazed to learn where curiosity has propelled them, primed with anticipation to witness what they will accomplish next, and gratified at having first encountered these enterprising people ‘way back when’ as young Jeffersonians.”

See our website for the latest renovation photos.

TJ Heads Into Renovation’s Final Year

Renovation Update

Phase II of TJ’s multi-million dollar renovation was completed just before the end of the school year, with the rollout of 27 classrooms, two common areas, Courtyard I and its greenhouse, a serving line, and a lecture hall. While TJ’s summer programs were taking place at Woodson HS for the last time, extensive work began on Phase III, which includes the renovation of the Auditorium, Planetarium, and Gym II, and the construction of the new Performing Arts Wing.

Parents, who have only recently learned to enter the school through its grand Jeffersonian dome, will soon be adjusting to a new campus traffic pattern as the kiss-and-ride area moves to its final location behind the school (above). Additional exterior work completed this summer includes the removal of the back “learning cottages,” extensive road work, and the construction of a new stadium press box and concession stand.

Campaign Update

Through the efforts of the entire community, including everyone listed on the 2015-2016 Donor List, the Campaign for TJ has raised over $6 million toward its $8 million goal. Funds already raised have equipped research labs that are the envy of some colleges and provided the cutting-edge technology that powers the entire school. Your generosity has also expanded opportunities for our students and helped to spread STEM know-how through the activities of the hundreds of TJ students involved in outreach. But there is still important work to be done. This year we must raise a portion of the cost of turf fields while continuing to upgrade research instrumentation and outfit newly completed classrooms with the latest technology.

Nothing short of a herculean effort will be required to meet our fundraising targets and fulfill all needs by the time the Campaign closes in December 2017. We need:

• Alumni reunion classes to significantly increase their participation rates, as well as more successful alumni to follow the example set by alumni leadership donors and by Yext, the alumni-founded company that donated $250,000 to sponsor the Computer Systems Lab (see June 2016 issue).

• Parents of the Class of 2020, whom we will soon welcome at our annual Freshman Parent Reception, to exceed the Class of 2019 parents’ excellent freshman-year giving record of $136,000.

• All current and past parents to take full advantage of corporate matching and workplace giving programs.

• Parents to convince relatives and friends, and — most of all — their employers of the importance of supporting TJ.

At TJ, all students graduate with the skills they need to compete and contribute. This is no accident. Parent and alumni support is critical if the school is to maintain its standing as a local, national, and international leader and continue to expand opportunities for our students and others in our community. Your support is a large part of what makes TJ unique, what makes it TJ. Strengthen that support today.

The US Chemistry Olympiad team at the closing ceremonies of the International Chemistry Olympiad in Tbilisi, Georgia. Joyce Tian, TJ ’17, is second from left.

For Second Year, TJ Student Wins Silver at Chemistry Olympiad

Other TJ Olympiad News

Two Students at Research Science Institute (RSI)

For the second year in a row, the only female team member on the US National Chemistry Olympiad (USNCO) team was a TJ student. Joyce Tian, TJ ’17, chosen from a group of 20 that represented the most talented high school chemists in the nation, traveled to Tbilisi, Georgia, in late July to take part in the 48th International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO). Last year, Janice Ong, TJ ’15, proudly represented TJ at the 47th IChO in Baku, Azerbaijan, and returned with a silver medal (see August 2015 issue). Following in her footsteps, Joyce came home with a silver medal of her own (see WTOP, August 2016).

Olympiad participants pose in front of Mount Mtatsminda overlooking Tbilisi. Joyce is third from left (photos courtesy Joyce Tian).

The journey to a spot on the US team is a long one. For TJ students it begins at school, where interested students sit for two preliminary exams. The top-scoring students then take the Chemistry Olympiad Local Exam, also administered at TJ. The rules dictate that no more than two students from any one school may sit for the national exam, so only the top two scorers from TJ are eligible to take that exam. The other TJ student taking the national exam this year, Aadith Vitala, TJ ’17, received High Honors for scoring in the top 50.

The three-part national exam takes four hours and 45 minutes and includes theoretical questions and a lab practical. Based on their performance on this exam, the top 20 students in the country are invited to participate in a rigorous two-week study camp, held this year at the University of Mary Washington. At the end of the camp, a four-person team, plus two alternates, are chosen for the US team. At the IChO, US team members compete individually against approximately 300 other students representing 75 countries.

“I found IChO a wholly unique experience, both due to the intensely high-level chemistry concepts tested and the wide variety of people I was able to meet,” Joyce said. She became close with her roommates: “Food, study materials, and idle chatter were shared at all hours, and we became sisters in all but name. Four girls, four countries, made for one unbreakable bond,” she wrote in a piece about her experience. “Georgia was gorgeous, and our guides ensured that we explored every nook and cranny of Tbilisi. I have come out of this with a deeper appreciation for the sciences, for the world, and some life-long friends.”

Biology Olympiad

This was the third year in a row that a TJ student made it to the US Biology Olympiad (USABO) study-camp national finals. Two years ago, William Long, TJ ’15, went all the way to Bali, Indonesia, as a member of the US team (see August 2014 issue). Last year Neeraj Prasad, TJ ’17, participated in the study camp. Representing TJ at this year’s study camp, held at Arlington’s Marymount University, was Ashwin Srinivasan, TJ ’17.

In 2016, 92 TJ students took the USABO Open Exam, along with approximately 10,500 high school students nationwide. Eighteen TJ students scored in the top ten percent nationally, qualifying them to take the semifinal exam in March. Based on their results on that exam, both Neeraj and Ashwin qualified for this year’s USABO study camp, but Neeraj accepted a conflicting offer to participate in Research Science Institute (RSI, below), an extremely selective summer research program held at MIT. In addition to Neeraj and Ashwin, Tiger Zhang, TJ ’16, scored in the top 50 on the USABO semifinal exam.

Computing Olympiad

The 2015-2016 US Computing Olympiad (USACO) season consisted of a series of three online contests held in December, January, and February, followed by the April US Open national championships. Starting this year, contests were available in four levels of difficulty, rather than three: bronze, silver, gold, and the new platinum level. In response to numerous requests, this year’s bronze contests provided an easier entry-level experience for first-time competitors than in years past in order to encourage participation.

Based on their performance in online training pages and preliminary contests, and in particular on their performance at the US Open, 26 students were invited to a camp for finalists at Clemson University, including three from TJ: Katherine Cheng, TJ ’18, Shwetark Patel, TJ ’18, who attended last year, and Justin Zhang, TJ ’18.

Astronomy Olympiad

The US is a relatively recent addition to the International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA), having competed for the first time in 2013. The National Astronomy Olympiad (NAO) consists of first- and second-round exams. In lieu of a training camp, which the organizers hope to add soon, the second round exam is used to select the five-person team that will represent the US at the IOAA. This year, two TJ students qualified for the second round of the NAO: Philip Carr, TJ ’16, and James Ma, TJ ’17.

Physics Olympiad

In 2016, over 4,000 students from around the country participated in the first round US Physics Olympiad (USAPhO) exam, known as F=ma, in January. The top ten percent — including eight from TJ — were invited to take the semifinal exam in March. Based primarily on their scores on the semifinal exam, 20 students were then invited to attend the USAPhO study camp held in late May through early June at the University of Maryland, where the US team that competes at the International Physics Olympiad (IPhO) was chosen. For the second year in a row, Charles Wang, TJ ’18, attended the two-week camp.

Math Olympiad

Many TJ students sit for one of the preliminary Math Olympiad exams offered during the school day in February: AMC10, which may be taken by any 9th or 10th grade student, and AMC12, which may be taken by any student. More than 340,000 students participate in these school-based competitions annually. The top scorers on both exams qualify to take the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME), a fifteen-question, three-hour exam that is significantly more difficult than the AMC exams. Approximately 230 top AMC10/AIME scorers qualify to take the US Junior Math Olympiad (USAJMO,) and approximately 270 top AMC12/AIME scorers qualify to take the US Math Olympiad (USAMO); both the USAMO and USAJMO are six question, essay/proof exams given over two consecutive days in late April.

This year, TJ had six USAJMO qualifiers and twelve USAMO qualifiers, the highest number of total qualifiers of any school in the country. The top twelve USAMO scorers, along with the top non-seniors from the next fifteen or so scorers, are invited to participate in the Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program (MOSP), a three-week problem-solving immersion program hosted at Carnegie Mellon University, which leads to the selection of the six-member team that represents the country at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO). This year, TJ had three students attending MOSP: Adam Ardeishar, TJ ’19, Akshaj Kadaveru, TJ ’18, attending for the second year, and Franklyn Wang, TJ ’18, who received a prestigious USAMO Honorable Mention.

Two Rising Seniors Attend RSI

Prathik Naidu, TJ ’17 (at left in photo, courtesy Neeraj Prasad), was “shocked and excited” when he was invited to attend MIT’s Research Science Institute (RSI), a prestigious summer program that serves as an incubator for award-winning research projects. Neeraj Prasad, TJ ’17 (at right), was “extremely surprised” when admitted and turned down a spot at the USA Biology Olympiad study camp (above) to attend the program.

At RSI 2016, 82 students from sixteen countries spent six weeks conducting original research in university laboratories, hospitals and corporate facilities under the mentorship of leading Boston-area researchers. The program included a lecture series featuring Nobel Laureates and other distinguished guests.

Prathik, who conducted computational epigenomics research at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, built programs that can predict how DNA interacts and forms 3D structures within cells. He created a tool that can efficiently and accurately predict where these 3D DNA structures form in the human genome, which has important implications for studying the development of diseases like cancer.
Neeraj conducted a computational biology project employing massive amounts of genomic data from a large sample of patients who exhibited pre-diabetic symptoms. Working at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a major teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, he identified genes that signaled a greater risk for developing type 2 diabetes and developed a predictor that assigned regulators to these genes. “It was amazing to work alongside and interact with world-class researchers and watch them make sense of huge amounts of data regarding the human genome,” Neeraj said. “RSI was an unforgettable experience.”

“I never thought that I would be able to accomplish this much in such a short amount of time, and RSI pushed me to my limit,” Prathik began. “Most important was being part of a community of young scientists who share a similar interest in asking questions about important scientific problems.”
Prathik credited his IBET and science fair participation for preparing him for the rigors of RSI (he was a Regional Science Fair Grand Prize winner and attended the Intel International Science & Engineering Fair as a sophomore – see June 2015 newsletter).

Echoing Prathik, Neeraj also mentioned his Neurobiology, AP Chemistry, and Multivariable Calculus/Linear Algebra classes, adding, “I don’t believe that any other school in the country has all the resources that TJ has to prepare you for a life in research.”

tjSTAR Symposium & Reception Highlights

tjSTAR Brings Alumni, Parents, Other Professionals to Campus

Amazon: New Gold Sponsor

By covering the costs of lunch for visitors, faculty, staff, and seniors, and providing t-shirts, programs, and more, our generous sponsors make tjSTAR —TJ’s conference-style symposium — possible. Amazon, tjSTAR’s lead sponsor, not only provided $10,000 to support the event but also sent its VP of Global Public Policy, Dr. Paul Misener, Parent ’20, to speak about the company’s latest innovations (see June 2016 issue).

Amazon VP of Global Public Policy Dr. Paul Misener, with his son, rising TJ freshman Jay Misener, at tjSTAR.

In the Exhibit Hall, Silver Sponsor Grant Thornton showed how its key metrics deliver rapid software functionality to federal agencies while Bronze Sponsor Leidos displayed its innovative solutions in national security, health, and engineering. Leidos also sent Senior Scientist Dr. Ananthakrishna Sarma, Parent ’10, to explain the company’s computational weather simulator (see August 2015 issue). Jane Street returned for their sixth year as a tjSTAR Bronze Sponsor, and Booz Allen Hamilton provided additional support.

SpaceX: Scholarship Sponsor

SpaceX Government Affairs Manager Stephanie Bednarek returned for her third symposium to bring students up-to-date on the latest news about the company’s advanced rockets and spacecraft. Bednarek also presented the SpaceX $3,000 Women in Engineering Scholarship, to senior Ava Lakmazaheri (pictured with her robot, above) in recognition of her outstanding work at the intersection of robotics, computer science, and neuroscience (see June 2015 issue). Ava, who will be attending Olin College of Engineering in Needham, MA, will also be pursuing an internship opportunity at SpaceX next summer.

Alumni Tell It Like It Is

Rahul Singh, TJ ’00 (right), has always been an entrepreneur. Moreover, he believes that everyone else can and should be one too. While at TJ, he set up a primitive cloud computing cluster in his basement that grew to 40 computers. Now he’s CEO of his third company, Anant Corp., that helps organize customers’ cloud information with indexing and database management services. Singh encouraged students to see themselves as entrepreneurs, and to consider setting “inexhaustible”  — even “unrealistic” goals — to keep themselves motivated. The company participated in TJ’s first Internship Fair (see March 2016 issue) and hired three interns for this summer.

Sean MacIsaac, TJ ’98, CTO of Yext (with a student, right), shared some lessons he learned during his career as a tech entrepreneur:

• Keep in touch with your TJ friends. They’re not just smart people who can help your career, they’re also just great people.
• When you stop enjoying what you’re doing and stop learning, leave.
• Learn to work with others. You can’t do it on your own.

Yext, which started out ensuring the reliability of companies’ online location information, is now the leading provider of Digital Location Management software and solutions that drive customers to retail and service stores. The company recently became the first alumni-founded company to sponsor a TJ research lab (see June 2016 issue).

Using college admissions data as a familiar example, Dr. Kevin Gormley, TJ ’95 (right), Lead Simulating & Modeling Engineer at MITRE Corp., demonstrated how he applies analytical and statistical tools to healthcare industry data to increase efficiency and discover evidence of fraud. One important takeaway from his talk — Dr. Gormley actually wrote his Princeton undergraduate thesis on the USNews college rankings — is that the USNews rankings would change significantly if certain factors were weighted only slightly differently. Therefore, such rankings are more useful for distinguishing between large clusters of schools than for distinguishing among closely ranked institutions.

Everydata Book Tour

Economist Dr. John H. Johnson, author of the new book, Everydata, found that rooms full of statistics-savvy students made tjSTAR one of the most enjoyable stops on his book tour. After running through some egregious examples of statistical misinformation, he told students that if they keep their eyes open, they can find such examples everywhere: “Look at units, look at axes, check to see all the data is there. It will improve your decision-making,” he said.

Two Educators Receive Tommy Awards

This year, the Partnership Fund’s (PF) tjSTAR Reception served as a warm-up for tjSTAR, and the student researchers were full of enthusiasm as they explained their projects to the event guests. Held for the third year in a row at the Tysons Hilton, the event drew a capacity crowd that included many past parents and a particularly large number of TJ Lab Directors.

Suhas Sastry, TJ ’17, presents a Tommy Award to Hunters Woods ES 5th grade teacher Randy Adams.

The highlight of the PF’s annual signature event is always the recognition of our Tommy Award winners. Following a warm tribute by Suhas Sastry, TJ ’17, son of PF Board Chair Srikant Sastry, who thanked his former 5th grade teacher for having such high expectations of his students and devoting so much time to their development, Mr. Randy Adams accepted his Tommy Award.

Mr. Adams explained that having spent his first career working with adults in the Air Force, he simply assumed that his class of bright youngsters was capable of writing and speaking on an adult level. He assigned two oral presentations per quarter and required his students to hone their written work until it was polished prose. Mr. Adams, who retired this year after 16 years as a 5th and 6th grade gifted education (AAP) teacher at Hunters Woods ES, said that it was his students — a cohort that includes about 80 TJ students and alumni — who should be recognized because it was they who actually did the work.

Executive Principal of Princeton International School of Mathematics & Science (PRISMS) and former TJ Mentorship Director and Science & Tech Division Head Matthew Pearce, left, with Dr. Shane Torbert, TJ Computer Systems Lab Director

Phoebe Whitmore, TJ ’16, who conducted her Astronomy Lab senior research project at NASA through TJ’s Mentorship Program, introduced former Mentorship Program Director Matthew Pearce. Pearce, who led TJ’s Mentorship Program for eight years, serving as Science & Tech Division Manager for three of those years, now leads a new international STEM school that aims to combine the best of Chinese and American educational models.

 

Research Lab Project Displays

ASTRONOMY & ASTROPHYSICS/MENTORSHIP
Phoebe Whitmore

AUTOMATION & ROBOTICS
Isaac Iyengar

Disha Jain, TJ ’16, explains her project at the Partnership Fund tjSTAR reception.

BIOTECHNOLOGY & LIFE SCIENCES
Karl Keat & Ming Ray Xu

CHEMICAL ANALYSIS & NANOCHEMISTRY
Aneesh Susarla & Nirmaan Shanker

COMPUTER SYSTEMS
James Woglom

ENERGY SYSTEMS
Michael Tang

ENGINEERING DESIGN
Michael Rodriguez

Senior Michael Rodriguez displays his Engineering Design project

MICROELECTRONICS
Jade Traiger & Anya Owsenek

MOBILE & WEB APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT
Disha Jain

NEUROSCIENCE
Shritika Dahal

OCEANOGRAPHY & GEOPHYSICAL SYSTEMS
Kaila Stein, Cynthia Zhuang, Rishab Negi, Charlie Lertlumprasert , Helen Ngov, Cheryl Mensah

Seniors representing the Oceanography Lab, from left to right, Helen Ngov, Rishab Negi,Cynthia Zhuang, Charlie Lertlumprasert, Cheryl Mensah,and Kaila Stein

PROTOTYPING & ENGINEERING MATERIALS
Dean Gumas & Neil Chiruvella

QUANTUM PHYSICS & OPTICS
Andrew J. Charbonneau

“JUMP” (UNDERCLASSMEN PROJECT)
Ishaandeep Lubana, TJ ’19

SPECIAL INVITE: CONRAD WINNERS
Rahul Rajan, ’18, Alex Peng, TJ ’18, Naman Singh, Westfield HS, and Kavya Kopparapu, TJ ’18

Seniors Kareem Mohiyuddin (speaking at right), Tarun Vippa (far left), and Raghav Ramraj discuss educating members of the Muslim community about the Islamic legal tradition as well as the promotion of dialog between Muslims and non-Muslims in Northern Virginia.

Partnership Fund Supports Service Learning, Student Teams, Clubs, Activities, Projects, Speakers

PF Supports Humanities: Funds Global Studies Curriculum

For the second year, seniors in the AP English Language/Global Studies class — taught this year by Dr. Michelle Boswell — teamed up with Monte Bourjaily’s AP Government class to implement a “Seeding Social Innovation” social entrepreneurship curriculum.This specialized curriculum was designed by LearnServe International, a non-profit dedicated to empowering high school students to address global problems.TJ’s Global Studies curriculum partnership was supported by a TJ Partnership Fund grant.

Dr. Glazer stopped in to acknowledge the relevance of the students’ work and to thank the panelists for their time and the Partnership Fund for its financial and administrative support.

For their final project in this interdisciplinary humanities program, student groups researched a problem that exists worldwide and proposed a novel solution that attempts to solve it on a local level. Students then pitched their ideas — in the style of TV’s “Shark Tank” — to a panel of parent and alumni judges. Students prepared a slideshow and accompanying short oral presentation and answered judges’ questions, later receiving written comments not only from their teachers but also from the panel. LearnServe Directors Scott Rechler and Sabine Keinath, who worked with Global Studies faculty and students throughout the year, attended the presentation and provided additional feedback.

Ten teams pitched their solutions to the judges. Topics spanned a range of important economic, political, and social issues: malnutrition, food waste, ocean acidification, the oil economy, extremism, terrorism, Islamic law, censorship, sexual assault, and drug trafficking.

The 2016 panel of volunteer judges, from left to right, Quo Lu, TJ ’96, Owner, First Impression Orthodontics; Tom Goodwin, Parent ’08, Owner, Thomas Goodwin Communications; Karthik Srinivasan, Parent ’19, Senior VP of Federal IT Services, IBA Corp; Ram Mattapalli, Parent ’18, CEO Zolon Tech; and Hardish Nandra, Parent ’13, ’19, Director of Enterprise Strategy Services, Microsoft.

The judges evaluated students on three criteria: innovation, visual presentation, and traction (a direct and inspiring call to action). Volunteer judge Hardish Nandra, Parent ’13, ’19 was impressed both “with the work put in by the seniors who obviously cared (many passionately) about the issue they had chosen to research” and with “the nature of the topics chosen — all were current, topical in today’s world, major pressing issues and concerns.” He found the interaction between the panel and students to be “vigorous,” with “engaged” students and “a lot of good dialog between presenters and the panel.”

While recognizing the Partnership Fund for its support of the LearnServe partnership, Mr. Bourjaily pointed out that the program has helped students get their voices heard, potentially influencing local policy and action. As examples, he mentioned that a student was quoted in a Washington Post article about changes to the FCPS family life curriculum (see this issue’s News page) and that others prepared and submitted suggested revisions to the FCPS panel revising its substance use and abuse curriculum. “Thank you again for helping to make this possible,” he said.

Matthew Sun, TJ ’16, along with older sisters Mary Sun, TJ ’12, and Jessica Sun was honored with LearnServe’s Entrepreneurship Award at its annual gala at American University’s Katzen Arts Center in February.

As a TJ freshman, Matthew co-founded Synapps LLC, which matches non-profit organizations with students who can create low-cost apps or websites. As a participant in the LearnServe Incubator Program’s inaugural class during his junior year, he created the Synapps Apprenticeship Program, which enables students to earn service hours and gain experience by building apps and websites for student use and outside organizations.

PF Supports Student Activities: Awards Community Grants, “One Question” Grants

Last year’s pilot program was such a success (see March 2016 issue) that the Partnership Fund (PF) will be doubling its support for its Community Grant Program for the 2016-2017 school year, setting aside $10,000 for grants to academic teams, social service clubs, and other 8th period and school-related activities. Due to a decrease in funding available from other sources, PF support is now critical to maintaining the high caliber of extracurricular opportunities available to TJ students.

One of last year’s Community Grant recipients, the Product Design Club (PDC), put grant funds toward the purchase of a Do-it-Yourself (DIY) 3D printer, which will support the club’s ongoing project making prosthetic hands for children while enabling it to embark on new projects. At right, PDC Co-Presidents seniors Jami Park, left, and Adarsh Kulkarni, front right, assemble the printer. The DIY kit costs less than a factory-programmed printer and allows club members to customize it for their specific needs. Community Grant applications will be available on the PF website in mid-September.

Adarsh and Jami are also the authors of this year’s “One Question:” How can we better embrace failure within the TJ community and use it as an opportunity for learning and growth? The PF sets aside $5,000 a year to fund “One Question” Grants, which support students and faculty projects. “One Question” Grant applications will be available on the TJ website in mid-October. With a smile, Adarsh noted that because “failure is a big part of PDC’s endeavors in 3D printing,” he expects the club to provide continued “opportunities for growth.”

Alumni, School Take Action to Increase Diversity

Alumni Action Group Inspires, Prepares Students

This spring, a group of alumni led by Josh Silverman, TJ ’94 (below right), co-owner of Edge Ed, a tutoring and test-preparation business located near the school, formed an independent group with the purpose of taking tangible steps to improve diversity at TJ.

At the TJ PTSA’s annual Diversity Committee event, held this year on June 4th and organized by Renee Jones, Parent ’16, and Michele Gonzales, Parent ’16, alumni from the group spoke about their background, TJ experience, career path, and commitment to expanding the number of students from underrepresented groups at TJ.

Participants on the Diversity Committee student panel, from left to right, freshmen Danielle Castro, Jennifer Hernandez, and Maxwell Jones. Not pictured, Jake Gonzalez, TJ ’16, Paula Jaramillo, TJ ’16, Randall Jones, TJ ’16, and Angel Peprah, TJ ’18.

Erren Lester, TJ ’95 (top), said that it was students on his TJ bus — students who knew much more than he did — who spurred his interest in Computer Science. He is presently serving as a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow and is also a Trustee of Carnegie Mellon University, from which he received both a BS in Computer Science and an MBA.

The TJ Alumni Action Group, which also includes students, current and former faculty, and others from the TJ community, promised comprehensive support to interested families, including application assistance, summer and fall test preparation sessions, mentoring, tutoring, transportation, and translation, all at no charge.

At Silverman’s summer test-prep session, a two-week course held in late July and early August at Edge Ed’s spacious new Backlick Road location, students learned how to approach logic problems, reviewed algebra skills, and received test-taking pointers (right). In addition to multiple practice quizzes and section review tests provided during the courses, Silverman will also offer a mock exam — with immediate feedback — on the afternoon before the TJ admission test in December.

For more information or to get involved, follow the group on Facebook at TJ Action Group and on Twitter @TJActionGroup.

Left to right, LIFT mentors Anne Nguyen, TJ ’19, Fatima Gunter-Rahman, TJ ’17, and Rithvik Gundlapalli, TJ ’19, help Assistant Principal Shawn Frank, right, lead a LIFT session (not pictured, mentor Rebecca Linick, TJ ’16). Photos courtesy Nicolae Ciorogan, Cooke Foundation

Jack Kent Cooke’s LIFT Program Aims to Repeat Success

Thanks to the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, 62 rising 8th graders sampled TJ’s Middle School Tech Institute (MSTI) offerings this summer as part of an effort to prepare and encourage them to apply and be admitted to TJ. The Foundation’s “Learning through Inquiry, Fellowship, and Tutoring” (LIFT) grant, now in its second year, is providing low-income students with MSTI scholarships, TJ test-prep sessions, materials, and academic advising in an effort to increase their numbers at TJ (see Nov. 2015 issue).

MSTI student shows his “Photoshop Bootcamp” project to Astrik Tenney, Cooke Foundation Program Manager.

Last year the LIFT program made significant progress toward its goal of at least tripling the percentage of low-income students at TJ over two years. The number of students eligible for free or reduced lunch who were admitted to TJ climbed from four to ten, with eight of those ten coming through the LIFT program. Seven of the eight admitted LIFT scholars will enroll in this fall’s freshman class.

In addition, for the sixth year in a row, Northrop Grumman provided 100 scholarships so that rising 7th graders from under-represented minority groups could attend MSTI free of charge.
MSTI provides middle-schoolers with an exciting introduction to TJ’s unique approach to STEM learning. All classes, from the engineering problems tackled in this summer’s brand-new course, “Reinventing the Wheel,” to the ever-popular “Got an App for That?” focus on hands-on problem-solving, collaboration, and exposure to real-world STEM applications.

Young TJ Grads Stay Involved in Local Outreach

Whether students were more interested in the mechanics of flight or the possibility of alien life, this summer’s week-long NeuroInspire and AeroInspire/AstroInspire classes — with five themed days from “brains” to “photography” — were sure to encourage further learning.

NeuroInspire co-founders and 2013 grads Nathan Kodama (on left in photo, above right) and Sid Sivakumar (on right) returned from Case Western University, where they are rising seniors, to lead the four-hour “Founders Program,” held at Glasgow MS starting each day at 7:30am. TJ classmate Suhas Gondi, another co-founder, took a day off from his internship to help out on “computer” day. Glasgow Principal — and former TJ Assistant Principal —  Shawn DeRose participated on “music” day and found funds to cover the cost of supplies for the free class. Rounding out the group of volunteers were Matt Conley, TJ ’13, and McLean HS seniors Willie Kodama, Brian Min, and Lucy Zheng.

At the end of every day, the two classes combined for a closing “story” led by an instructor. On Friday, “food” day, the fun began with an interactive exercise on the five tastes followed by an elaborate meal. The day ended with Nathan Kodama sharing his path from environmental science in middle school to neuroscience in high school to physics in college. “Don’t expect to find your passion immediately,” he told the kids, “just keep following your interests and you’ll find it.”