Hopewell Valley Central High School senior Sonja Michaluk continues to achieve in the fields of mathematics and science.
And with her skills in math and science, she wrote her name in the record book at the school.
Her latest achievement –the first for the school district– was her being named a top 40 finalist in the 79th Regeneron Science Talent Search competition, which is the nation’s oldest science and math competition for high school seniors, according to competition officials.
“For the community of those who compete in science competitions, this is kind of the peak achievement, to make it to the top 40. It is the ultimate goal I feel like,” Michaluk said. “I am still in shock and disbelief and something I did not see coming in the slightest.”
Competition officials said the 40 finalists were selected from 300 scholars and nearly 2,000 entrants based on the originality and creativity of their scientific research, as well as their achievement and leadership both inside and outside of the classroom.
Michaluk’s project centered around assessing the health of a waterway.
“This project overlaps with public policy a little bit. I feel like protecting the remaining clean bodies of water is a pressing issue,” Michaluk said. “A poor environment means, poor human health.
She developed a new method to look at waterway health. Her method looks at the biological health of the eco-system in the waterway.
Michaluk said there actually isn’t a global standard for this bio-assessment method. That if you use state protocol for the state of New Jersey and compare it to California’s protocol, they are not on the same level.
Using this method that she created she increases the statistical power of water health data, precision and accuracy, and provides the first global standardized method that can be used world wide, according to Michaluk.
She explained that her method includes DNA barcoding, which came out in 2003 and allows people to extract DNA from any organism in the waterway, sequence it and figure out what it is down to species level. It matches the sequence up to preexisting data bases.
“I developed a method unlike any other pre-existing method and has the potential to be the first global bio-method standard for assessing a body of water,” Michaluk said. “This can be used to help protect bodies of water and also detect changes over time that otherwise would fall under the cracks.”
Michaluk will travel to Washington, D.C. in March for a week of competition, where she will undergo a rigorous judging process and compete for more than $1.8 million in awards against other finalists.
Finalists are each awarded at least $25,000, and the top 10 awards range from $40,000 to $250,000.
The top 10 Regeneron Science Talent Search 2020 winners will be announced at a black-tie gala awards ceremony at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., on March 10.
“If you complete the finals week there, each finalist will receive $25,000. That is a crazy amount of money for me,” Michaluk said.
At 16 years-old she said she hopes people can see that young age does not stop you from contributing to society.
“Sonja (Michaluk) is a gifted student who has a remarkable passion for the environment,” said Hopewell Valley High teacher Karen Lucci. “Her research in ecology is truly exceptional and, more importantly, she continues to share what she has learned so that others can develop an appreciation of nature and how we all impact the natural world around us.”
Alumni of competition include 11 National Medals of Science, five Breakthrough Prizes, 21 MacArthur Foundation Fellowships, two Fields Medals and 13 Nobel Prizes.
“We are proud that Sonja (Michaluk) is our first ever Regeneron finalist. She is an exceptional student and scientist who is driven to make an impact on the world we live in,” said Thomas Smith, superintendent of Hopewell Valley Regional Schools.