Syosset High School junior, Rachel Stanton, has been awarded first prize in the eighth annual New York Council for the Humanities' Young Scholars Competition.

Over 500 high school students from New York participated in this year's Young Scholars Contest. They researched and wrote on a number of topics. Stanton's research paper, "Margaret Sanger: A Decision for all Women," garnered the coveted $5,000 college scholarship award.

Syosset Coordinator of Social Studies, Dr. Ivor Parsons, was Rachel's mentor and was present at the award ceremony at Fordham University at Lincoln Center on June 12.

The Syosset High School Forensics Team competed at the National Forensics League and Debate Tournament June 10 - 17 in Oregon. The six Syosset delegates, who represented New York City by placing first or second in a regional qualifying tournament, competed against close to 2,500 students from all 50 states. The Syosset contingent was the largest of any in New York State and averaging 12 rounds of competition, the most successful.

The team's graduating president, David Kahne, placed seventh in the nation in Original Oratory with his speech about America's recent reluctance to assign full blame and pass strong judgment on wrongdoing. Kahne missed the opportunity to compete for the top position on a tie-breaker.

Junior Andrew Korn took tenth place in Foreign Extemporaneous speaking, an event in which speakers have a half-hour to prepare a response to current event issues involving foreign nations.

Classmates Aimee DeShayes and Ethan Hove placed 11th in Duo Interpretation with their enactment of scenes from the play, The Baby Dance.

Junior Richard Rothblatt was a quarterfinalist (top 30 in the nation) in Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking, where the focus is on United States issues, and Ari Stern, who will also be a senior next year, represented Syosset in the Student Congress.

These achievements highlight the team's bright future and the successes of the 1999-2000 school year. Syosset Forensics looks forward to matching its two-years-running selection as one of the top five teams in the United States. The team, coached by Lydia Esslinger, a member of the Syosset High School English department, is open to all students interested in public speaking, acting, debating, current events, writing and improving communication skills.

Syosset High School Principal Dr. Jorge Schneider and art department chairman Richard Kane announced that juniors Aki Morita and Diana Krimitsos won first and third places, respectively, in the Nassau County Poster Contest, sponsored by the SUNY Stony Brook, Long Island Groundwater Research Institute.