Largest Science Olympiad team yet represents Ursuline at regional event

The Ursuline School's Science Olympiad team delivered a strong showing at the Lower Hudson Valley Regional Science Olympiad tournament on February 7, 2026, competing against 25 schools in a rigorous, multi-disciplinary STEM competition.

This year marked Ursuline's third consecutive year participating in the Science Olympiad and its largest team to date, with 15 students in grades 10–12 competing across 13 different events. Challenges spanned written exams, hands-on laboratory work, and engineering builds that required precision, collaboration, and critical thinking.

Several Ursuline students earned top finishes. Brooke Syzgiel '28 and Anush Vaish '28 received medals in Anatomy and Physiology. Additional top-ten finishes included team captain Anna Fahy '26 and Camille Montpelier '26, who placed in both the bungee drop and hand-built helicopter events. Khloe Ponce-Erickson '28 and Lili Lakatos '28 also earned a top-ten finish in Materials Science in their first Science Olympiad tournament. The team, which is coached by Science teachers and co-moderators Jerry Francischelli and Maggie DiGiorno, has met weekly since September in advance of the competition.

"This was our third year competing, and it was exciting to see the program grow to its largest team yet," said Francischelli, co-moderator. "The students really rose to the challenge of a highly competitive regional tournament."

Science Olympiad is a national STEM program that promotes critical thinking, teamwork, and the application of scientific knowledge to real-world challenges through interdisciplinary competition.

Ursuline’s Science Olympiad program now includes 32 students across grades 6–12. In addition to the high school team, a middle school team will compete on March 7 at Scarsdale Middle School, continuing the program's growth and expanding hands-on STEM opportunities across grade levels.