For his research work and overall passion for science, Wantagh High School senior Evan Thole will be honored by the Nassau County chapter of the Science Teachers Association of New York State. He will receive the Outstanding Science Student award at the upcoming recognition dinner on May 16.

Each high school can select one student to receive this award for his or her extraordinary work in science, and Evan was chosen by the Wantagh High School science faculty. He has enrolled in numerous science courses including honors-level Living Environment as a freshman, honors-level Chemistry and Advanced Placement Biology as a sophomore, AP Physics 1 as a junior and AP Chemistry as a senior. Additionally, he is taking AP Physics 2 and AP Physics C as independent study courses this year. 

Science research is of particular interest to Evan, who has been a part of the after-school elective class for four years. He has been immersed in a DNA biotechnology project, testing non-GMO-labeled corn to see if it actually had been genetically modified. He used short DNA sequences to make his determination, with equipment borrowed from a lab at Stony Brook University. During his research he found one piece of non-GMO corn was, in fact, genetically modified. 

“I’ve loved all of the science classes that I’ve taken,” Evan said. “I really love the subject and I’ve had great science teachers. It’s great to be recognized for having a passion for a subject.”

Evan said he has enjoyed the high-level discussions he has had with his science teachers over the last four years. In college, he wants to study biomedical engineering, and is considering a focus in computation biology and genetics. 

“I can’t speak highly enough about Evan,” said Christen Bellucci, his science research teacher for the past two years. “I’m really excited about what the future holds for him.”