A Science Olympiad team from South Middle School set a new school record at the 2025 New York Science Olympiad Tournament in Syracuse in April. Competing against the best teams from across the state, the South Middle team earned its highest placement to date, finishing fourth overall and the top middle school on Long Island for the first time in the school’s history.

The competition was comprised of 23 challenges requiring knowledge and skills in various disciplines of science, technology, and engineering. Medals were awarded to the top teams in each challenge, and South Middle brought home top-three honors in seven events: gold in Anatomy & Physiology and Meteorology; silver in Codebusters, Metric Mastery, and Potions & Poisons; and bronze in Disease Detectives and Ecology.

“This is a milestone for our school and our community,” said coach Tobias Hatten. “Our students showed tremendous teamwork, perseverance, and enthusiasm for science. We couldn’t be prouder.”

Fifteen South Middle students who participated in the state tournament are: Austin Chen, Sophia Chen, Andrea Chou, Lazar Cutler, Atharv Dhawan, Ethan Han, Victoria Huang, Leeann Lee, Nathan Li, Jada Lin, Jack Pei, Ryan Tsai, Isabelle Yang, Linda Yue, and Kyle Zheng.

This is the seventh consecutive year that South Middle qualified for the state tournament by winning a top spot at the Western Long Island Regional Science Olympiad, held in March. The South Middle Science Olympiad team is coached by Mr. Hatten, science department chairperson, and science teachers Diane Caplain and Nathan Wong.