Commack Student Takes Second in Kaplan Essay Contest

A Commack student has won a $1,000 scholarship for coming in second place in a Kaplan Test Prep contest. 

Kayla Neville won second place in Kaplan Test Prep's "Stanley's Story, Your Story" contest on Facebook. The contest asked high school students to write a brief essay on who inspired them most. 

Neville chose to write about her science research teacher, Richard Kurtz. Here is a brief excerpt from her essay: 

The person who inspires me the most is my science research teacher, Mr. Richard Kurtz…In this class, I am not taught by memorizing mundane facts, rather, I am given the opportunity to actively explore the world and discover new information. Every day, Mr. Kurtz finds the passion for science inside the student and fuels it with scholarly research articles, experiments, and new ideas…Whenever I have a new idea, no matter how ridiculous, Mr. Kurtz encourages me to act on it and when I get frustrated with my project he offers new ways to look at the situation… Mr. Kurtz doesn’t just plant the seed for a great idea, but he waters and nourishes it and watches the tree grow.

More than 3,000 students across the nation participated in the Kaplan Test Prep's contest.  From those entries submitted, Neville's essay was chosen as one of five finalists to compete for online votes. 

Neville will be entering her senior year at Commack High School this fall.