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THOMAS JEFFERSON PARTNERSHIP FUND BACK-TO-SCHOOL 2015 NEWSWORTHY The Newsletter of the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology Partnership Fund, a non-profit foundation dedicated to supporting the unique learning opportunities available at TJ and maintaining the special relationship of alumni to the School Dramatic New Spaces to Open This School Year ! RENOVATION UPDATE Upon the com- pletion of Phase I of TJ’s transformative renovation last November, students moved into spacious new Research Lab and Chemistry/Geosystem wings and visited their counselors in a new Administrative wing. Phase II is expected to be completed by April, open- ing up most of the new building’s interior, including: the new Design & Tech/Physics wing; IBET, humanities, and world language classrooms; the lecture hall; the Global Learning Center (library); two attractive courtyards, one with a greenhouse, the other with an amphitheater; Internet cafes; and additional common areas. Some new spaces will open even sooner. By the end of September, students will have access to a completely renovated Gym I, with new locker rooms and weight rooms. By Thanksgiving, they’ll enter the Inside the new dome. See our website for the latest renovation pictures. school through a majestic Jeffersonian dome that opens into a two-story atrium lobby, with direct access to the Research Lab wing. CAMPAIGN UPDATE All of us at the Thomas Jefferson Partnership Fund (PF), TJ’s non-profit foundation, have enjoyed sharing TJ’s new Research Lab Wing with the School’s many loyal supporters, from parents whose children graduated long ago to alumni who are returning to campus as TJ parents. If you weren’t able to join us for the Ribbon Cutting ceremony that formally opened the new wing, an Alumni Day tour, or the January Open House -- or even if you were -- we hope you can make our upcoming Fall Open House (date TBA). We’re thrilled to announce that the Campaign for TJ has now raised over half of the $8 million TJ needs to con- tinue as the nation’s leading STEM high school, progress that would not have been possible without the tremendous sup- port of parents, corporations and foundations, and our newest and most enthusiastic supporters, TJ’s devoted alumni. With reunion classes leading the way, class giving has skyrocketed to a total of $400,000 (see pages 20-21). For the first time ever, the alumni giving total for this past school year nearly equalled the total raised from parents. In an- other first, an anonymous alum made an outright gift of $100,000 to the Campaign, the largest gift by an alum to date. We’re confident that such a significant gift will inspire other successful alums to consider investing in the future of educa- tion with a donation to the Campaign for TJ. With grants to TJ now totaling over $2 million, the Campaign continues to be the engine behind the modernization of TJ’s research curriculum and capability. The latest $500,000 grant, given in May, was used to purchase advanced instru- mentation for Biology, Physics, and Geosystems classes and several Research Labs, including a $100,000 confocal micro- scope and the instrumentation necessary to convert an existing scope into a fluorescence microscope, both to be shared by the Biotechnology (see March 2015 issue) and Neuroscience Research Labs (see page 4). A separate $60,000 grant enabled the purchase of iPad and Kindle carts for humanities and other classrooms. NOW ONLINE AT TJPARTNERSHIPFUND.ORG/NEWSLETTER/LATEST-ISSUE PAGE 1 THOMAS JEFFERSON PARTNERSHIP FUND BACK-TO-SCHOOL 2015 TJ STUDENT WINS SILVER MEDAL AT INTERNATIONAL CHEMISTRY OLYMPIAD ! TJ is one of a small group of high schools that consistently sends students to the highest level of national Olympiad competition and frequently sees some of those students go on to represent their country in international competition. This year, Janice Ong, TJ ’15, flew to Baku, Azerbaijan, to take part in the 47th International Chemistry Olympiad (ICHO) as a member of the US team. She came home exhilarated from her “once-in-a-lifetime experience,” excited about “how much more there is to learn.” To top it off, she received a silver medal and earned the second- highest score on the US team. In order to obtain one of four coveted spots on the US Chemistry Olympiad team, Janice needed to outscore the competition on a series of increasingly challenging and competitive exams. TJ’s Chemistry Olympiad sponsor, Mr. Hadan Kauffman, administers two school-wide preliminary exams in January and February. Based on the results of these exams, about a dozen TJ students qualify to take the Chemistry Olympiad Local Exam, taken each year by 16,000 students nationwide. The top two scorers on that exam are eligible to take the national exam, given to DC-area students The US Chemistry Olympiad team, at the closing ceremonies for the 47th International Chemistry Olympiad at a local university. in Baku, Azerbaijan, July 29, 2015. From left to right: Bryce The three-part national exam takes four hours and 45 minutes and Cai, Janice Ong, TJ ’15, David Wang, and Soorajnath includes theoretical questions and a lab practical. More than 1,000 students Boominathan. (Photo courtesy Janice Ong) take this exam at their local testing site each year. For the second year in a row, Janice scored among the top 20 students in the country on the national exam, earning a spot at the rigorous two-week study camp held at the US Air Force Academy. The camp is very intense, with lectures, lab work, and 25 hours of exams on advanced Chemistry topics. Based on her performance on the study camp assessments, Janice was one of four students selected to represent the US at the International Chemistry Olympiad. “Chemistry Olympiad has been a very intellectually rewarding experience for me,” Janice said. “It always feels like the farther you go into the subject, the more nuanced your understanding becomes - you realize there are breaking points for many of the approximations you used to rely on, and you learn how to work around them; you start to see organic molecules not just as structures but begin thinking of ways they might be synthesized. The last time a TJ student made the US team for the ICHO was in 1999, so I was really excited and honored to represent the US and TJ at the International Chemistry Olympiad and enjoyed meeting many other students who share the same passion about the subject. In addition to meeting people from around the globe, my team members and I visited the city of Baku and Azerbaijani landmarks such as the Maiden Tower. The exams themselves were long and probably the hardest ones I've taken, but it has been a really good experience to be challenged to such a level this early in my career.” Biology Olympiad Wrap-Up Last year, William Long, TJ ’15, traveled to Bali, Indonesia for the International Biology Olympiad (IBO) as a member of the US Biology Olympiad (USABO) team, where he was awarded 5th place in individual competition (see August 2014 issue). It was his second time as a national finalist. This year, Neeraj Prasad, TJ ’17, made it to the study-camp national finals. TJ’s Biology Olympiad team administers the USABO Open Exam in February to all interested students. In 2015, 95 TJ students took the first-round exam, which was taken simultaneously by almost 10,500 high school students nationwide. Twenty-six TJ students scored in the top ten percent nationally, qualifying them to take the semifinal exam in March. The top-20 scorers on that exam were invited to Purdue University for ten days of instruction that included “animal and plant dissections, molecular biology lab practice, and lectures on topics ranging from Biochemistry to the fruit fly,” according to Neeraj, followed by two days of testing that included a three-hour theoretical exam and a six-hour practical. Physics Olympiad Wrap-Up The TJ Physics Team, which proudly states on its website that TJ has produced “more members of the US Physics Team than any other high school in the nation,” administers the preliminary (F=ma) and semifinal exams each spring. In 2015, approximately 4,400 students from around the country participated in the F=ma exam, with the top 360 scorers -- including eight from TJ -- invited to take the semifinal exam. The top 20 scorers on the semifinal exam were then invited to attend the US Physics Olympiad (USAPhO) study camp at the University of Maryland, where the US team that competes at the International Physics Olympiad (IPhO) is chosen. Three study camp participants were from TJ: Shankar Balasubramanian, TJ ’15, Allen Cheng, TJ ’16, and Charles Wang, TJ ’18. "My initial impression of Physics was pure apprehension,” Shankar said, “but Physics team helped me realize that Physics is as intuitive as any other subject. I learned to enjoy the subject by interacting with my peers -- discussing concepts, working out devious problems, bouncing off ideas. For all that and for providing me with opportunities such as attending camp, I thank my fellow officers and passionate members. I am forever in debt." NOW ONLINE AT TJPARTNERSHIPFUND.ORG/NEWSLETTER/LATEST-ISSUE PAGE 2 THOMAS JEFFERSON PARTNERSHIP FUND BACK-TO-SCHOOL 2015 TJ FRESHMAN IS BRAIN BEE NATIONAL CHAMPION Soren Christensen, TJ '18, just returned from representing the US at the 2015 International Brain Bee (IBB). (Check the online edition for the latest results.) In order to qualify for the IBB, Soren had to win the TJ Brain Bee, the DC Regional Brain Bee -- sponsored by the Society for Neuroscience -- and finally the National Brain Bee.

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