By STUART KLATZ
On Friday, Jan 17, a surprise celebration was held at Long Beach High School in honor of Komisarow's selection as a semifinalist in the 2003 Intel Science Talent Search. Komisarow is one of 300 such students chosen out of more than 1,500 entrants nationwide. All of the semifinalists will be awarded $1,000 in recognition of their scientific achievements, and Long Beach High School will receive $1,000 to support its science and math programs thanks to Komisarow's selection.
Forty finalists in the competition will be announced on Jan. 29. Those students will compete for college scholarships totaling more than $500,000. If Komisarow is among the finalists, he will be given an all-expenses paid trip to Washington D.C. to attend the Science Talent Institute. The overall winner, chosen at rigorous judging sessions, will be announced at a black-tie banquet on March 11.
Jordan is a teacher's dream, said Long Beach High School science research coordinator Linda Trusz. He did his project not to win a contest, but to help make himself a better human being.
Komisarow works at the Cold Spring Harbor science laboratories, where he does research in both the high school laboratory and the main facility. He is the only student granted the privilege of working in the main laboratory.
Jordan is constantly being asked for his opinion by scientists who have Ph.D.'s, and he hasn't even earned his high school diploma yet, Trusz marveled.
In addition to his science work, Komisarow is a member of both the varsity golf and swim teams and is co-editor of the Tide, Long Beach High's student newspaper. This is a student who can accomplish anything he wants to, said Karen Bloom, chairperson of the high school science department and Komisarow's former baby-sitter.
The surprise party was attended by Komisarow's parents and his sister Dara, faculty and students from the science department, Principal Nicholas Restivo, school board president Gina Guma, and Superintendent of Schools Ron Friedman.
Having an Intel semifinalist is one of the key indicators people look at in making an overall judgment in whether a high school is top quality or run-of-the-mill, Friedman said. We're proud to be top quality, and thanks to Jordan now everyone will know it.
At the celebration, Komisarow was presented with an award for excellence in original scientific research. He gratefully accepted the award and thanked his many supporters over the years. I especially want to thank my parents for their sacrifices in driving me out to the lab and even cutting out articles which helped with my research, he said. Komisarow recalled that at Cold Spring Harbor he got his start by cleaning glasses.
His project is an attempt to understand how certain genes control other genes. Komisarow did a search to find the master on-off switches, which may eventually lead to an ability to predict or even manipulate these switches. In time, such research may prove to be the key in controlling diseases that are considered incurable today.
Should he go on to win the competition and the $100,000 scholarship that goes with the title, Komisarow already has plans for the future. If I win, I'm going to take a day off, he said with an award-winning smile.
