When the reporter arrived to interview this year’s Brain Bee NYC Regional Champions, he found them waiting in the principal’s office, pressing their fingers to the sides of their heads and discussing the temporal lobe.
But what else would be expected from two promising Queens students whom even the Brain Bee panel couldn’t stump?
Both Ashley Jabar, 17, and Koryalys Edwards, 16, tied for first place at the 2010 Regional Brain Bee held on February 11, after exhausting every question the panel had. They are now on their way to the National Brain Bee, which will be held March 19-20 at the University of Maryland in Baltimore.
Jabar, a senior, and Edwards, a junior, are students at the Queens Gateway to Health Sciences Secondary School in Jamaica, which was named one of America’s Best High Schools, according to U.S. News and World Report.
The Brain Bee is an annual competition sponsored by the DANA Foundation, a private organization supporting brain research. The purpose of the bee is to encourage young people to get involved in neuroscience.
Both Jabar and Edwards competed in the bee last year, and also had a very strong finish, coming in fourth and second, respectively.
“Last year was a little intimidating, but once I got into the flow, it got more comfortable,” said Edwards.
The teens prepared for this year’s bee by staying after school four times a week for two months quizzing each other, which they both said contributed to their top place finish. “Last year I was a bit lazy, I really didn’t prepare until a week before,” said Jabar, adding that this time, she did things differently.
“Having two months to prepare, coupled with our work ethic, produced favorable results,” said Edwards.
However, if you ask Prudence Mougis, a teacher at the school who helped Jabar and Edwards prepare for the bee, this victory had more to it than just hours spent studying.
“A big piece of this was that these girls worked together,” said Mougis, adding that they quizzed each other daily.
When the months of preparation were over and the bee finally arrived, both were prepared, though the experience was harrowing nonetheless, since, at the end of the night, it came down to the final two.
Jabar claims that there was no rivalry going into the bee, although when they reached the end, things came to a head.
“At first, it was like, we’re friends,” said Jabar, “but towards the end it was just the two of us, for five rounds, and it started to feel like ‘Can one of us just win already?’”
Ultimately, the judges had no questions left to ask, and so after deliberating for nearly an hour, declared both girls winners. They received $250 each, as well as all expense paid trips for two to the national bee.
“It was really exhilarating,” said Edwards. “I had just expected to do well, though I was not so much surprised as I felt that I deserved it, that we both deserved it.”
“I was more than excited,” said Cynthia Edwards, principal of the school. “We knew that these students would do well, but they exceeded expectations. As a small school, we have broken the expectations of what a small school can achieve.”
As for the upcoming national bee, the students have mixed feelings.
“I’m a little scared I suppose,” said Jabar. “It is a competition, and you don’t want to let anyone down.”
Edwards had her own take. “I just want to do my best,” she said, “which is all I have to give.”
