Award Winners
The winners of The Robert Malkovsky II Memorial Fund, announced each year at the Penncrest High School annual student awards assembly, are:
2023
Sophia Murphy: "Physics asks me to erase and rewrite until the paper rips. To work on a problem until my head hits the desk, and 5 pm has suddenly become midnight."
Sam Kleiman: "A wise and respected Penncrest teacher once spoke to students about finding 'passion and purpose' in their professional and personal lives. My passion has always been within the bounds of STEM; Physics, Math, Astronomy, and Environmental Science. Although I’ve learned to find joy in the creativity and ambiguity of the humanities, I seem to come back to the familiar and reassuring objectivity of the hard sciences. My goal for college and beyond is to continue to feed my passion and fuel my purpose in the field of astrophysics."
2022
Sara Kristiansen: "I want to pursue a career in the field of computer science because I want to find ways to protect society against such attacks and prevent them from causing major damage to the United States and other international communities. I find it exciting and fascinating that our world will continue to evolve as technology advances and I want to be on the front lines as new threats emerge."
Charles Katz: "I plan on combining my passion for the outdoors, which I learned while in Boy Scouts, and my skills in engineering to find ways to protect and preserve our environment for generations to come. At the end of the day, I do not know where my studies will take me. All I know is that I will love each and every step of it."
2021
Anaanya Nasta: "Science is the exploration of the boundaries of knowledge. It is the foundation that our society stands on, a foundation of reason, analysis, and truth... My planned field of study in college will further this pursuit. I will be able to apply my knowledge of science to make the lives around me better."
Spencer Schwartz: "STEM intrigues me because it’s constantly changing, opening up to more opportunities for all areas of our lives, and stretching the boundaries of what we know. For example, just recently I was reading about quantum computers and the possible potential to simulate the human brain and even discover how to squander the roots of cancer using such technology. "
2020
Mackenzie Rosin: "Whether mitigating world hunger by figuring out how to increase crop yield or grow them in a lab, or 3-D printing a heart viable for transplant, I want to help people from a lab and continue the legacy of brilliant minds in science that came before me."
Abel Palmer: "...math is the study of patterns, relationships, and rates, and physics is all about describing those patterns, relationships and rates in the natural world. And gradually my passion for mathematics was given a spotlight on the pedestal of physics: mathematics will give me the 'tools' to study the physical world, which will in turn fulfill my ambition to understand it."
2019
Katherine Sparling: "The most important and influential moment of my life was when I realized that I was able to tie two of my passions together, science and music, and use them to help humanity. My dream is to be a healer, a physician. But first, I have a very specific goal: use music to develop personalized pain management tools."
Aidan Donnelly: "STEM has given me an outlet to learn about and understand the world around me, and the fire within me to learn more has only grown year by year."
2018
Anna DiAntonio: "From medicine to bridges to electricity, we all benefit from advancements in STEM every single day. I want to contribute to those advancements in the future. I love the hands-on approach that you can have in STEM careers, and the ability to use what we know about the world and how it works to discover and create things that have the potential to benefit others."
Matthew Rebuck: "Overall, my everyday applications of science show that it doesn’t always take a lab or a classroom to observe science. Science is all around you; math is all around you. They have explained throughout history and will continue to explain the often thought unexplainable."
2017
Diana Balta: "I want to improve medical technology. I have heard countless stories, and I have seen how a disease like cancer can affect not only a person’s life but the whole family’s life."
Sean Walsh: "I have been interested in STEM since I started building with Legos in elementary school, but it wasn’t until I joined the Penncrest Science Olympiad team that I decided I wanted to explore a career in the field. My coach asked me to work on an event called “shock value” that focused on circuits and electricity. I loved the way it required me to break down each problem as if it were a puzzle, but more importantly shock value (and my other Olympiad events) introduced me to how STEM careers approach problem solving. Objectivity is something I strive for in my life, and the data-based, iterative scientific process endeavors to achieve this. This gives it an almost romantic quality in my eyes; endeavoring to improve our understanding of the natural world and better ourselves by mitigating the randomness that surrounds so many other areas of human study is an ideal I want to strive for in my professional life."
2016
Samantha Daugherty: Samantha was a top student at Penncrest, involved in Hi-Q and Physics Olympics. She has a passion for all sciences and mathematics: "I am fascinated by the way things work, and how specific values can be calculated to accurately describe the way those things work." She is now at the Georgia Institute of Technology, studying engineering.
Derek Leung: Derek is off studying Computer Science at the University of Pennsylvania, but in high school he founded an organization called Coding+ to teach kids computers through hands-on application. He was top of his class at Penncrest and participated in Science Olympiad, Math Team, Chess Club, Chess Team, Physics Olympics, Chamber Ensemble, and even the golf team.
2015
Jade Phillips: Jade was a top-ten student at Penncrest, a member of the Science Olympiad team, varsity tennis captain, and a deserving winner of the 2015 Robert Malkovsky Memorial Fund scholarship award. She attends UC Berkeley and is majoring in Biology.
Alexander Sredenschek: Here's what Penncrest physics teacher, James Ciccarelli had to say about Alex: "This young man goes over and above the classroom necessities. He is intrinsically curious, designs his own lab experiments, helps everyone else, tutored a struggling first-year student at my behest, mentored a grammar-school science superstar, and generally is the kind of person any guy with a daughter would like to see on the doorstep on prom night. If I may, he is the kid Mal would want to be awarded a scholarship in his honor. I would give him the keys to my house." Alex is attending Messiah College, majoring in Physics and Math with a secondary education certification.
2014
Olivia Zhou: Olivia graduated from Penncrest #2 in her class, was the MVP of the field hockey team, and participated in many other extracurricular activities, including Science Olympiad. She has a passion for science ("grew up with a pipette in one hand and Eppendorf tubes in the other"), and has already taken her studies well beyond the classroom. She will attend the University of Pennsylvania to study biochemistry and biophysics.
Joseph Varillo: Joseph plans study engineering at Penn State in the fall of 2014. He credits Mr. Mal for giving him "what [he] needed" to make the decision to pursue college-level studies in STEM. He is a musician, playing both the guitar and viola, and an AP scholar.
2013
Benjamin Bartholomew: In the Fall of 2013, Ben will attend the University of Pittsburgh to study engineering. He is a member of the Penncrest swim team, Class Council, National Honor Society, and World Language Honor Society. He is a young man of integrity, benevolence and dedication. He distinguished himself in Physics Olympics and is ranked in the top 10 of his graduating class class.
Autumn Garguile: Autumn will attend Widener University to study engineering. She is a member of the marching band, Physics Olympics, National Honor Society, World Language Honor Society, and the Math Honor Society (Mu Alpha Theta). She was named Media Rotary Club Student of the Month and volunteers her time with the Middletown Township Fire Co., Relay for Life, and Indian Lane Field Day.
2023
Sophia Murphy: "Physics asks me to erase and rewrite until the paper rips. To work on a problem until my head hits the desk, and 5 pm has suddenly become midnight."
Sam Kleiman: "A wise and respected Penncrest teacher once spoke to students about finding 'passion and purpose' in their professional and personal lives. My passion has always been within the bounds of STEM; Physics, Math, Astronomy, and Environmental Science. Although I’ve learned to find joy in the creativity and ambiguity of the humanities, I seem to come back to the familiar and reassuring objectivity of the hard sciences. My goal for college and beyond is to continue to feed my passion and fuel my purpose in the field of astrophysics."
2022
Sara Kristiansen: "I want to pursue a career in the field of computer science because I want to find ways to protect society against such attacks and prevent them from causing major damage to the United States and other international communities. I find it exciting and fascinating that our world will continue to evolve as technology advances and I want to be on the front lines as new threats emerge."
Charles Katz: "I plan on combining my passion for the outdoors, which I learned while in Boy Scouts, and my skills in engineering to find ways to protect and preserve our environment for generations to come. At the end of the day, I do not know where my studies will take me. All I know is that I will love each and every step of it."
2021
Anaanya Nasta: "Science is the exploration of the boundaries of knowledge. It is the foundation that our society stands on, a foundation of reason, analysis, and truth... My planned field of study in college will further this pursuit. I will be able to apply my knowledge of science to make the lives around me better."
Spencer Schwartz: "STEM intrigues me because it’s constantly changing, opening up to more opportunities for all areas of our lives, and stretching the boundaries of what we know. For example, just recently I was reading about quantum computers and the possible potential to simulate the human brain and even discover how to squander the roots of cancer using such technology. "
2020
Mackenzie Rosin: "Whether mitigating world hunger by figuring out how to increase crop yield or grow them in a lab, or 3-D printing a heart viable for transplant, I want to help people from a lab and continue the legacy of brilliant minds in science that came before me."
Abel Palmer: "...math is the study of patterns, relationships, and rates, and physics is all about describing those patterns, relationships and rates in the natural world. And gradually my passion for mathematics was given a spotlight on the pedestal of physics: mathematics will give me the 'tools' to study the physical world, which will in turn fulfill my ambition to understand it."
2019
Katherine Sparling: "The most important and influential moment of my life was when I realized that I was able to tie two of my passions together, science and music, and use them to help humanity. My dream is to be a healer, a physician. But first, I have a very specific goal: use music to develop personalized pain management tools."
Aidan Donnelly: "STEM has given me an outlet to learn about and understand the world around me, and the fire within me to learn more has only grown year by year."
2018
Anna DiAntonio: "From medicine to bridges to electricity, we all benefit from advancements in STEM every single day. I want to contribute to those advancements in the future. I love the hands-on approach that you can have in STEM careers, and the ability to use what we know about the world and how it works to discover and create things that have the potential to benefit others."
Matthew Rebuck: "Overall, my everyday applications of science show that it doesn’t always take a lab or a classroom to observe science. Science is all around you; math is all around you. They have explained throughout history and will continue to explain the often thought unexplainable."
2017
Diana Balta: "I want to improve medical technology. I have heard countless stories, and I have seen how a disease like cancer can affect not only a person’s life but the whole family’s life."
Sean Walsh: "I have been interested in STEM since I started building with Legos in elementary school, but it wasn’t until I joined the Penncrest Science Olympiad team that I decided I wanted to explore a career in the field. My coach asked me to work on an event called “shock value” that focused on circuits and electricity. I loved the way it required me to break down each problem as if it were a puzzle, but more importantly shock value (and my other Olympiad events) introduced me to how STEM careers approach problem solving. Objectivity is something I strive for in my life, and the data-based, iterative scientific process endeavors to achieve this. This gives it an almost romantic quality in my eyes; endeavoring to improve our understanding of the natural world and better ourselves by mitigating the randomness that surrounds so many other areas of human study is an ideal I want to strive for in my professional life."
2016
Samantha Daugherty: Samantha was a top student at Penncrest, involved in Hi-Q and Physics Olympics. She has a passion for all sciences and mathematics: "I am fascinated by the way things work, and how specific values can be calculated to accurately describe the way those things work." She is now at the Georgia Institute of Technology, studying engineering.
Derek Leung: Derek is off studying Computer Science at the University of Pennsylvania, but in high school he founded an organization called Coding+ to teach kids computers through hands-on application. He was top of his class at Penncrest and participated in Science Olympiad, Math Team, Chess Club, Chess Team, Physics Olympics, Chamber Ensemble, and even the golf team.
2015
Jade Phillips: Jade was a top-ten student at Penncrest, a member of the Science Olympiad team, varsity tennis captain, and a deserving winner of the 2015 Robert Malkovsky Memorial Fund scholarship award. She attends UC Berkeley and is majoring in Biology.
Alexander Sredenschek: Here's what Penncrest physics teacher, James Ciccarelli had to say about Alex: "This young man goes over and above the classroom necessities. He is intrinsically curious, designs his own lab experiments, helps everyone else, tutored a struggling first-year student at my behest, mentored a grammar-school science superstar, and generally is the kind of person any guy with a daughter would like to see on the doorstep on prom night. If I may, he is the kid Mal would want to be awarded a scholarship in his honor. I would give him the keys to my house." Alex is attending Messiah College, majoring in Physics and Math with a secondary education certification.
2014
Olivia Zhou: Olivia graduated from Penncrest #2 in her class, was the MVP of the field hockey team, and participated in many other extracurricular activities, including Science Olympiad. She has a passion for science ("grew up with a pipette in one hand and Eppendorf tubes in the other"), and has already taken her studies well beyond the classroom. She will attend the University of Pennsylvania to study biochemistry and biophysics.
Joseph Varillo: Joseph plans study engineering at Penn State in the fall of 2014. He credits Mr. Mal for giving him "what [he] needed" to make the decision to pursue college-level studies in STEM. He is a musician, playing both the guitar and viola, and an AP scholar.
2013
Benjamin Bartholomew: In the Fall of 2013, Ben will attend the University of Pittsburgh to study engineering. He is a member of the Penncrest swim team, Class Council, National Honor Society, and World Language Honor Society. He is a young man of integrity, benevolence and dedication. He distinguished himself in Physics Olympics and is ranked in the top 10 of his graduating class class.
Autumn Garguile: Autumn will attend Widener University to study engineering. She is a member of the marching band, Physics Olympics, National Honor Society, World Language Honor Society, and the Math Honor Society (Mu Alpha Theta). She was named Media Rotary Club Student of the Month and volunteers her time with the Middletown Township Fire Co., Relay for Life, and Indian Lane Field Day.
