Featured photo: The American Legion’s Academic Excellence Awards were presented to seniors Nathaniel Neidlinger and Abigail Sparich who stand with Pete Peruchetti and Commander Gerald Gaffney of the Freeland Post 473 and MMI Head of School Theresa Long.

MMI recognized students during the Upper School Awards Convocation held on May 15. The annual ceremony honors students from ninth to twelfth grades in various subjects and events.

The American Legion’s Academic Excellence Awards were presented by Commander Gerald Gaffney and Pete Peruchetti of the Freeland Post 473 to seniors Abigail Sparich and Nathaniel Neidlinger. The 2024 American Legion Award was awarded to senior Angelica Jimenez.

The VFW established the Voice of Democracy program in 1947 to provide students in grades nine through twelve the opportunity to express themselves in regards to democratic ideas and principles.

The Freeland Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5010 recognized five students in the 2024-25 Voice of Democracy Competition. They were: sophomore Alexis Bleiler, junior Diane Kim, junior Kendall Orozco, junior Kiyan Paknezhad, and sophomore Arushi Solgama.

On behalf of The Luzerne Foundation, The Ed Hughes Memorial Scholarship was presented to seniors Angelica Jimenez and Zachary Yenchko. The Ed Hughes Scholarship Fund was created by Mr. Ed Hughes The Ed Hughes Scholarship Fund was created by Mr. Ed Hughes to assist students who pursue their education despite facing challenges and who display a strong sense of character and commitment to their community.

State Senator David G. Argall honored seniors Alex Neyhart and Paul Neyhart with the Good Citizenship Award, which exemplifies the qualities of good citizenship through their display of outstanding character, leadership, and scholarship.

Senior Diane Arias-Tejeda received The Horatio Alger Association Scholarship, which is given to promising young people in recognition of their character, academic achievements, leadership qualities, dedication to community service, and desire to pursue the American Dream through higher education.

Senior Nathaniel Neidlinger was awarded The National Merit Commended Scholar Award while the Greater Hazleton Area Polonaise Society Jake Kislan ‘56/Wydock/Kopetskie Scholarship winner was senior Abigail Sparich.

Awards were also given to underclass students who showed outstanding contributions, achievements, and dedication to an individual subject area in the past academic year. Those students were:

Freshmen: Amanda Stoffa (Chinese, English, History, and Visual Arts), Sharon Zhuang (Math), Yoreimy Aponte (Science), Kenedy Lutz (Spanish), and Christina Chrin (Performing Arts).

Sophomores: Ava Genetti (Chinese and English), Christopher Laverty (History), Alexis Bleiler (Math), Cassidy McDermott (Science and Spanish), Joseph Mayernik (Visual Arts), and Andrea Jimenez (Performing Arts).

Juniors: Diane Kim (Chinese and English), Daniel Griffith (History and Science), Xavier Bleiler (Math), Brayden Harleman (Spanish), and Corey Buchman (Performing Arts).

Five students were recognized for their excellent performances on the National Spanish Exam. They were: junior Brayden Harleman, junior Kiyan Paknezhad, junior Isabelle Wells, sophomore Arushi Solgama, and freshman Katherine Arias.

Every year, MMI students also participate in research projects that are presented at their Open House in the spring, with winners chosen by an independent panel of judges. Level 2 Awards for Humanities and Stem are awarded to ninth and tenth-grade students while Level 3 awards are presented to eleventh-grade students. Those winners were:

First Place: Shakespeare’s Contributions to the English Language by sophomore Ben Gombeda (Level II Humanities), The History of Gardening by junior Brayden
Harleman (Level III Humanities), Nanoparticles in Aquatic Environments by sophomore Joseph Mayernik (Level II STEM), and Building the Ionic Thruster by junior Daniel Griffith (Level III STEM).

Second Place: Japanese Architecture by sophomore Arushi Solgama (Level II Humanities), The Tunnel Rats by junior Nick Pantages (Level III Humanities), Geometry and Ancient Buildings by sophomore Ava Genetti (Level II STEM), and 3-D Printed Hand by junior Kiyan Paknezhad (Level III STEM)

Third Place: The Evolution of English by freshman Caitlyn Carter (Level II Humanities), Constantinople by junior Corey Buchman (Level III Humanities), Ocean Acidification by freshman Sharon Zhuang (Level II STEM), and Series and Parallel Circuits by junior Kendall Orozco (Level III STEM)

This year, the seniors completed capstone projects instead of regular Open House projects, which were group projects incorporating three disciplines within an extensive research project. The winners of the senior capstone project were: Alex Neyhart, Paul Neyhart, and Jakob Rossi for The Paranormal.

Senior Robert Orbin III was presented with the 2024 MMI Ambassador Service Award for his dedication and longevity in the MMI Student Ambassador Program.
The 2024 George Eastman Kodak Young Leaders Award and Scholarship was presented to junior Thomas Horvat.

The 2024 Bausch & Lomb Honorary Science Award was presented to junior Winni Zheng.

The 2024 Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony Award in Humanities and Social Sciences was presented to junior Eve Corazza.

The 2024 Xerox Award for Innovation and Information Technology was presented to junior Kiyan Paknezhad.

The 2024 Rensselaer Medal Award was presented to junior Alexander Composto.

The 2024 Bryn Mawr President’s Book Award was presented to junior Isabelle Wells.

The 2024 University of Pennsylvania Book Award was presented to junior Brayden Harleman.

Junior Lydia Chen received the Chatham University 2024 Rachel Carson Healthy Planet Award.

The Alfred University Outside of the Ordinary Award was presented to junior Joshua Naugle.

The following juniors were recognized for the Rochester Institute of Technology High School Awards: Daniel Griffith (RIT Computing Medal), Diane Kim
(RIT Humanities and Social Science Award), Kendall Orozco (2024 RIT Women in STEM Award), Joshua Witner (2024 RIT Math and Science Award), and Corey Buchman (RIT Business and Leadership Award).

Several awards were given to multiple winners:

Juniors Dante DeStefano, Joshua Hoover, and Jason Roberts were awarded the 2024 Student Sage Awards.

Juniors Lilli Warner-Senape and Hayden Schwabe earned the 2023 Elmira College Key Awards.

Juniors Gracie Magula, Evan Pedri, Aiden Hosier, Mary Kate Kupsky, and Willa Batholomew were named to the 2024 Junior Scholars Program at High Point University.

Juniors Chloe Allen, Nick Pantages, Isaiah Perez-Serrano, Michael Kranyak, Xavier Bleiler, and Lucas Pesotine earned the Wilkes University Colonel Emerging Leader Awards.

Seniors Emily Borchick and Edgar Lopez-Rodriguez were recipients of the 2024 District 2 Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Scholar-Athlete Awards.

The final awards of the evening were The Eckley B. Coxe, Jr. Memorial Subject Awards. Eckley B. Coxe, Jr. was the nephew of MMI founder Eckley B. Coxe. A trustee of the Mining and Mechanical Institute, now MMI Preparatory School, he donated the funds necessary to establish a series of monetary awards recognizing academic excellence in each subject area over the student’s entire tenure in the Upper School. The seniors receiving these prestigious awards were: Diane Arias-Tejeda (English and History), Nathaniel Neidlinger (Math, Science, and Chinese), Dominic Raifsnider (Spanish), and Emily Hunsinger (Visual Arts).