After immigrating to New York from Seoul, South Korea when I was 5, I struggled to find my place in an unfamiliar setting. Fortunately, as I matured over time, I was able to find my enjoyment in specific hobbies including playing musical instruments (mainly the piano and clarinet), listening to music, tinkering with electronics, and learning more about electronics I was interested in. 

My mother enrolled me in piano lessons when I was around 7. Although I found little enjoyment in piano at first, I began to enjoy playing piano once I learned the concepts behind chord progressions and the freedom behind music production. My music taste and production have been heavily influenced by music that I enjoyed when I was young. More specifically, I was introduced to older music, such as the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtracks Awesome Mix, at an early age which significantly helped me creatively. Along with my music progression, I developed a hobby in electronics, a hobby that would develop into a career passion. I started by taking apart and putting back together electronics that I would find around the house, such as old phones and computers. I also found an interest in old audio electronics like cassettes and 8-track tapes. These specific hobbies were connected by the vintage and older quality of music and electronics. All of these hobbies developed to my dream of developing and inventing electronic audio equipment. 

Ryan Xu and I connected through our similar interests in audio and electronics. So, we decided to dedicate ourselves to creating a cheaper alternative to existing audio equipment based on older technology.

In sophomore year, I wrote a philosophy paper answering “Should I be held accountable for my beliefs?” From there, I found myself in a rabbit hole full of different mindsets: I was submerged in the bleak existentialist world according to Albert Camus to the freeing transcendentalist movement embodied by Thoreau in Walden. Our very own Constitution was founded using the Enlightenment ideas of natural rights, social contract, and balance of power. Renowned philosophers like Locke, Rousseau, and Montesquieu have profoundly shaped our global world and the course of histories with the power of their minds. I intend to explore the full spectrum of worldviews they and others have proposed—inspecting every ideal vision of human nature, purpose, and foundations of a fulfilling society. 

The purpose of education is not merely to impart knowledge nor to prepare for a profession, but to awaken curiosity, cultivate the soul, and inspire individuals to utilize their brains to make the world a better place than they were born into. Therefore, I am elated for the Brunner Award’s support in my participation in the Stanford Summer Humanities Institute: Greeks and Beyond course where I will read foundational works of ancient Greek philosophy and question aspects of human existence. I am beyond grateful for the opportunity that the Bronx Science Alumni Foundation has opened for me and I look forward to reflecting upon my upcoming experience this summer.

I have loved learning my entire life, from volcanoes to voltaic cells, crochet to cranial nerves. My three goals in life are these: to learn as much as possible and keep an open mind, to spend more time happy than unhappy, and to help as many people as I possibly can–both by strengthening my relationships, and serving my community. 

When I joined the Congressional Debate team in 9th grade, I found an activity, a learning experience, and a family. In the same year, I got my black belt in Hapkido, a hybrid Korean martial art, something I had been working towards for 10 years. This enabled me to teach martial arts and give the same opportunity that I was given to young children. Similarly, I am going to be on debate leadership as a novice director next year, and I am incredibly excited to help a new class of congressional debaters discover new friendships and develop their skills. This summer, after the program I plan on doing through the Brunner awards, I will be a camp counselor at a day camp, but first I am headed to Ohio for the Kenyon young writers program. I am an avid writer and my creative nonfiction writing is published in Dynamo, the school literary journal, and has won multiple regional and national Scholastic medals–in March, I had the opportunity to read my writing at the Met! I am in the biology research program and currently interning at the Child Mind Institute, and a senior editor and on the digital team of Journal of Biology, where I am planning on running for a leadership position. I absolutely love medicine and neuroscience, and I want to become a doctor and writer someday. The Brunner Award is enabling me to participate in an in-person program at Brown university following a week in the life of a medical student. I hope to learn more about myself and my future career!

Growing up in a household that fostered my love for the sciences and engineering, I became more interested in how things worked and how they could be innovated to work better. I am constantly curious about how we can use STEM to solve real-world problems, and this is the main reason that pushes me to take advanced coursework in my senior year, such as Multivariable Calculus and AP Physics C. For me, these aren’t just academic challenges but also tools and classes that allow me to understand deeper content and build a better future.

At Bronx Science, I’ve found a community that supports and fuels my curiosity. I am currently a member of the Science Olympiad team, where I compete in Robot Tour and Astronomy—two events that perfectly blend my love for hands-on engineering with big-picture thinking. Whether I’m fine-tuning a robot’s motion or exploring the structure of our deep universe, I find it engaging because I’m tackling complex and creative problems. In addition, outside of school, I also attend an engineering-focused program where we work with industry professionals to create a project of our own. In the program, I was able to develop engineering skills through creating hands-on models, discussions, and solving equations.

Each of these experiences has allowed me to develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of engineering as a whole. Through the Brunner Award, I will create my own engineering projects and understand the deeper principles of engineering. I look forward to writing about my experience at the end of the summer.

My interests span the humanities, where I hope to pursue a career in politics, international relations, business or journalism. I am dedicated to creating change through initiatives and pursuing this career of political science. History has been a particular passion of mine because I enjoy learning about the past, how it relates to the present, and the interplay between nations and cultures on the international scene.

To date, I have been a member of the Bronx Science Speech and Debate Congress Team for two years now. This experience has taught me so much about constructing and defending arguments, skills that I feel will serve me well in my future career. In addition, I am a member of the Bronx Science History Club, and Young Democrats Club. Last summer I was part of the New York Historical Society's Tech Scholar program, where I collaborated on podcast development for their museum exhibitions. This summer, I hope to gain more experience by working in a museum or a part-time job.

As a junior, I will be in the Bronx Science journalism program, where I intend to continue to develop my communication skills. I know that writing  will be extremely important to my future success, so with the support of the Brunner Award, I will be attending the Young Writers’ Workshop at Simon’s Rock Bard College. The program focuses on group writing, collaborative feedback, how to seek inspiration, and ultimately, how to become a more mature writer. I am very grateful for the support of the Brunner Award and for this opportunity.

I am part of an extremely musical family with both my parents being musicians as well as many other family members. Naturally, I began my musical studies at a very young age, I started taking cello lessons at age four and my continued study of the instrument has been a key focus of my life. I am very committed to furthering my musical education through lessons and other programs.

I started my musical journey at the School for Strings and continued to study there for seven years, taking private lessons, theory classes and participating in orchestra. School for Strings was the beginning of my love for music and was a massive stepping stone in my continuous musical journey. In fifth grade I successfully auditioned for The Manhattan School of Music precollege program, one of the most prestigious pre-college music  programs in New York. Over the 11 year span of my musical journey I have also participated in numerous summer programs such as the Chicago and Hartt Suzuki institutes as well as longer programs more recently. Two of my favorite recent experiences have been attending Kinhaven and Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival. Kinhaven is a two week camp that focuses on chamber music through daily rehearsals, dedicated practice time, and multiple performance opportunities. Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival is a longer program that involves four weeks of high level music training and was an extremely valuable experience for me last year, and one that I will be able to relive with support from the Brunner Award. I am extremely grateful for this opportunity and cannot wait to continue my musical studies at such an amazing program. I look forward to writing about this experience at the end of the summer.

I’m Olivia, a current freshman, an Asian American that just started off her high school career. I have a strong passion for helping out my community, and have interest in pursuing pre-med track in the future.

So far for Freshman year when it comes to school activities I am part of multiple clubs including Key Club, DECA, Lunar, and Cheer, with JV softball this year. Through Key Club I was able to do a lot of volunteering work. Including things like cleaning up the park, helping out at festivals, and etc. For my first DECA competition I placed 5 in my category for district. With Lunar and Cheer Club I was able to expand my passion for dancing with performing at homecoming. Outside of school I do dancing, I have learned ballet, and piano from 2017-2019 but now I mainly focus on k-pop dances. Over the summer I will be doing a volunteer internship program, for a board role next year, and a free community health summer program held by Columbia University that nicely complement the program that I am applying for the brunner award with. Through the Brunner awards I will be participating in an online summer program that is hosted by Columbia University, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physician and Surgeons (VP&S), a 10-week summer program featuring students from around the world who learn from physicians, researchers, and medical students at about diverse topics of medicine. International Young Researchers' Conference (IYRC) Medicine and Research Summer Program. Through this program I will be able to learn about medicine from experts, create your own project with undergrad and graduate student mentors, and grow professionally. My plan after the program is to solidify my passion in pursuing the medical field, and with my knowledge inform people in my community. Soon I want to create my own non-profit that helps people who need medical help. So finally, I would like to thank the Bronx Science Alumni foundation for giving me this amazing opportunity, and I can’t wait to write my reflection after the program.

My name is Timothy Kim, and I am a rising junior at the Bronx High School of Science. Three years ago, I moved from South Korea to New York City, and this transition has been a crucial moment in my life, especially in shaping my academic interests. From attending Bronx Science, I have discovered a deep passion for math and science, thanks to the diverse curriculum that I experienced here. I am a member of the Math Team, where I enjoy solving challenging problems and participating in various competitions. During my freshman year, through the support of the Brunner Award, I had the opportunity to participate in the STEP Program at NYU, which was truly essential for me in expanding my academic horizons and fueling my passion for the STEM field. This summer, I will be participating in the New York Math Circle, where I will challenge myself in advanced mathematical problem solving. I believe this experience will strengthen not only my analytical thinking skills and sharpen my mathematical abilities, and even grow myself as a human, as I will meet a lot of people with the same interest as me who I can share my thoughts with more freely.

Thanks to the support I received from the Brunner Awards, I am excited to pursue new learning opportunities that will further build the foundation for my aspirations.

I was born in Almaty city, in Kazakhstan, a beautiful country in Central Asia. Due to my mother’s continuous teaching, at the age of four, I said my first English word in the United Kingdom in Bristol. Later, in third grade, I found myself back in Kazakhstan, in a Kazakh/Russian speaking public school, barely understanding my native language. I spent multiple summers studying math, science, and languages to pull my grade up to 90% and to pass entrance exams in the National School for Physics and Mathematics. I had a variety of subjects (Algebra, Geometry, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Geography, Kazakh Language/Literature, Russian Language/Literature, English Language, Kazakh/Global History, Arts and Crafts, etc.) and Music class that fostered my desire to play the piano. At the end of middle school, I moved to the US, once again in a completely different school system. Algebra and Geometry were replaced by Math class; Physics, Chemistry and Biology replaced by Science class; Global History by Social Studies; the rest were left behind, in Kazakhstan. The only thing that remained the same was English class, however my teachers were always supportive and helped me get accustomed. I finished middle school as a top student and got accepted into an excellent high school – the Bronx High School of Science.

Two years in, I enjoy studying at BxSci since it is academically rigorous and offers a variety of extracurricular activities and opportunities to its students. Through the Brunner Award, I will pursue my growing passion for playing the piano by attending music school and I am thankful to the Bronx Science Alumni Foundation for this opportunity.

Growing up with a deep appreciation for creativity and community, I’ve always believed in the power of visual storytelling to drive change. As a junior at the Bronx High School of Science, I’ve channeled that belief into youth-led advocacy focused on civic engagement, mental health awareness, and public service—often through the lens of digital media and design.

I serve as Vice President of Voters of Tomorrow NYC and as a member of Voters of Tomorrow National’s Content Committee, where I help lead social media campaigns and shape digital strategies to engage and mobilize young voters around key civic issues. I also sit on the Youth Council for the National Alliance on Mental Illness of New York City (NAMI-NYC), where I’ve developed educational content and collaborated with peers to advocate for mental health resources—such as bringing NAMI’s Ending the Silence program to Bronx Science to help reduce stigma in our school and broader community.

One of the projects closest to my heart is NoteWorthy, a student-led organization I founded to inspire civic engagement and volunteerism among young musicians through the intersection of music and mental health advocacy. As President, I lead our outreach efforts and manage our digital presence, using design to communicate our mission of connection, expression, and service. This year, NoteWorthy is partnering with the organization Kids Rock for Kids to host a teen band benefit performance in support of NAMI-NYC—bringing teens together through music to raise awareness and funds for youth mental health.

Through the Brunner Awards, I will take a graphic design course this summer to deepen my understanding of design as both a craft and a tool for activism. For me, design is more than aesthetics—it’s a way to translate ideas into action and bring people together around a shared cause. I’m incredibly grateful for the support of the Bronx Science Alumni Foundation and look forward to sharing my experiences later this year.

As a Bayside resident, I have always felt a kinship with the other residents. And, more importantly, as a Girl Scout, I have grown up believing in the power of community action and the difference one person can make. For these reasons, I began my quest to earn the Gold Award, the highest honor a Girl Scout can achieve for community service and leadership. My Gold Award project is to rehabilitate a beloved local pond in my community named John Golden.

The pond was severely damaged by a storm, dragging massive amounts of cement and trash into the pond. This drastically changed the water level and health of the pond. I’ve partnered with a local nonprofit called Friends of Crocheron, Dana Gumb (a retired DEP worker) and Mike Feller (an ecologist who was Chief Naturalist for NYC Parks for 27 years) to address this issue. I applied for the Brunner Award to fund an independent study supervised by Dana Gumb and Mike Feller and to buy plants to stabilize loose sediment that poses a risk to the pond’s health.

The study has two main components: mapping bond bathymetry and testing water quality. To study the terrain, I will be in a kayak and use the equipment to establish a centerline down the middle of the pond in order to map it. Overall pond health will be tested by taking measurements of pH, turbidity, coliform, and more.

The purpose of this study is to submit a report to the Parks Department and DEP to call attention to this pond. This will alert the community to raise awareness for the rehabilitation of John Golden. Thanks to the support of the award and the Bronx Science Alumni Foundation, I will be able to execute my plans for the pond this summer.  I look forward to writing about this unique experience.

Growing up in a family of scientists, I have always been encouraged to remain intellectually curious. However, being an innovator was never something I had the opportunity to pursue in a traditional classroom setting—that is, until this year, my sophomore year at Bronx Science. For the 2025 ExploraVision competition, I proposed the MICRObeMANAGER, a smart pill designed to track gut microbial activity in real time and improve clinical decision-making for people with IBD. Inspired by my personal experience with Crohn’s disease, I wanted to build something that could empower patients like me to better understand and manage our health. The project earned an Honorable Mention, and I am now pursuing a patent.

Thanks to the Brunner Award, I will be able to take this important next step in protecting and developing my invention. I am also excited to volunteer at a microbiome research lab, where I hope to deepen my understanding of gut health from a clinical perspective while continuing my work at the Manne institute.  As a member of the Science Olympiad team, I have grown passionate about exploring the overlap between biology, engineering, and hand drawn design—especially where science can directly improve lives. Outside the lab, I am active in advocacy and leadership. Through the RAC Student Leadership Program, I lobbied for policy change on Capitol Hill, and I previously served on the Manhattan Student Leadership Council. I hope that engaging with intellectual property and innovation now will further empower me to connect science with public health impacts. I am very grateful for the support of the Brunner Award and the Bronx Science Alumni Foundation, and I look forward to sharing my experiences at the end of the summer

Hello! My name is Mia Ortiz, and I’m a current junior at the Bronx High School of Science. I was born in Puerto Rico but moved to New York at kindergarten age, which meant growing up in a mainly Spanish-speaking household but switching to English during school hours. That multicultural upbringing harbored a love for language and international relations for as long as I can remember, with a comic book sparking my interest in ASL and music inspiring me to begin self-studying Japanese. I’m the current Secretary of Bronx Science’s ASL Club, which has helped me connect with others who harbor a love for sign language. My other interests also include volunteering, cooking/baking, and playing volleyball. I served as a Key Club Fundraising Cohead, which introduced me to a wonderful community of statewide teen volunteers, and have played on both Bronx Science-led and outside-of-school volleyball teams.

My dream is to utilize my interpersonal and language skills to pursue a legal career, helping individuals across the globe regardless of what they speak. This summer, I’ll be attending Georgetown University’s International Relations summer program in the heart of Washington, D. C. I’m so grateful for the Brunner Award program for allowing that to become a reality!

As a first-generation student, getting into robotics during my freshman year completely shifted my perspective. Joining my school’s FRC team introduced me to engineering and programming in a hands-on way that made everything click. I’ve been in the programming department ever since, and I’ve taken on leadership roles both this year(junior) and next(senior) as Programming Head. Through this, I found a strong interest in automation and robotic systems, and it’s pushed me to keep exploring. This summer, I’ll be taking that a step further by attending MIT’s Beaver Works Summer Institute, where I’ll work on autonomous aerial vehicles through their drone racing program. A new challenge that builds on my robotics experience while introducing me to the world of aerospace.

Outside of robotics, I serve as the Student I.T. Director for The Observatory, our school’s award-winning yearbook, where I manage a server of over 750,000 photos used by nearly 50 students. I also write for The Science Survey and work as a section editor for the yearbook. Outside the classroom, I enjoy playing volleyball—on the school team during freshman and sophomore year and now recreationally with friends. I also volunteer regularly at FTC and FLL competitions and mentor teams across the city. These experiences continue to shape my identity as a student, a leader, and an aspiring engineer.

As a junior at Bronx Science, I’ve gotten many chances to explore my interests, from creativity to science. Since freshman year, I’ve been a part of Dynamo, the school’s poetry and arts magazine, where I am now junior editor, helping to  publish the finished booklet and occasionally leading meetings. I love getting to explore my creative side and reading student submissions.

I am also president of Animal Squad, where I organize and take care of our school chinchillas, guinea pigs, and Madagascar hissing cockroaches! Most people are surprised to hear we even have these animals at school, but I love being able to show them to others and get hands-on experience in animal care.

Outside of school, I recently co-founded the Queens chapter of Jewish Youth Climate Movement. It is a youth-driven organization that focuses on local action to combat climate change, and it’s been a powerful way for me to get involved in something I’m deeply passionate about. Seeing the effects of climate change in NYC has made it clear to me that we need to take action now and hold our institutions accountable.

I’m also on the Biology Research track, and last summer I  worked in an epigenetics and immunology lab at Weill Cornell. I’ll be returning this summer  to conduct independent experiments, learn new research techniques, attend lab meetings, and participate in journal club. In senior year, I will be submitting to the Regeneron contest.

In my free time, I enjoy gardening, reading, and going to concerts. I’m grateful to have been selected for the Brunner Award, which will allow me to participate in a field internship at Alley Pond. There, I’ll learn from local environmental professionals, collect field data, and build on my passion for the environment. I’m excited for this opportunity and look forward to sharing what I learn.

Ever since I was young, I had always been fascinated with building and creating things. I dreamed of being an engineer and inventing new things to help people around the world. I grew up building with LEGOs and have built many things throughout my life. Over the summer, I discovered a new passion of mine: 3D printing. I saw many videos of people 3D printing things and how this could be applied both to the engineering field and everyday life. This inspired me to start saving up for my own printer as well. However, through research, I learned that a lot of plastic is needed to print items due to waste being produced.  In my first week at Bronx Science, I was immediately interested in the Robotics team. I joined and learned about robotics and the application of the skills I would learn there. During my time there, I saw how important 3D printers were to the team and how much filament was used. Additionally, I noticed a lot of waste, specifically plastic bottles were piling up in trash cans throughout the school and I wanted a way to combat it. Therefore, I decided that the best way to solve these problems was to build a machine that turned plastic bottles into filament for 3D printing. 

As the youngest child of a single mother, I have understood the value of hard work and perseverance. In my mother’s accomplishments I find my motivation and inspiration to pursue my dreams despite facing adversity. I aspire to embody her values and take advantage of the opportunities that she fought for me to have. In my pursuits for innovation I hope to be able to return the favor and honor those who are under-recognized.

My passion for grasping physical concepts and seeing my intuition be proven wrong has inspired my interest in pursuing mechanical engineering. I have always been fascinated by how smaller components are able to collectively perform functions with unexpected precision and accuracy. The contributions of each piece of hardware is often overshadowed but I am dedicated to recognizing their significance and evaluating ways to enhance their efficiency. It is in the fact that mechanisms are more than the sum of their parts that I aspire to further my hands-on experience in constructing various control systems.

The assistance of the Brunner Awards enables me to cultivate problem-solving skills and grasp abstract concepts in the intersection of mechanical design, programming, and electronics while finding value in failures. By expanding my familiarity with experimentation, I hope to make a tangible difference in the lives of marginalized individuals.

I'm Ennio Wong, a sophomore at Bronx Science. I was born on 1/1/2009 in NYC. Some of my hobbies include cooking, martial arts, photography, electronics, and video games. During the winter and fall, I love to go on walks and take photos, especially when it's snowing or misty. It feels really nice, like creating art. Electronics and video games have always been a way to relieve stress, and it's incredibly fun to just play for a couple of hours with friends.

I am a Graphic Designer and an Athletics Section Editor for ‘The Observatory’ yearbook. In addition, I am a Staff Reporter on ‘The Science Survey.’ I've always loved engineering - I have been a part of the stem community for a while, participating in Lego robotics electives and robotics summer camps in middle school. My grandparents fostered my hobby, purchasing whatever Lego or K'NEX set was on sale. They always encouraged me to be creative and have an open mind. Once I decided I wanted to become an engineer, Bronx Science seemed like a good fit. In high school, I joined the Sciborgs, Bronx Science’s Co-ed robotics team. I've always wanted to become a leader, and give to others that may be underrepresented. I have been class representative since 5th grade, taking the same position at Bronx Science for 2 years. In addition, through FIRST robotics and the Sciborgs, I've volunteered at many community events and mentored other teams, notably helping a team from KIPP middle school which hosts students who are predominantly from low income families. I want to pursue engineering while having the freedom to make my own design decisions, which is why I applied for the Brunner Awards. Thanks to the Bronx Science Alumni Foundation I look forward to my experience.

From an early age, music has been a passion of mine. At seven years old, with the encouragement of my parents, I picked up the piano as an instrument to learn. Since then, the keys of a piano have been a place of respite and enjoyment that is second to none. 

In my sophomore year, joining the Makerspace club at Bronx Science gave me a view into 3D printing and building things for oneself, by oneself. With the onset of cheaper and more accessible 3D printing methods available over the course of the last few years, I entertained the idea of building a piano from scratch. With some free time to spare during winter break, I successfully 3D printed a replica of a piano key mechanism with relative ease, sparking my interest in intertwining 3D printing with the world of audio/music equipment.

I have been friends with Keunyoung for the majority of my time as a high school student, with my first interaction with him in an Italian language class. We quickly became friends and discussed our passion for piano and music. A month before our application for the Brunner Award, we both decided to search for a viable project to work on that not only benefits us as aspiring students, but also the general public and the audio community. We landed on attempting to bridge the gap between affordability and grandeur, and as such set a target in sight: to replicate an expensive item using readily available tools and only affordable components.

Through the Brunner Award, Keunyoung and I hope to bring to life a consumer-affordable 3D-printed version of an expensive piece of audio equipment, with minimal compromise and maximum functionality as the primary goals in design and development.