Whiz Kid: Mt. Sinai 2013 Valedictorian Continues to Excel

Name: Nicholas O'Mara, age 18
School: 2013 graduate of Mount Sinai High School. Attends Brown University.

Accomplishments: Nicholas was Mount Sinai High School's 2013 Valedictorian.  While in high school, he took eleven Advanced Placement courses, receiving the highest score possible on each of the A.P. exams. He is a member of the National Honor Society and played varsity soccer and tennis.

Nicholas O'Mara  earned the National A.P. Scholar Award in both eleventh and twelfth grades and is a member of of the National Honor Society. He also received college credits through Suffolk County Community College, Stony Brook University and Syracuse University. 

O'Mara has also been on the Superintendent's List for every quarter, and  received the National Merit Scholar Commended Student Award, President's Education Award for Academic Excellence, Long Island Science Congress Meritorious Award and numerous awards for excellence in English, Science, History, Math and Economics. 

He received the highest of honors in multiple competitions, including the Bay Scallop Bowl, National Ocean Science Bowl, Long Island Envirothon, Mathletes and the Protein Modeling Challenge at Stony Brook University.

O'Mara played Junior Varisty soccer and Varsity tennis and was recognized as a Scholar Athlete.  He participated in, and served as Captain of, many extracuriicular activities in high school, including Model UN, History Club, Lei Kuleana Environmental Club, Envirothon Team, Science and Technology Enrichment Program, National Science Bowl and Mathletes.  He played the trumpet in the concert and jazz bands, participating in the New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) competitions.

A Boy Scout from first grade through twelfth grade, O'Mara was determined to earn his Eagle Award, the highest honor that a Boy Scout can achieve.  Fueled by his passion for the environment, and with the assistance of fellow scouts, his Eagle project consisted of the construction of three Chimney Swift Towers at West Meadow Beach. 

These towers are structures that mimic a home's chimney and swifts (birds) will use these structures during their mating season to build their nests and care for their hatchlings.  The building of these towers will help foster the return of the swifts to our area and their increasing presence will help curb the rapidly expanding population of pesky parasitic insects on the beach, as swifts are insectivores.

As a volunteer he has participated in food drives, community cleanups, Calverton National Cemetery flag placements, Adopt-a-Family for holidays, Safe Halloween and Turkey Trot.

O'Mara was the recipient of the Frey Family Foundation Renaissance Scholarship, Mount Sinai PTO Academic Excellence Scholarship, Mount Sinai Teachers Association Academic Excellence Scholarship and the New York Water Authority Scholarship. 

He recently began his freshman year at Brown University, majoring in Geological Sciences with career plans to become an Environmental Lawyer.