Stepinac High School Students Pursue Their Talents in Remarkable Ways This Summer

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - July 21, 2016 - PRLog -- The school year ended last month but not for a group of Archbishop Stepinac High School's students who have been pursuing their academic and extracurricular passions and talents in notable ways this summer.

Here are highlights:

Brandon Hermoza-Ricci of Port Chester, a junior, showcased his classical piano talents at the Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall as part of the 2016 Golden Key International Music Festival.

Brandon's solo piano recital performance occurred on the same stage where the world-famous composer Peter Tchaikovsky conducted the inaugural concert 125 years ago to mark the opening of Carnegie Hall.  Fittingly, Brandon performed Tchaikovsky's romantic composition, "June" Op. 27b, No. 6.  As a result, he earned a Silver level award in the Under 18 Category as well as a chance to compete at the Vienna recitals in August.

On another stage, this time the Play Group Theatre in White Plains, two gifted students and members of Stepinac's acclaimed Drama Club, directed and produced two performances of Arthur Miller's classic, "Death of a Salesman."  The production reflected the talents and theater arts aspirations of Kevin Ulrich of Whites Plains who graduated in May and Nicolas Tabio of Croton-on-Hudson who will begin his senior year in September.

Another in-bound senior, Patrick Magliocchino of Thornwood—who has excelled in equal measure academically (a 3.9 GPA) and as a star player on Stepinac's Crusaders lacrosse team—just returned from an exciting international sports event.  He had the honor of being chosen to be a member of the Irish Under 19 lacrosse team and competed with them in the recent Men's World Championships held in Coquitam, British Columbia.  He scored 17 goals and 15 assists to help Ireland's team place 7 out of the 14 that competed in the 10-day tournament.

Six students spent a week at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. participating in the first annual Summer Business Institute presented by the renowned Busch School of Business and Economics. Experiencing the intense introduction to business innovation, leadership and ethics as well as an opportunity to sample some of the many historical and cultural offerings of the nation's Capital were senior Kieran Tirone and juniors Mattias O'Csay, Brian Dervin, Gregory Mattiaccio and Vincent Storm—all of White Plains— and junior Michael Phillips of Yonkers.

Alex Rosenthal of the Bronx earned a full scholarship to take a Youth About Business (YAB) Summer Basic Program at Columbia University including the Wall Street Conference. He learned to understand mergers and acquisitions and other complex transactions from representatives from the world of business and finance.  When Alex returns to Stepinac in September as a senior, he will continue to push the envelope, not only academically but athletically as well, as a member of the school's Crusaders lacrosse and football teams.

Following Alex's example, junior Ronald "Deuce" Prince of Valhalla participated in another YAB immersive summer program, the National Advance Business Camp, held at Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn. Last fall, he had been selected to serve on the YAB national leadership team, one of only 15 students from across the country and the only one from Westchester who earned the honor to be part of the group charged with developing this summer's program.

Harshal Shet of White Plains completed his participation in a high-level medical research project for Mount Sinai Hospital's Departments of Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Friedman Brain Institute and the Laboratory of Molecular Neuropsychopharmacology. Under the direction of Dr. Yasmin Hurd, Harshal joined a team of researchers in studying the nerve and brain function of drug addiction.  The young scientist's efforts were not only lauded by the project leader but will be included in the final research paper.

When Harshal resumes his studies in the fall as a senior, he will look forward to being honored on October 19 when he receives the Milly Kibrick Youth Services Award from Westchester County for his "exceptional personal involvement and commitment in building thriving, healthy and caring communities."

Paul Carty, who has been Stepinac's Principal for more than 14 years, said: "It is always gratifying when Stepinac students are recognized for their extraordinary achievements. But, when those successes happen over the summer when school is not in session, the cause for celebration is even more meaningful. On behalf of Stepinac's administration and faculty, I proudly join the parents in congratulating this outstanding group of young men."

About Archbishop Stepinac High School

The mission of Archbishop Stepinac High School is to offer young men of the Archdiocese of New York a highly competitive academic and extracurricular program that will prepare them for college and leadership roles. The faculty and staff accomplish these objectives by pursuing excellence and creating a supportive, disciplined atmosphere with a strong sense of camaraderie and Christian values that is unique to the Stepinac experience. For more information, visit www.Stepinac.org