PJAS stands for the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science; this distinguished assembly was established on March 31, 1934, in Reading, Pennsylvania. Ever since its founding, students around Pennsylvania have been participating in research to further develop their scientific understanding, and that is no exception for the students at Trinity High School (THS).
In fact, in recent years, THS students have made up almost 50% of the high school division at the regional meeting, which includes all of Washington, Greene and Fayette Counties. Trinity has been a dominant school, with Mrs. Welsh serving as the co-director for the region for the past 12 years.
This year, there are over 65 students from the high school participating in the program, and that number continues to grow each year. The regional meeting is Saturday, February 10, 2024. The state meeting, for those who qualify, will be May 19–21, 2024, at Penn State.
Mr. Smith, a sponsor of PJAS for the past 35 years, said, “I am a big believer in academic extracurricular activities. It gives students the opportunity to explore avenues outside the regular classroom that might lead them to their life’s work.”
The 7th–12th grade students who participate in PJAS are required to think of an independent experimental project, lay out the steps, give a hypothesis and do an experiment for that project. The students then have to create a presentation based on their research. The students present their experiment to judges at the regional meet, and any student who earns a 4.0 or higher based on a rubric gets the first award and moves on to the state meeting.
PJAS gives students freedom and flexibility. Students are able to use techniques they might not use in a regular class and allows them to build their academic resume year after year. The independent nature of the project allows students to work on projects that they are interested in and enjoy.
Sophia Misner, a senior, has dealt with her true passion, birds, in some fashion, in each of her last four years of PJAS. Misner will be entering Allegheny College in the fall, majoring in environmental science and sustainability. The work of PJAS students show high levels of science. Many of the students at Trinity High School have gone on to successful careers in the sciences, engineering, and medicine.
Students interested in joining PJAS can contact Welsh or Smith for more information.
