Kings Park Central School District Inducts Five Alumni into Science Hall of Fame
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Superintendent of Kings Park School District Tim Eagan with honoreesOn January 14, 2016, the Kings Park Central School District inducted five Kings Park Alumni into the Science Hall of Fame. The event was sponsored by The Kings Park Heritage Museum. The evening centered around celebrating Kings Park Pride, childhood “roots”, and education/achievement in science-related fields. The inductees were: Peter Brodsky, Robert Gould, Lt. Colonel Jeffrey Starke, Dr. Christopher Cahill, and Richard Taylan.
Richard Taylan (Kings Park Class of 1960) is a certified Earth Science and General Science Teacher. He retired from the Hyde Park CSD after 34 years in public education. He earned an M.S. from SUNY New Paltz in 1969 and a Computer Technology Certification in 1996. Over the years, Mr. Taylan was awarded three NSF grants to attend graduate programs in Earth Science. He is currently employed by Marist College as an adjunct professor of geology. He resides with his wife Linda in Hyde Park.
Dr. Christopher Cahill (Kings Park Class of 1989) earned a B.S. in Geochemistry from SUNY Fredonia in 1993 and Ph.D. in Chemistry from SUNY Stony Brook in 1999. He is an expert in solid-state and materials chemistry, and nuclear forensics. Dr. Cahill is a published researcher and author, recipient of the prestigious NSF CAREER Award (2004) and a Fulbright Scholarship recipient (2008). He is also the Past-President of the American Crystallographic Association. He resides in Arlington, Virginia with his wife Cathy and their son Wesley.
Robert Gould (Kings Park Class of 1981) earned a B.S. in Physics from SUNY Stony Brook and M.S. in Nuclear Engineering from Penn State University. While working on his Ph.D., Robert worked at the Breazeale Nuclear Reactor Research Facility at Penn State. In 1997, he began working at the Betty’s Atomic Power Lab - nuclear powered propulsion plant for the U.S. Navy.
Bob and his wife Carolyn live outside Pittsburgh today with their two daughters.
Peter Brodsky (Kings Park Class of 1978) is a Principal Engineer in the Environmental and Information Systems Department at Washington University. He is a former Merchant Marine Officer with over 20 years of experience developing scientific and real-time control software.
Peter develops command and control software for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). He is an expert in underwater navigation, digital signaling, and image processing. He currently resides in Washington with his wife Karen.
Lt. Colonel Jeffrey Starke (Kings Park Class of 1987) is an Academy Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Dr. Starke has a B.S. from Villanova and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the University Of Wisconsin. He is a published researcher and author with extensive researching and teaching interests. He has vast experience in the field, in the classroom, and in the laboratory. He currently resides at West Point with his wife.
The Kings Park CSD has a rich history in STEM education and STEM-related fields. This year, two of our Independent Science Research (ISR) students were selected as Siemen’s Regional Finalists, and three were selected as Intel Semifinalists. Mary Ellen Fay, KPCSD ISR Teacher, was a featured guest at this event. Science research is alive and well in Kings Park!