UES High Schooler Is Finalist In Nationwide Science Contest

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — An Upper East Side high schooler is among just 40 students across the country named as a finalist in a prestigious math and science competition.

Victoria Li, who attends Hunter College High School, was announced as a finalist Thursday in the 2022 Regeneron Science Talent Search. Li designed a deep-learning algorithm that "outperformed existing prediction tools for CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing outcomes," according to organizers, adding that Li also showed how racial genetic variations affect those outcomes.

As a finalist, Li received a $25,000 award. The competition isn't over yet: in March, the finalists will participate in a weeklong competition with a "rigorous judging process," after which the top 10 awards ranging from $40,000 to $250,000 will be given out.

The competition, held since 1942, calls itself "the nation's oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors. It is run by the Society for Science & The Public along with Regeneron, a biotechnology company.

"We are excited to welcome an exceptional group of Regeneron Science Talent Search 2022 finalists and continue our tradition of supporting the next generation of scientific leaders," said George D. Yancopoulos, Regeneron's co-founder, president and chief scientific officer, in a news release.

Selected from a group of more than 1,800 original applicants and 300 "scholars" from within that pool, the 40 finalists were chosen for their scientific rigor and "potential to become world-changing scientists and leaders," the news release says.

Alumni of the coveted science and math honors have won 13 Nobel Prizes, 11 National Medals of Science, 22 MacArthur Foundation Fellowships and two Fields Medals.