Way to Go: Beatrice Brown, Merrick

A Bellmore student whose home was badly damaged in superstorm Sandy and Tropical Storm Irene is receiving the prestigious Young Naturalist Award for her research on forecasting hurricanes.

Beatrice Brown, a John F. Kennedy High School senior, is one of two winners at her grade level and among 12 winners nationwide of the award sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the Alcoa Foundation. She will receive $2,500 and an all-expense-paid hotel stay to attend the gala ceremony in Manhattan on May 29.

"This is definitely a very exciting honor and a great honor," she said.

Brown, 18, said she was inspired to conduct the research after 5 feet of water invaded her family's Merrick home during Sandy in 2012 -- a year after it was flooded during Irene. She researched air circulation and water temperature data of past local hurricanes and developed a probability model.

Brown is valedictorian of her class, mock trial team president, and a member of the National Honor Society and the Math, Science, Spanish and Tri-M Music honor societies. She was a semifinalist in the 2015 Intel Science Talent Search and placed second in her category at the 2015 Long Island Science & Engineering Fair.

A flutist, she was named to the National Association for Music Education's 2015 All-Eastern Concert Band and the NAFME 2014 All-National Concert Band. She is a principal flutist for the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra of New York.