Jim Ellington exited the gym where he'd just finished a lesson about the Theremin, a musical instrument of the 1930s that produces sound based on interruptions in an electrical field.
The students were attending Northern Virginia's Summer Academy held at Episcopal High School, a private boarding school in Alexandria set apart from the majority of property bordering Route 7 by its bright green lot and wrought-iron fence.
The academy, beginning in 1995, is designed to help gifted-and-talented high-school juniors and seniors continue their education through the summer months, with an emphasis on the interaction between the sciences and government. "Our student's won't just say 'Save the whales,'" said Ellington, the performing arts and music teacher at Episcopal High School in Alexandria, "they'll think about how to do that."
The academy's sponsors include Alexandria City Public Schools, Episcopal High School and Fairfax County Public Schools as well as grants from the Philip L. Graham Fund, the Northern Virginia Health Education Center, the Virginia Center for the Advancement of Generalist Medicine, the Campbell Hoffman Foundation and the Washington Forrest Foundation.
IN ORDER to gain admission, students must obtain three teacher recommendations, write a short essay about a personal experience, and attend a one-on-one interview with one of the staff. This is in addition to an outstanding academic record. Ellington described the average summer academy student by saying “Where does that sixth kid go if they take the top five?” — referring to students who aren't selected to attend the similar, state-funded Governor's Schools for gifted students.
The academy begins in early July with two weeks of day sessions from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m., during which time the students participate in a number of activities, ranging from improvisational sessions to "loosen up" the students to two-hour labs. Activities include DNA exploration and mock HIV tests done with mock blood samples. These are labs that public schools often don't have the time or the resources to offer their students. The program also includes field trips to the Congressional Library, Congressional hearings, the National Institutes of Health, and George Washington Medical School as well as the opportunity to observe an open heart surgery performed at the Fairfax Hospital.
The program will culminate in a one-week boarding session with students living on the Episcopal campus. Students will divide up into groups of five and design a PowerPoint presentation for Friday, July 25, on a selected topic. "They've all chosen a topic on genetics," said David Keener, the chairman of science at the academy. Presentations focus on both the technological and legislative issues facing their project.
AFTER A SHORT VIDEO on the invention of the Theremin, better known as a source of creepy noises for 1950s horror films than its place in classical music, Ellington presented one to the class. He played for a moment before offering the students an opportunity to experiment.
Alex Hirsch, a student at South Lakes High School, was eager to experiment with the device. Having no pretense of knowledge of the device or how to properly manipulate the instrument, Hirsh was all too pleased to simply play, producing noises similar to an out-of-tune musical saw.
"I want to do exciting stuff," Hirsch said later, half joking as he and his partner drew mock blood into a micro-pipette (a device similar to a sophisticated medicine dropper) in a simulation of an HIV test. "Sky-diving, climb Mount Everest, be a jet fighter pilot … or a helicopter pilot."
Why is he spending his summer in an educational program instead of sleeping in and watching television? "It's something to do," he said, "and it'll look good on a college application."