A Chapter's First Year, A Student's Next Step
2026 SNHS Scholarship recipient Laura Bevill on watching her school's chapter grow to fifty-plus members while charting her own path in science.
By Laura Bevill
Hello, my name is Laura Bevill, and I am one of the recipients of the 2026 Science National Honors Society (SNHS) Student Scholarship. The scholarship is available annually to seniors in their local SNHS Chapter with a passion for science, academic excellence, and leadership. In addition to Merrimack High School’s SNHS chapter, I was the treasurer of the French Honors Society and the editor of my school’s newspaper “The Hawk.” I also participated in many STEM clubs such as Mu Alpha Theta and FIRST Robotics team Chop Shop 166.
When I had the opportunity to join my school’s chapter, they had just founded the organization in the 2024-2025 school year. Since that point, well over fifty members have filled the seats with great enthusiasm to partake in monthly Science Chats and Science Fairs. The chapter has also been expanding our connections to demonstrations and tutoring with our district’s upper elementary school students. Within meetings, our chapter would have members volunteer to present science topics they found interesting and even do interactive demonstrations. Some of my favorites were the titration experiments, glass resonance discussions, and the breakdown of NASA’s Artemis II physics. Many more concepts were also showcased at our annual science fair, where high school classrooms held over thirty projects for approximately 88 third graders. In explaining complex principles through hands-on activities, such as elephant toothpaste or my wind-vane project, our chapter continues to foster curiosity for science within the community.
I am continuing my passion for science by pursuing a degree in Neuroscience at College of the Holy Cross. There, I am to follow a pre-medical track and participate in the American Medical Student Association (ASMA) and the Health Professions Advising clubs to continue making an impact in the New England community. I would like to make a special thank you to my SNHS chapter advisors, Dr. Campbell and Mr. Davis, your contributions towards teaching science have been instrumental in the success of so many young minds. The effort of our officers, Mary Schmitt, Zosia Yellin, Molly Shepard, Lauren Murby, and Ian Desilets have brought so much passion and progress in our chapter. I wish the best of luck to next year’s many successful chapters and to those applying for the 2026/2027 SNHS Student Scholarship.