ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — There are many who predict that the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis will eventually taper off. But there are also those who say the scare could leave lasting effects, even for those not afflicted by the virus.
Jordan Harrow of St. Augustine is among the latter. The junior at the Episcopal School at Jacksonville has been working all school year on a science project she’s hoped will help bolster her university candidacy.
“My top choices right now are Harvard and Yale, which definitely are very tough schools to get into,” she told First Coast News Friday evening.
Jordan Harrow's project is aimed at combating the negative effects of pesticide run-off on organisms not targeted by those pesticides. She counts her hours of work in the hundreds and was planning to present the fruits of her efforts at the State Science and Engineering Fair of Florida later this month in Lakeland. It’s a showcase for aspiring scientists and engineers in grades six through 12.
But Jordan Harrow and her peers received heartbreaking news about a week ago.
“That the fair was canceled and no alternative solutions would be provided,” she said.
The cancellation, Jordan Harrow said, deprives her and hundreds of other students “the ability to present their projects and compete to win awards, and potentially go to the international fair”.
It’s not her ego that’s hurt, she said, but she fears the cancellation could thwart some budding scientific advances coming to light. It’s also an unfair disadvantage for Florida students, she said.
“In one of the states they put together a virtual fair in around 36 hours, so it’s definitely possible,” Jordan Harrow said.
She also said that efforts by her, her family, and her peers have apparently fallen on deaf ears so far.
“I emailed [the fair directors],” Jordan’s mother Tammy Harrow said, “and didn’t receive any response”.
Her father, Andrew Harrow, said the heartbreak has hit everyone involved.
“It is a big concern,” he said. “For all the parents. You go to the regional, you talk to a lot of the parents and see the amount of time that these kids have put in. It’s the ‘what if,’ you know? We try and look at the positives of the situation and say ‘This is part of life and sometimes unfortunate things happen, it’s how you react to it’.”
But Jordan Harrow’s enthusiasm and ambition are both conspicuous and irrepressible. The Harvard visor she wore during her interview with First Coast News was just one more indication. Her concern about a missed opportunity is yet another.
“Not having the opportunity to put award from states on your college applications definitely could affect your chances of getting into colleges,” Jordan Harrow lamented. “Especially when it’s colleges such as Harvard, Yale, or other Ivies, where any tiny distinction such as an award from a fair, potentially making it to the international fair, and other distinctions could help make the difference whether or not you get in.”