Elite school takes huge hit in science contest

Is Stuyvesant losing its mojo?

The top-rated Manhattan high school saw a staggering 82 percent drop this year in the number of semifinalists it will send to the prestigious Intel Science Talent Search.

This year, just two students were named semifinalists in the competition, a drop from 11 in 2014 — which was then the most nationwide.

"Wow, that's the lowest we ever had!" was the stunned reaction among teachers, one said. "Eleven to two is a big difference."

Previous Intel winners have gone on to win Nobel Prizes and the National Medal of Science.

For years, Stuyvesant has enjoyed an embarrassment of semifinals riches. Other schools may rejoice at sending just one student to the contest, but expectations are a lot higher at Stuyvesant— routinely ranked one of the country's best public institutions.

Stuyvesant did much worse this year than rival Bronx HS of Science, which scored a robust eight semifinalists.

Over the past 10 years, the number of Stuy semifinalists never dipped below five — in 2011. It racked up the most — 13 — in 2012.

Some Stuy insiders chalked up the drop to Principal Jie Zhang, who took over for Stanley Teitel after he resigned in a 2012 cheating scandal.

"Things are little more easy now, and a little more casual. She does not care about the academic rigor of the school," a teacher charged.

Zhang has helped some students avoid failure by letting them drop classes well into the semester, and make up missed gym classes during finals week — allowances previously unheard of, the teacher said.

"When you do not challenge students, when you are simply worried about being liked and popular, when you are only worried about how you look on paper, then you lose the mission of what it means to be an educator," the teacher said.

Zhang also failed to immediately replace physics teacher Rebecca Gorla, who resigned from the position of research coordinator in January 2014.

Instead, administrators took up the slack. It wasn't until last September that biology teacher Jason Econome took over, sources said.

The crucial research coordinator guides students through the rigors of the Intel application process, which involves finding a mentor, conducting research and writing an academic paper.

"It's a very hard job. It takes an enormous amount of time. You need an adult in the school who is there to help the students," a teacher said.

Gorla and Econome declined to comment. Zhang could not be reached. But Harvey Blumm, a guidance counselor at the school, said Zhang was doing right by students.

"I appreciate the principal is putting so much emphasis on the social and emotional life of the students," he said.

Another teacher downplayed the drop, saying Intel semifinalist fluctuations, like those in the stock market, are nothing to fret about — unless the low numbers persist.

"It's like the Yankees lose a baseball game and people start freaking out," the teacher said.

Finalists are to be announced Wednesday.

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