Knightly News

The last two months have been very busy for students in Episcopal’s ESTAAR program. On February 22nd, four seniors and six juniors traveled to Ruston, Louisiana to attend the Junior Science and Humanities Symposium sponsored by the Department of Defense and hosted by Louisiana Tech’s College of Education and Human Sciences. All four seniors and one of the juniors presented their research to a panel of judges. The presenters and their projects which were completed under the guidance of professors at LSU were as follows:

Ryder Bond (12) - “A Study of the Effects of Crossfire Bed Bug Insecticide on Bed Bug Eggs”

Megan Gibson (12) - “The Dispersion of Flour Beetles Affected by Parasitic Fungi”

Beau Legnon (12) - “Crystallographic Study of Lanthanide-Chlorides”

Timothy Namikas (11) - “Using Machine Learning to Statically Analyze JavaScript for Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerabilities”

Yaseen Zaid (12) - “The Evolution of Physical Aspects of Amazonian Species from the Cordillera Azul and Andes Mountains”

The presenters delivered excellent presentations and answered probing questions from the judges, some of whom happened to be experts in the same field. 

Jeff McLean, P.E., is in his fifth year teaching at Episcopal. He leads the ESTAAR program and teaches Honors Physics C and AP Computer Science Principles. McLean is the faculty sponsor of the FRAME Club and the Automotive Club. He brings a wealth of experience and expertise in mechanical engineering to the classroom. Prior to teaching, McLean has served in leadership roles in aerospace product development and consulting engineering companies. In the classroom, he strives to use that experience to inspire young people to develop problem-solving skills and understand the world around them. McLean earned a Ph.D. and master's degree in mechanical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Prior to that, he earned a Bachelor of Science in the same field from Louisiana State University. McLean’s youngest son, Nate, is a sophomore at Episcopal and his oldest son, Carter, is an alumnus from the class of 2023.

The Episcopal School of Baton Rouge 2025-2026 application is now available! ​For more information on the application process, to schedule a tour, or learn more about the private school, contact us at [email protected] or 225-755-2685.