Lincoln East High School

Lincoln East High School

Josie Gilligan, Coach
Coach Josie Gilligan coaches Science Bowl at Lincoln East High School, where she teaches chemistry and physics. Prior to teaching, she attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she earned her undergraduate degree in chemistry education (7-12). She has been teaching for two years, and loves helping students as they learn about how chemistry and physics relate to their lives. This will be her second year coaching after working as an assistant coach for the previous season, and she is thrilled that her team has made it to the national competition. When she is not coaching Friday afternoon practices, she enjoys baking, attempting to craft, reading mystery novels, and playing with her cat, Theo. Last summer, she participated in a research program at the University of Nebraska, where she learned about metal additive manufacturing. She is very proud of her team for the long hours and hard work that they have put into practicing this year, and looks forward to competing.

Daniel Kumm
Daniel Kumm is a junior attending Lincoln East High School. In his free time he enjoys activities including Rubik’s cubes, attempting to break 150 wpm on typing tests, ice skating, and particularly sleeping. He enjoys science most out of all subjects, especially biology and chemistry. Aside from Science Bowl, he participated in the USA National Chemistry Olympiad, but he is more proud of his assertion that he is a better driver than his teammate, Nixon. This year was his second year participating in Science Bowl and it was a redemption year after finishing runner up. Daniel is looking forward to his first experience at the national competition and hopes to get swamped in college applications after that.

Ian Meyer
Ian Meyer is a senior at Lincoln East High School  who participates in many extracurriculars. Science Bowl is but one of many activities that Ian involves himself in, and he likes to think that it is the divine learning experience. When he is not talking about population theory with his peers, he finds solace in playing the violin and coaching middle school competition math. While not his favorite part of the programming learning process, he consistently struggles with exiting Vim which takes him many minutes. He is sad to leave Science Bowl behind, since it has been quite fruitful in learning the entire AP Biology curriculum (and then some) so he could sleep through zoom school. He is sure his leadership skills as captain will be sorely missed, and that the future is bright for the  Lincoln East Science Bowl team!

Nixon Hanna
Nixon Hannah is currently a sophomore at East High School in Lincoln, Nebraska. He does many extracurricular activities including Computer Science Honors Society, Science Olympiad, Math Club, Future Business Leaders of America, and of course Science Bowl. He “mains” math and physics but oftentimes gives himself the title of ‘Chem God’. However he does plan to add chemistry to his list of mains over the summer.

Neeraj Kadubandi
Neeraj Kadubandi is a senior at Lincoln East High School. In his free time, Neeraj enjoys playing chess, ice skating, and exploiting the McDonald’s rewards app. Neeraj is proud to say that he has attended every in-person National Science Bowl competition in his high school career and is now back for his last dance. Neeraj’s only goal is to perform better than he did last time-- basically, to not go the entire tournament without a win. After high school, Neeraj plans on attending Johns Hopkins University and majoring in public health.

Hannah Tang
Hannah Tang is a sophomore attending Lincoln East High School. 2022 marks her third year participating in Science Bowl. She would like to thank Science Bowl for introducing her to a classic piece of literature: her 11th edition Campbell Biology textbook. Some of her other favorite memories from Science Bowl include eating Lucky Charms with her teammates, online shopping, and vlogging her experience at the regional competition. Aside from science bowl, Hannah is a varsity cheerleader, an esteemed driver, and a diligent observer of soybean growth. In her free time, she can be found playing Word Hunt, drinking milk tea, and singing karaoke. Ultimately, Hannah is grateful that NSB has given her an opportunity to share her voice, and is thrilled to participate in the national competition!