Valedictorian and Salutatorian Announcement
The North Shore School District is very proud to announce the names of the two members of the Viking Class of 2026 who have been named this year’s Valedictorian and Salutatorian. Congratulations Kaiden Smith (Valedictorian) and Sareena Modi (Salutatorian)! Each of these students has devoted many long hours and an enormous amount of dedication and hard work to their studies at North Shore to receive this high recognition. The valedictorian of the graduating class is the student with the highest weighted grade point average, while the salutatorian of the Class of 2026 has received the second-highest weighted grade point average.
Principal Eric Contreras said, “Kaiden and Sareena are two exceptionally talented students. They have promoted academic scholarship, scientific research, athletic prowess, and community service in multiple domains inside and outside the high school.”
Congratulations to Kaiden Smith, the Valedictorian of the North Shore School District. Kaiden’s academic achievements include recipient of the Harvard College Book Award, Colorado School of Mines Award, Society of In Vitro Biology Award at NYSSEF, and is a Commended Student in the National Merit® Scholarship Program. He also has been the Vice President of the National Honor Society and a member of Rho Kappa (History Honor Society), Mu Alpha Theta (Math Honor Society), and the World Language Honor Society. He is a Writing Fellow, providing academic writing assistance to students, and a Peer Leader, assisting freshman and new students acclimate to North Shore High School.
Kaiden is enthusiastic about math and science. He participated in science research through his junior year and achieved multiple awards. Kaiden won the New York State Science and Engineering Fair (NYSSEF) Andromeda in the Earth, Energy, and matter category. He also received Honorable Mention at NYSSEF as well as an award from the Society of In Vitro Biology for Parkinson Research in Drosophila melanogaster supplemented with quercetin and nobiletin. Kaiden’s work was mentioned in the In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology Animal Journal. His fruit fly independent research was conducted with mentorship at LIU Post.
Additionally, Kaiden loves and excels at athletics. He is a three-sport Varsity Vikings athlete! He thrives on the Men’s Varsity Soccer, Basketball, and Lacrosse Teams and was JV Captain in all three. Outside of sports and academics, Kaiden worked summers at Sunrise Day Camp, a nonprofit camp for kids affected by pediatric cancer and their siblings, was a camp counselor at North Shore Basketball Camp, and helped elementary students at Sea Cliff Aftercare. He is interested in pursuing business and finance in college.
Congratulations to Sareena Modi, the Salutatorian of the North Shore School District. She recently was recognized as a Commended Student in the National Merit® Scholarship Program, recipient of the LISC Lloyd K. Chanin Memorial Award, LISC High Honors Award, North Shore Women's Club Golden Heart Award, American Citizenship Award, Tulane Book Award, RPI Medal, AP Scholar with Honor, and Celebrating Art High Merit Award.
She is the president of Mu Alpha Theta and a member of the National Honor Society, Rho Kappa, Science, and World Language Honor Societies. During her high school years, Sareena conducted science research on denosumab (an osteoporosis medication) that was presented at the AACE Conference (an international endocrinology conference) in Orlando, FL through NYU; the research was also requested to be published by Elsevier. She is currently researching the impact of blue light on the progression of Alzheimer's disease in fruit flies.
Sareena was the captain of the Women’s Varsity Tennis team and played 2nd singles. She received the NYS Scholar Athlete Award and Varsity Athlete Award. In 2024, she was Nassau County Small School Championship runner-up. Additionally, Sareena received the Community Service Merit Award for completing 100 hours of community service in grades 9-11. She also volunteered at LIU Post studying marine invertebrates and at North Shore University Hospital for over 100 hours. Sareena also led a fundraising campaign for blood cancer through the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, raising over $23,000. She has approximately 350 community service hours in total and 20 hours of tutoring. Sareena is eager to study biochemistry on the pre-med track in college.
Principal Contreras concluded by saying, “Kaiden and Sareena are celebrated and respected by everyone. As high schoolers, they already have a spectacular list of storied achievements. They are impeccable examples of students who embody our shared values that permeate their work in all their endeavors. They have pursued diverse and impressive journeys as scholars, athletes, and science researchers, and their journeys will continue to impress us all in years to come. We are proud to call them our graduates.”
Please join us in congratulating both Kaiden Smith and Sareena Modi for their hard work at the North Shore Schools. The Class of 2026 is an extremely talented one and we are just so proud of them all. We wish them both the best of luck now and in the future discovering their dreams. Go Vikings Go!
Article and photos by Shelly Newman