A Brentwood High School senior is going to show off his science skills on the national level.

It’s the first time that the Brentwood School District has one of its students named as a finalist in the prestigious Regeneron Science Talent Search competition.

Senior Ahmad Perez is one of only 40 students from across the country heading to Washington, D.C. to compete for a top prize of $250,000.

His research focuses on erosion that's happening in Long Island salt marshes-- the result, he says, of too much nitrogen caused by cesspools and fertilizer.

Not only has the bright student pointed out the problem, but he's also proposed a possible solution - using two items that are commonly found in food -- xanthan gum and guar gum.  He says that can strengthen and regenerate the marsh.

Perez tells News 12 he hopes to lead the way for other students from Brentwood to excel in academics as well.

“I feel like I've been defying every odd possible. Whether that's being a semi-finalist, which hasn't happened in seven years, being a finalist especially. Being a Muslim-American, Puerto Rican, you don't really expect someone from Brentwood to reach the national scale. So I'm very proud to represent my community,” he says.

The competition will be held in March. There's a total of $1.8 million in prizes on the line.