Science Olympiad Succeeds at Regionals

Jordan’s Science Olympiad varsity team placed fifth in the regional competition on Saturday, February 28th. They were one of two varsity teams to place top 10 in all events, and the junior varsity team placed second out of the JV teams.

Many members of Science Olympiad reported that the competition was a very positive experience, as well as the practice leading up to it. “Competing in Science Olympiad is super fun,” shared junior Joseph Jordan’s Science Olympiad varsity team placed fifth in the regional competition on Saturday, February 28th. They were one of two varsity teams to place top 10 in all events, and the junior varsity team placed second out of the JV teams.

Many members of Science Olympiad reported that the competition was a very positive experience, as well as the practice leading up to it. “Competing in Science Olympiad is super fun,” shared junior Joseph Schneider, a varsity member who competed in the category Disease Detectives, which is a test event on epidemiology. “It’s almost like a sport in the levels of support that there are on the team and the amount of prep that goes into competition day.” He described the event as being enjoyable and challenging, but without excess pressure.

Science Olympiad is a STEM competition described as an “academic track meet” with a wide variety of events for students across the country to participate in at regional and state levels, ranging from Bungee Drop, where teams create an elastic cord and conduct drops, to Entomology, where students identify bugs and answer questions on them, to Robot Tour, where groups design a robot that can efficiently reach a set target (Science Olympiad website).

Virginia Masinick, a freshman, competed in Forensics, where students “were given a made up crime scene to try and solve” by testing substances and using a cheat sheet as a tool when studying the information in advance. “We got to sign up for our own events, so if something wasn’t up your alley then you weren’t forced into doing it,” she shared. She finds that Science Olympiad “is a chance to learn about things that you normally don’t learn in your classes,” and explore various interests, making it a great way to have an enriching educational experience outside the classroom.

Students had a blast competing in many different events in partnerships and groups, and many are looking forward to the state competition on April 18th.