Science Olympiad
Science Olympiad starts a new seasonBY JORDYN WILLIAMS NOVEMBER 25 2014
Science. The organization of knowledge into testable explanations and predictions about the universe. For many, science is simply one of a multitude of mandatory core classes, but for a choice few, it is more than that.
Here at Rose, there is a group of students who participate in a club known as Science Olympiad. Science Olympiad gives students the opportunity to expand their real-life application of science inside and outside of school. However, the main focus for the club is the competitions that take place yearly which are known as regionals and states. “Science Olympiad is a three-division competition with individual events that students compete in,” science teacher Jed Smith said. “There's a wide variety of events ranging all throughout all the different science fields.” Science Olympiad gives students a chance to express their love of science through a variety of different competition categories. Some of these categories include genetics, earth science, chemistry, anatomy, physics, geology, mechanical engineering and technology. For senior Jessica Romero, the section of the competition oriented towards building was more fitting for her than the other categories. “I like doing the building section,” Romero said. “Last year I built an airplane, launched it and tried to make it stay in the air the longest.” Romero went on to explain that the competitions involve a significant amount of preparation, but the payoff is well worth it. Last year, Rose students took first and second place in many of the section competitions held at the regional and state levels. The regional level competition is held annually at ECU, and the state level is held at NC State. “We’ve been as successful as possible the last few years,” Smith said. “We won first place overall at regionals for varsity, and we finished first and second in the JV division.” Smith went on to explain that this year some new and modified events are being introduced. Previous Science Olympiad student, senior Kabir Mohammed, elaborated on some new events that will be taking place this coming competition season. “This year there's something called Wright stuff, I believe, which is where you build airplanes that are powered by a propeller,” Mohammed said. Mohammed has been a part of Science Olympiad for the past three years, and last year participated in a paper airplane launching competition. Mohammed went on to explain that to participate in the Science Olympiad competition you must be a part of the Science Olympiad club here at Rose. “This year they a they are trying to make [the club] more involved by requiring five science service hours for club members,” Mohammed said. “An easy way to get these would be to volunteer at the middle school Science Olympiad competition.” Since the Science Olympiad team from Rose has been so successful in the past, there is added pressure for them to be just as successful this year. “We lost a lot of really strong seniors last year, but we should have some good competitors who will be really prepared this year,” Smith said. Teachers such as Smith have expressed their confidence in the returning and new Science Olympiad members. With all of the new additions to the Science Olympiad program and club this year, this year seems promising for the Science Olympiad team at Rose. |
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