Mt Vernon Middle School Science Olympiad

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Recently our Mount Vernon Middle School Science Olympiad team placed first in the state competition, which gives us the opportunity to compete in the national tournament.  Only 60 teams from across the nation make it to this level of competition.  The Mount Vernon team consists of sixteen 6^th to 9th-grade students, which includes five girls and eleven boys.  This year the national tournament will be held at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas on May 19-20.

For the past 39 years, Science Olympiad has led a revolution in science education. What began as a grassroots assembly of science teachers is now one of the premiere science competitions in the nation, providing rigorous, standards-based challenges to nearly 6,000 teams in every state. Science Olympiad competitions are like academic track meets, consisting of a series of 23 team events in each division. Annually, a portion of the events is rotated to reflect the changing nature of anatomy, physics, geology, astronomy, mechanical engineering and technology. By combining events from many disciplines, Science Olympiad encourages a wide cross-section of students to get involved in active, hands-on, group participation.

In order to attend the national tournament, the Mount Vernon team needs to raise around $17,000 to pay for hotel costs, meals, and transportation.  We are hoping to raise a portion of this amount through crowdfunding.  This group of students has worked really hard to become state champions.  They have spent several hours after school every week since October preparing for the SO tournaments.  Then they spend a number of weekends competing in invitationals leading up to the state tournament at UNI.  Please donate as generously as you are able to honor and support our young people for their achievements.