Home > Shady Side Academy Middle School Science Olympiad Team Wins State

Shady Side Academy Middle School Science Olympiad Team Wins State Title

 The Shady Side Academy Middle School Science Olympiad
Team won the Pennsylvania State Tournament, held at Juniata College on
April 27. The team placed first in Division B (grades 6-9) out of 36
teams with 117 total points and will advance to the National Science
Olympiad Tournament, held May 18-19 at the University of Central Florida
in Orlando. It marks the team's third state title in the past nine years
(2004, 2005) and their seventh trip to nationals in the past 10 years.
The team is coached by faculty members Bonnie Maxwell and John Matia.

 

The top two teams from the state tournament advance to nationals.
Strath Haven Middle School took second place this year and will join SSA
at the 2012 national tourney. Last year, SSA placed second at states and
18th at nationals. Shady Side’s best performance at nationals was a
third place finish in 2004.

Seventeen SSA student teams earned awards in the 23 individual events,
covering multiple science disciplines:

First Place Teams
Anatomy - Angie Kim and Krishna Patel
Forestry - Mark Antosz and Claire Holthaus
Keep the Heat - Connor Colombo and Roy Navid
Mag Lev - Ciaran Beckford and Tom Scherlis
Mousetrap Vehicle - Michael Miller and Roy Navid

Second Place Teams
Birds and Bees - Nikhil Ganjoo and Ryan Labriola
Microbe Mission - Jesse Plung and Sarah Small
Mission Possible - Connor Colombo, Michael Miller and Kyle O’Connor
Water Quality - Noah McDaniel and Krishna Patel
Write It - Do It - Michael Miller and Krishna Patel

Third Place Teams
Awesome Aquifers - Noah McDaniel and Michael Miller
Bottle Rockets - Claire Holthaus and Roy Navid
Optics - Leah Liu and Roy Navid

Fourth Place Teams
Disease Detectives - Jesse Plung and Sarah Small
Dynamic Planet - Noah McDaniel and Krishna Patel

Fifth Place Teams
Experimental Design - Riya Gohel, Leah Liu and Rakesh Ravi
Storm the Castle - Michael Miller and Kyle O’Connor

About Science Olympiad
For the past 28 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 6,200 teams in 50 states.
Science Olympiad’s ever-changing lineup of events in all STEM
disciplines exposes students to practicing scientists and career
choices, and energizes classroom teachers with a dynamic content
experience. Learn more at www.soinc.org.

About Shady Side Academy
Shady Side Academy is a nationally respected private school in
Pittsburgh for boys and girls in grades
pre-kindergarten through 12, with an optional five-day boarding
experience in high school. Three age-specific campuses with
extraordinary resources, teachers who actively mentor, a
forward-thinking curriculum, a diverse and inclusive community, and a
legacy of alumni accomplishments all inspire Shady Side students to high
achievement in academics, the arts and athletics, and to meaningful
ambitions in life. For more information, visit www.shadysideacademy.org.


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