One of the most all encompassing science extracurriculars at our school is the Science Olympiad team. With different categories ranging from Anatomy and Physiology to Wind Power to Food Science and more, Science Olympiad has something for anyone with an interest in real world applications of science. In Science Olympiad, students learn about the principles of the categories they choose, and prepare for the Science Olympiad Regionals competition in early February.

At Regionals, competitors are tested in their knowledge of each science category, as well as their ability to apply this knowledge to real-life problems. Wesley Wang ’21 said, “I prepared by getting binders for Fossils and Ornithology and [by] studying from a cheat sheet for Disease Detectives.” Other categories involved making structures to use in the competition. Jenni Ren ’21 said “Prior to the competition, my partner and I, for Boomilever, worked extremely hard on [building] our structure.” These categories tested the creativity and practicality of physical solutions to given problems. All of this hard work and preparation was manifested during the Regionals competition.

The Science Olympiad Regionals competition was held at Bronx Science on Saturday, February 1st, 2020. It was a full day event, starting at 6 AM and ending at 7 PM. After hours of preparation, students in the Science Olympiad saw their diligence pay off and enjoyed the competition. “I really enjoyed my time at regionals and cheering on and congratulating others for their achievements and the hard work they put into this,” Ren said. The day of Regionals was filled with exciting group events that were a culmination of the season’s hard work and memorable experiences with friends from the Science Olympiad team. The Co-Captain of Science Olympiad, Benjamin Chan ’21 said, “One of my fondest memories from Science Olympiad Competitions (both this year’s competition and prior years’ competitions) is cheering my friends on as they were called onto the stage to win their medals. We were all extremely enthusiastic about representing our school and putting in our best effort to bring out the ‘Science’ in ‘Bronx Science.’” The Bronx Science team swept the competition, winning twenty-six medals, and one of their groups, Team A, qualified for the States competition.

Although the Regionals competition is over, the Science Olympiad students are not yet finished. Because they qualified for States, they are now focusing on preparing for it. The Science Olympiad leadership is deciding who will go to the States competition. “We are deciding who will be on the team by looking at people’s dedication and experience, and will give diagnostic tests to help decide who is qualified enough to go to States,” Gemma Greene ’22 said. Preparation also includes financial goals. “I will work towards getting more fundraisers and help bring in money that will hopefully improve our performance at States,” said Matthow Dai ’21. Most importantly, the students are working on their projects and studying for their categories to ensure success as the States competition. “I’m of course going to be taking notes on the things that we were under-prepared for,” said Daniel Belkin ’22. The team is taking any errors made in the Regionals as lessons to ensure success at the States competition in a month.

The Science Olympiad team’s hard work throughout the year certainly paid off during the Regionals competition. As a STEM focused school, we are extremely proud of their success. Congratulations to everyone who is on the Science Olympiad team!

The Co-Captain of Science Olympiad, Benjamin Chan ’21 said, “One of my fondest memories from Science Olympiad Competitions (both this year’s competition and prior years’ competitions) is cheering my friends on as they were called onto the stage to win their medals. We were all extremely enthusiastic about representing our school and putting in our best effort to bring out the ‘Science’ in ‘Bronx Science.’”