Science Students to Converge on UC Blue Ash for Olympiad

Imagine hundreds of junior and senior high school students mixing chemicals, evaluating the effectiveness of gliders or manipulating robots through dexterity tests. Students from several area school districts will converge Saturday, March 7, at UC Blue Ash College

(9555 Plainfield Road, Cincinnati, OH 45236)

to compete in the Cincinnati Regional Science Olympiad Tournament.

Similar to highly contested athletic events, the Science Olympiad tests the academic mettle of student teams in 23 different events. Ranging from anatomy to ecology, from physics lab to meteorology, students rotate through a series of timed experiments designed to test their problem-solving skills as well as their subject knowledge.

UC Blue Ash is hosting one of eight regional tourneys, drawing students from across Greater Cincinnati. Teams from Clermont, Ross, Sycamore, Lebanon, Wyoming, Lakota, Loveland, Mason and numerous other communities are scheduled to participate.

The students compete to win individual and school awards. First- to sixth-place medals will be awarded to students in each event and first- to sixth-place trophies will be awarded to the top teams in each division. Several teams will quality to compete at the Ohio State Science Olympiad Tournament to be held on Saturday, April 11, at the Ohio State University. Teams can reach the National Science Olympiad Tournament by placing in the top two at the state tournament.

Teachers, college professors, engineers, scientists and other volunteers from the community run the events and perform different duties during the tournament. The tournament is made possible by the generous support of the University of Cincinnati, Sycamore School District, iSPACE, GE Aviation, Toyota, Best Buy and others.

The University of Cincinnati supports the Science Olympiad competition in conjunction with UCs new initiative in creating an environment of learning and building excellence at an early age in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

The event is free and open to the public; everyone is invited to watch as these budding scientists compete. Events will run throughout the day, beginning at 8:30 a.m. and lasting until 2:30 p.m.; an award ceremony will follow at approximately 4 p.m. at the Blue Ash Elementary School, which is located on the UC Blue Ash College campus.

For more information about the regional tournament, please visit

www.ispacescience.org/programs/sci-olympiad

or contact Steve Schrantz, tournament coordinator, at

sschrantz_2056@fuse.net

.

UC Blue Ash College is a regional college within the University of Cincinnati. It offers one of the best values in higher education with access to a nationally recognized UC education in nearly 50 degrees and certificates, as well as tuition that is about half of most colleges and universities. The college is located on a scenic 135-acre wooded campus in the heart of Blue Ash, Ohio. To learn more, call 513-745-5600, visit us online at www.ucblueash.edu, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.