Science & Arts Academy Represents Illinois at Science Olympiad National Tournament
Congratulations to Science & Arts Academy's (SAA's) Science Olympiad Varsity Team whose dedication and passion for science was evident as they earned second place at the Illinois Science Olympiad State Competition, which took place at the at University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. The team then went on to place 18th at the National Competition at Colorado State University. In addition, the SAA Solar Power Team came in 2nd place at Nationals. There are nearly 4,000 middle school teams who participate in Science Olympiad throughout the year.
The National Science Olympiad Tournament is one of the nation's most prestigious science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions, bringing together 120 winning middle school and high school teams advancing from state-level competitions this past spring. Rigorous hands-on and lab events led by experts from government agencies, top universities, industry and Science Olympiad state chapters cover topics in engineering, physics, epidemiology, astronomy, chemistry, meteorology and coding.
Long tenured SAA science teacher and department chair, Colleen Storiz, spearheaded Science Olympiad at SAA. The torch was passed two years ago to SAA's current head coaches, Darrin Bonecutter and Erika Maliwanag. All three coaches, along with faculty and parent volunteer coaches, led 23 Varsity events and two Junior Varsity trial events to the National Tournament.
Varsity students include Neil Behl, Dashiell Cloud, Linnea Duffy, Henry Harris, Jack Honomichl, Lucy Neacy, Mateo Nery, Julia Park, Luke Peebler, Michael Rapp, Sajan Shah, Hadrian Sobota, Elia Ton-That, Gabriel Visotsky, and Jaden Welch-Jani. The Trial Event Team includes JV team members Amanda Feinberg, Grace Murray, Avi Shah, and Lulu Ton-That.
"We are very proud of our students, staff, and community. Science Olympiad has a long-standing tradition at SAA, providing an opportunity for our participants to further develop their love of science by digging deeper and exploring further. Our teams have succeeded at the highest levels of competition, proudly representing our school and state through academic excellence and outstanding sportsmanship," stated Tim Costello, Head of School at Science & Arts Academy.
About Science & Arts Academy:
Science & Arts Academy, located in Des Plaines, is celebrating its 25th Anniversary this year. SAA was founded in 1992 with the vision to provide intellectually and creatively talented students a stimulating and supportive environment designed for their unique abilities. SAA is highly regarded throughout the Chicago area for its challenging and inspiring curriculum, small classroom setting and expertise and knowledge in supporting gifted children. Differentiation, acceleration, enrichment, problem solving and creative thinking are all concepts common to the everyday intellectual and artistic experience for the SAA student. SAA serves gifted Jr. Kindergarten through 8th grade students from over 60 different zip codes. For more information, visit www.scienceandartsacademy.org.