Scientific Olympics competition at COD on March 19

College of DuPage will host the annual Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technical and Scientific Olympics from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, March 19, in the Health and Science Center and the Student Resource Center, Room 2800.

Community members are invited to view the Performing Arts (excluding playwriting), Filmmaking and Entrepreneurship categories as they are being judged. In addition, the Visual Arts and Science projects are open to the public after 2 p.m., once the judging of these categories is completed. There is no charge for admission.

ACT-SO, or “Olympics of the Mind,” is a nation-wide program that encourages high academic and cultural achievement among African American high school students. More than 85 local high school students compete annually in this event, which is sponsored by COD, DuPage NAACP and the DuPage Regional Office of Education.

“The ACT-SO program is intended to be a learning experience, first and foremost,” said COD Community Development Specialist Cynthia Johnson. “Students work with mentors for guidance as they develop projects throughout the year. The local competition serves to showcase the students' hard work, dedication and talent.”

Participants in ACT-SO can compete in a maximum of three categories in the areas of sciences, humanities, business and the arts. Gold medal winners selected at the local competition will compete in the national ACT-SO finals in Los Angeles July 20 to 24.

The March 19 competition will culminate in a DuPage ACT-SO Awards Banquet at 6 p.m. at Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace, where students will receive gold, silver and bronze medals for their efforts, as well as prizes provided by sponsors of and contributors to the local program.

Johnson noted that additional judges are still needed for the Music Vocal Contemporary, Music Composition, and Earth and Space Science categories.

For more information, visit www.dupageact-so or call (630) 942-3872, e-mail johnsncg@cod.edu.