Area schools to compete in Science Olympiad at Goshen College on Feb. 14

GOSHEN, Ind. – Eighteen area Science Olympiad teams will be at Goshen College on Saturday, Feb. 14 to complete in one of the nine regional Indiana Science Olympiad competitions. They will be competing for a spot in the state, and possibly national, competition.

Modeled after the Olympics, the competition will give participants the opportunity to compete in more than 30 contests organized around themes in science – ranging from astronomy to ecology, forensics to physics – and scores will be given for each project. In addition to the fun of building and testing bridges, dropping eggs, solving crime puzzles and creating homemade battery-operated vehicles, the competitors will learn about and demonstrate sound scientific techniques.

Students will be competing for only three spots in both levels – middle school and high school – that will allow them to proceed to the state competition at IUPUI on March 28.

Volunteers will oversee and judge event competitions; coordinators will include Goshen College students, professors and community personnel who work in science fields.

Registration for both middle schools and high schools is scheduled to begin at 7:30 a.m. in the College Mennonite Church lobby. An 8:15 a.m. welcome ceremony follows registration in the Church-Chapel, with the first events kick-off at 9 a.m. and the day ends with a 3:15 p.m. awards ceremony. The Science Olympiad competitions and awards ceremony are open to the community, and the competitions will take place in Goshen College's Music Center, Recreation-Fitness Center, Union Building, Wyse Hall and Science Building.

Participating will be the following nine middle schools: Bethany Christian Middle School, Indian Springs Middle School, LaSalle Intermediate Academy, Manchester Junior High School, Northridge Middle School, Pierre Moran Middle School, St. Joseph Grade School, St. Pius X Catholic School, Stanley Clark Middle School. The nine high schools are: Bethany Christian High School, La Lumiere School, LaPorte High School, Mishawaka High School, Northridge High School, Plymouth High School, Riley High School, St. Joseph's High School, Warsaw Community High School.

The Goshen College Indiana Science Olympiad is supported by D-J Construction Company, Goshen, and Zimmer, Inc., Warsaw (Dover, Ohio).

The Science Olympiad began in 1983 and involves more than 12,000 schools nationally. For more information and a schedule for the day's events, contact Goshen College Professor of Biology Stan Grove at (574) 535-7320 or visit www.goshen.edu/bio/SciOlymp/GCSciOly.html.

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college's Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron's Best Buys in Education, "Colleges of Distinction," "Making a Difference College Guide" and U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges" edition, which named Goshen a "least debt college." Visit www.goshen.edu.