By Elizabeth Clarke, LCU News
PINEVILLE, La. (LCU News) — Louisiana Christian University hosted the Louisiana Science Olympiad state finals on Saturday, April 13, with middle and high school students from 16 schools across the state competing for a chance to represent Louisiana at the national finals in May.
More than 200 students competed in the event.
This is the first time LCU has hosted the event according to Theodore Chiasson, associate professor of computer science, currently serves as state director of the National Science Olympiad for Louisiana.
The competition has two divisions: Division B (grades 6 – 9) and Division C (grades 9 – 12).
Each division has 23 events, with teams of two or three students from each school competing in the individual events. Event challenges range from hands-on activities with equipment that the students pre-build and bring to the Olympiad, to laboratory experiments, to written exams.
“The competitions cover many areas of STEM, from robotics to chemistry to optics to ecology to aerodynamics to plate tectonics – if it’s science, it’s part of the Science Olympiad,” Chiasson said.
There were 46 separate competitions, each with first/second/third place finishes, and those competitions contributed to the school’s ranking to determine the winners. The two teams that are eligible to compete at the National Robot Olympiad finals in Michigan in May are the first-place finishers in each division.
Division C (grades 9 – 12) winning schools:
First place: Baton Rouge Magnet School
Second place: St. Martin’s Episcopal School
Third place: The Willow School
The Division B (grades 6 – 9) winning schools:
First place: Glasgow Middle School
Second place: St. John Berchmans Catholic School
Third place: St. Paul’s Episcopal School
The National Science Olympiad is a national competition with participation in all 50 states. The competition will celebrate its 40th anniversary this year.
For more information about LCU’s offerings in natural sciences visit our website or contact Dr. David Elliott, chair of the Department of Natural Sciences, at david.elliott@lcuniversity.edu.
