A group of Maui Preparatory Academy middle school students built a bridge and launched a rocket to place first in their division at the State Science Olympiad last Saturday on Oahu.
Now they will represent the state and compete in the national competition in Illinois in May.
While they competed with students ranging from 6th to 9th grade, Maui Prep's 10-student team had no 9th-graders, and most team members were in the 7th grade, said coach Carrie DeMott, a math and science teacher at Maui Prep.
"For such a young team and from such a small school, I wasn't sure it was possible for us to win first in the state," she said in release. "But with their hard work, dedication and teamwork, the kids came out on top."
The Science Olympiad is an event that requires students to solve problems, collaborate and use their inquiry skills on-site, with no adult assistance. Maui Prep qualified for the state competition by placing first at a regional Science Olympiad Feb. 6 at Leeward Community College on Oahu, a competition with 15 schools and 120 students.
While the regional competition had five events, the state competition had 12 events, including a physical science lab where each team launched a rocket carrying a raw egg, and competed to see which rocket could stay aloft the longest.
Competitors were also required to demonstrate their understanding of basic concepts of mathematics and physics relating to variable stars. For an engineering competition, they designed and built bridges to meet design specifications and were judged on efficiency.
Maui Prep competed against five other teams to take the state crown at the competition, again held at Leeward Community College.
The 26th annual National Science Olympiad will be held May 20-22 at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. There will be 120 teams competing from the 6,000 teams that initially participated in the regional and state competitions around the country.
The team is accepting donations to help defray travel costs. For information, call Peggy Harmon at 665-9966.
No other Maui schools competed in last week's state event.
In the high school division, Mililani High captured first place and will also be heading to the national competition. Second place went to Konawaena and third to Kalani High School.
Coming in second behind Maui Prep in the middle school division was Waimea Canyon Middle School, and Kapolei Middle School placed third.
Last year, Maui Prep placed fourth in its division at the state level. There was no regional competition, DeMott said.
"We are all very excited and proud of our students," said Headmaster George Baker. "This will be a wonderful opportunity for them to interact with the best and brightest science students in the country."
Baker also thanked Mokulele Airlines and the Sheraton Waikiki for discounting flights and hotel rooms for the Maui Prep team.
Maui Preparatory Academy is an independent college preparatory day school in Napili. The school, which opened in fall of 2005, will graduate its first class in May.
* Melissa Tanji can be reached at mtanji@mauinews.com.
