Hamburg was one of 16 schools that attended the Berks County Science Olympiad Invitational at Kutztown University on January 8. Here, HAHS students competed in a series of team events. This opportunity allows students to practice and gain an understanding of the event before regionals happen on March 20.
The head coach of the Hamburg team, Mr. Lowe, felt that the invitational went extremely well. In the end, HAHS placed 12 out of 23 teams. Considering this was Mr. Lowe’s and most of Hamburg students’ first time competing in the Olympiad, they were all satisfied with that outcome. There was only one other new team besides Hamburg, so it was intimidating going against experienced teams. This experience reassured the team that they were properly preparing, and it encouraged them to do even better at regionals. Now, students can reflect on what they can do better to keep practicing and perform their best at the real event. Mr. Lowe’s favorite part was watching HAHS students come together and build a strong team. Although some events are individual or teams of two, the whole group supported each other. This was ultimately what got him involved in the Science Olympiad. It took over a year of convincing Mr. Lowe to join, and he eventually did so that he could support student interests. Mr. Lowe wants every Hamburg student to know that their team is always looking for new members. They have already picked up two new members since the invitational. For the event, each school is only allowed a team of 15. But they can have a larger team that includes alternates. If any student joins before regionals, they will still be able to attend that event. As the years pass, he looks forward to the team growing.
Riley Mohn is a junior who is a part of the Materials Science and Experimental Design for Hamburg’s Science Olympiad team. She participated as an individual in both events, placing eighth for Materials Science and 13 for Experimental Design. If Riley had studied better materials beforehand, she feels she would have performed better. Thankfully, the invitational allows members to learn these things and practice more before March 20. The invitational had more tests that were graded afterward rather than competitive games like she was expecting. For the final event, Riley will be paired with another member. To better prepare herself, she is practicing labs and tests with Mr. Laughlin, another coach, during study halls. Riley’s favorite part was figuring out an entire lab procedure by herself. She also enjoyed exploring Kutztown’s campus with other students her age and getting to know the other teams. Each event had a time block for roughly one hour which left students with plenty of free time before and after their events. Riley joined Hamburg’s Science Olympiad team last year when Mr. Lowe and Mr. Laughlin started gathering a team. She likes science and the subject is relatively easy for her which is why she was interested in joining.
