Members of the media and public are invited to observe the 2020 Virginia Regional Middle School Science Bowl Competition at Jefferson Lab on Saturday, Feb. 29
NEWPORT NEWS, VA – The National Science Bowl® has been sponsored annually by the Department of Energy’s Office of Science since 1991. Since its inception, more than 305,000 middle and high school students have participated in tournaments around the country. The competition is meant to encourage students to excel in math and science and to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math. This event is free and open to the public and media.
New! This year, the lab will host a Cyber Challenge where students will participate in a sub-competition during the event. Students who exit the Science Bowl competition early will be given cyber security problems to solve as teams and compete for a chance to be named the Virginia Cyber Challenge champs.
What: The Virginia Regional Middle School Science Bowl competition will be held at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility.
Who: Teams from 14 Virginia middle schools (listed below) are registered to compete in the 2020 competition, including four teams representing Hampton Roads: Achievable Dream Middle School, Hampton Roads Academy, St. John the Apostle Catholic School and St. Patrick Catholic School.
Teams are comprised of four middle school students, one alternate, and a teacher who serves as an advisor and coach.
When: Saturday, February 29, 2020.
Where: CEBAF Center, Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, 12000 Jefferson Avenue, Newport News, Va.
Schedule:
7:15 a.m. Team Registration
8 a.m. Welcome, Dr. Stuart Henderson, Director, Jefferson Lab
8:10 a.m. Orientation / Rules Review
9 a.m. Practice Round #1
9:30 a.m. Practice Round #2
10:00 a.m. Practice Round #3
10:30 a.m. Break
10:45 a.m. Double Elimination - Round #1
11:15 a.m. Double Elimination - Round #2
11:45 a.m. Lunch
12:45 p.m. Double Elimination - Round #3
1:15 p.m. Double Elimination - Round #4 and Cyber Challenge Competition
1:45 p.m. Double Elimination - Round #5
2:15 p.m. Double Elimination - Round #6
2:45 p.m. Double Elimination - Round #7
3:15 p.m. Finals #1 – CEBAF Center Auditorium
3:45 p.m. Finals #2 - if needed - CEBAF Center Auditorium
4:15 p.m. Presentation of Awards
Credentials: News media may contact the Jefferson Lab Communications Office representative listed below by noon on Friday, Feb. 28, if you plan on attending any part of the tournament or if your news agency would like to receive the results at the end of Saturday's competition.
Considerations: No filmography or photography is allowed during the competition. Members of the public are welcome to observe the double elimination tournament rounds. All visitors over 16 must sign in at the CEBAF Center front desk and present valid photo I.D. Visitors under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Participating Schools: Virginia schools registered for the competition include (in alphabetical order):
- Achievable Dream Middle School (Newport News)
- Carson Middle School (Herndon)
- Farmwell Station Middle School (Ashburn)
- Frost Middle School (Fairfax)
- Hampton Roads Academy (Newport News)
- Isle of Wight Academy (Isle of Wight)
- Longfellow Middle School (Falls Church)
- Nysmith School for the Gifted (Herndon)
- Page Middle School (Gloucester)
- Peasley Middle School (Gloucester)
- River Bend Middle School (Sterling)
- Rocky Run Middle School (Chantilly)
- St. John the Apostle Catholic School (Virginia Beach)
- St. Patrick Catholic School (Norfolk)
Background: Participating teams face off in an intense question-and-answer format, where contestants are quizzed on their knowledge of math and a range of science disciplines, including biology, chemistry, Earth science, physics and energy.
The top three teams at the regional competition on Feb. 29, will earn cash prizes, and the top four teams will earn trophies for their respective schools. The top team also wins an expenses-paid trip to the National Science Bowl® finals to be held in Washington, D.C., April 30-May 4, 2020. In 2020, 9,000 high school and 5,000 middle school teams will compete for the national title.
The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science manages the National Science Bowl® and sponsors the NSB finals competition. The Department of Energy's Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.
To learn more about DOE's National Science Bowl competition, visit: https://science.osti.gov/wdts/nsb
For sample sets of questions and answers that have been used in previous competitions, visit: https://science.osti.gov/wdts/nsb/Regional-Competitions/Resources/MS-Sample-Questions
Contact: Rebecca Duckett, Jefferson Lab Communications Office, 757-269-6809, duckett@jlab.org