Sanford Scientists Soar and Score at Science Olympiad

Over 400 students from twenty-two different schools were involved. Thanks to the support of students, parents, and teachers, the event was a great success! A total of 21 Sanford students won medals, and the teams tied with one other school for the highest number of first-place finishes.

The fourth grade team, made up of Kelis Boyd, Faith Jayaram, Claire Andreasen, Lindsay Kalish, Andrew Kedash, Matthew Kaser, Trenton LaPoint and Stephen Brown, was coached by John Bell and Pat Martin. Faith won a 3rd place medal for “Don’t Bug Me,” and Trenton and Stephen also took third in “Mystery Architecture.” Matthew won the blue ribbon in “Animal Planet,” and he and Faith together took first in the “Barge” event.

Beth Whipple coached fifth graders Lili Dougherty, Ethan Ferreira, Matthew Kedash, Jordan Nashed, Albie Opher, CJ Slanina, Mae Watson, and Spencer Zbranak. In the “Chopper Challenge,” Matthew and Jordan emerged victorious, as did Lili and Albie in the “Grab a Gram” event. CJ won 3rd place in “Interpreting Graphs.” Jordan, Albie, and Spencer’s team took fourth place in “Light and Mirrors,” and Ethan and Mae also came in fourth in “Mystery Architecture.”

The sixth grade scientists—Evan Amendum, Owen Andreasen, Seth Ciolkosz, Greg Fleming, Charlie Sykora, Eleanor Vanderlaan, Jenna Warren, and Aaron White—were led by Michelle Dresser. Eleanor and Charlie finished in first place in the “Egg Drop,” and Aaron, Owen, and Jenna’s team also triumphed in “Mystery Architecture.” Eleanor came in second in “Food Science,” and so did Greg and Seth in “Barge.” Evan and Owen’s team won the silver medal in “Bridges.” Seth won second in “Disease and Defense,” and he and Aaron also took second in “Estimation,” while Jenna came in fourth in “Name That Scientist.”

Congratulations to all these talented young scientists!