Frederick School Wins State Science Competition

Frederick Intermediate School’s Science Olympiad team participated in the State finals at the Univeristy of Illinois in Champaign on Saturday, April 14th. 

Science Olympiad is a team-based sport where groups of two to four students compete in events pertaining to specific scientific topics such as earth science, biology, chemistry, and engineering.  

The events are scored individually, and then scored as a whole for a team score. The team from Frederick, a District 46 school serving fifth- and sixth-grade students, went up against schools serving sixth- through eighth-grade students from across the state.  

Frederick students took home individual medals in 11 of the 26 events, and First Place overall in Class A, a first for the school. The team was coached by Aaron Mulder and Alec Renner.

"Each student was assigned up to four events that encompassed various scientific disciplines," said Mulder. "They would practice for at least an hour a week in each event (sometimes much more), and then would compete against other schools on tests or challenges related to those topics."

He praised the students for their efforts.

"The win is certainly a testament to how hard the kids, parents, and coaches worked all season," Mulder said. "We put in countless hours preparing for all 26 events, and it feels great to be able to bring home a victory."

He said that their season is now over, but their strong performance may place them into a higher division next year with a chance to compete at the national level.

"As a teacher, I'm always excited when students grow and succeed," Mulder said. "This was extra special because it really brought a whole community of families together. It's something we're all proud of and inspired by."

Team members include: 

6th graders -

• Hannah Badovinac
• Jackie Barrera
• Jack Bielinski
• Neomie Hinanay
• Grayson Kern
• Ryan Lake
• Billy Lay
• Ben Lennartz
• Sam Lennartz
• Harleen Maan
• Katie Murchison
• Anna O’Keefe
• Ryan Price
• Annika Strack
• Stephanie Suh
• Cameron Tonkery
• Austin Wilson

5th graders -

• Connor Bergman
• Charlie Bloede
• Lauren Brunk 
• Ryan Griffiths
• Abby Hsiao
• Alex Mundinger
• Nicko Netz
• Hannah Newman
• Jared Nicholas
• Isabelle O’Rourke
• Ethan Perlow
• Zach Ravn
• Misha Rodell
• Lucas Shurboff
• Ashley Suh
• Michael Wehrheim