The Alton Memorial Jr. High School (AMJH) Robo-Rangers defended its Regional Science Bowl Championship over the weekend, qualifying them to compete at the National Science Bowl event that will be held in Washington, DC, April 30-May 4. This will be the second year in a row AMJH has sent a team to the national event. They will be one of only four middle school teams to represent Texas at the National Science Bowl. Only 50 middle school teams from around the country advance to the national competition.
The members of the championship AMJH team (AMJH Team 1) are: Carlos Hernandez, Emily Barragan, Priscilla Quintero, Vanessa Quintero, Brandon Balderas. They are coached by Sammy Rivera, Robert Granados, and Jesus Barrera.
The Mission Jr. High School Team 1 placed second at the regional event. Team members were: Damien Gonzalez, Melanie Pena, Jaden De Leon, Alexis Aranda, Adal Ordonez, Briana Diaz. Their coaches were: David Land, Jesus Razo, Carolina Barrero..
A second team from AMJH placed seventh at the Regional Science Bowl. Team two consisted of Aileen Cantu, Farith Elvira, Antonio Navarro, Daniel Martinez, and Isla Coronado.
The 2015 Regional Science Bowl brought together teams from a 13 county area, including magnet schools, charter schools, and private schools. The Regional Science Bowl was sponsored by HESTEC at The University of Texas Pan American.
The Science Bowl is hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The National Science Bowl is a nationwide academic competition that tests students’ knowledge in all areas of Science and Math. The teams are comprised of four students, one alternate, and a teacher who serves as their coach. The competition is an intense, fast-paced, game-show style competition testing the knowledge of the students in: Biology, Chemistry, Life Science, Earth Science, Physics, Energy, and Math.
A featured event at the National Science Bowl for middle school students is the Electric Car Competition. Students design, build and race battery-powered model cars. This tests the creative engineering skills of the students as they gain hands-on experience in the automotive design process and also with electric battery technology. At last year’s National Science Bowl, the team from AMJH finished tenth at the National Electric Car Competition.
The DOE created the National Science Bowl in 1991 to encourage students to excel in Math and Science and to pursue careers in these fields. Approximately 240,000 students have participated in the National Science Bowl throughout its 24-year history. It is one of the nation’s largest Science competitions.
Pictured are the middle school regional Science Bowl champs from Alton Memorial Jr. High School. Front row from left to right: Brandon Balderas, Carlos Hernandez. Middle row: Coach Robert Granados, Vanessa Quintero, Emily Barragan, Priscilla Quintero, Coach Jesus Barrera. Back row: Coach Sammy Rivera.
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