River City Science Academy Olympiad Team Headed to State Competition
By Mr. Ali Pamuk, Science Teacher and Science Olympiad Head Coach
The River City Science Academy (RCSA) Olympiad Team received the first-place award in the Regional Science Olympiad Competition held at Lake City Community College on Saturday, January 31, qualifying the team for the State Science Olympiad Competition that was held February 28 in Orlando.
During science Olympiad competitions, which are held in all 50 states at the regional, state and then national level, students engage in hands-on science activities. Students compete against other schools in different events in various subject areas, such as physics, chemistry, earth space science, biology and engineering.
As a team, RCSA won first place in the regional finals. On an individual basis, out of eight science events, RCSA students won six first-place medals, one second-place medal, and one fourth place. The school’s science Olympiad coordinator and coach, Mr. Pamuk, also received the best coach award of the event.
Then, RCSA participated State Science Olympiad tournament on February 28 at University of Central Florida, Orlando. Out of 63 schools all over the State of Florida, RCSA team took the 6th place.
"The River City Science Academy Olympiad Team has represented our school and Duval County very well," said Principal Dr. Dogan Tozoglu. "RCSA is fairly a new charter school and this was our first year participating in this competition, and this is a great victory for our students."
The Florida Science Olympiad correlates all events with the Florida Sunshine State Standards in Science. For more information, visit www.floridascienceolympiad.org.
