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Since hearing about the Science Olympiad five years ago, St. Mary's Academy science teacher Julia Stadler has been working to assemble a state team from the all-girls’ school. Imagine her team’s surprise when this, the first year of the SMA students’ participation in the state competition, they won the event and the right to represent Oregon at the National Finals in May.
“The understanding of Science is critical to our young women as they enter college and the workplace,” says Principal Pat Barr. “It is wonderful to have an outside agency acknowledge our students' fine work and their mastery of science concepts and  application.”
The 13-member team put a new face on the scientists and engineers of tomorrow with a thrilling victory in the weekend competition. After deciding to create an extra-curricular class for the Science Olympiad, Stadler assembled a talented team, and for the past five months has guided them through after-school sessions on Fridays and Saturdays.
The competition was held at Blanchet High School in Salem and drew teams from Portland, Lebanon, Salem, Hillsboro, Culver and Redmond. They were tested on academic and practical knowledge in aerodynamics, physics, engineering, oceanography, robotics, electronics, experimental design, genetics, geology, and chemistry.
St Mary’s sophomores, juniors and seniors came together as a team, supporting one another in the face of unknown challenges, adapting and overcoming. Questions in astronomy, oceanography or ecology paralleled paths of study – but they had little to guide them regarding “Fermi Questions” or “Five Star Science”. Relying on the rigor of their science training and strong lab discipline taught throughout their curricula by Stadler and colleagues Maureen Daschel and Nancy Johnston, the girls prevailed.
“There are 23 categories in which we had to compete,” says Stadler, “and there were quite a few for which the students hadn’t signed up to take on. So two weeks prior to the competition, I made the girls prepare and the academic rigor we use at St. Mary’s – following directions and making educated guesses – paid off.”
All teams supported one another – but the St. Mary’s bond seemed tighter, draining nervous energy and soothing disappointments, helping each Olympian emerge a winner.
Senior Ashley DeGrenier saw her balsa-wood boomilever fail to support enough weight in her event – but was able to translate coaching from the dedicated volunteers supporting Science Olympiad into last minute adjustments on a 7 gram model airplane that saw it go from flop to a 48 second flight that snagged second in her event.
St. Mary’s had a lot of stars – but two exemplified the dedication of this team. Michelle Warner and Amy Whitcombe teamed in the Sound of Music and Scrambler events. They spent their Christmas break building musical instruments and a gravity powered vehicle to quickly convey an egg safely over a 10 meter (32.5ft) distance. They spent the intervening weeks learning to play their instruments and scrambling a few eggs.
 Just before judging, where Michelle and Amy’s musical instruments were evaluated and the girls played a couple of well-rehearsed duets, Michelle’s 8-string instrument fell three feet to the floor. Despite no apparent damage, a critical bridge was weakened and snapped off during recital – but Michelle quickly repaired and resumed with a flourish while Amy continued to play her elaborate wine-glass piano. Their knowledge of the physics of sound was just as impressive as their instruments and they took first.
In the Scrambler event, an egg is transported as fast as possible exactly 10 meters to a waiting wall without breaking the egg – which is at the front of the vehicle. Michelle’s design was powered by a weight at the end of a string suspended from a central spindle at the apex of triangular supports on each side of a four-wheeled vehicle. It was then corrected for friction and whether it was traveling with or against the grain of the gym floor. If the vehicle didn’t stop and the egg hit the wall and cracked they would lose.
Michelle and Amy carefully measured, prepped, pointed and launched their vehicle. Excitement grew as their vehicle rushed toward the wall. Speeding past the 9m mark the string was fully played out and the weight hit the floor adding timely breaking. As the contestants and spectators gasped, the egg came to rest within 3/8” of the wall and the girls won the event.
 All together, 13 St. Mary’s students were involved in the Science Olympiad: Amy Whitcombe, Michelle Warner, Kelsey Grierson, Loretta Galvan, Molly Courtney, Alicia Enriquez, Samie Silleck, Hannah Marre, Ashley DeGrenier, Caitlin Bannan, Annie Golding, Marissa Rodriquez and Chelsea Hartmann.
Although they are very excited, now Stadler and her team begin the hard part of preparing to represent Oregon at the national finals. They will need to meet more often, study harder and, in addition to other school tasks, raise money for what was a marvelous but unexpected result. The national event will be held in Witchita, Kansas on May 17-20. To help the team with airfare and lodging expenses, please contact Julia Stadler at St. Mary’s Academy – julias@stmaryspdx.org.
“This team entered the competition because of their love of science,” says Science Department Chair Nancy Johnston. “Their love brought home a really big trophy!”
Founded in 1859 by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, St. Mary’s Academy of Portland, is Oregon’s oldest continuously operating secondary school and one of 716 all-female schools in the country. The student body represents a diverse background of young women from over 30 urban, suburban, and rural communities in Oregon and Southwest Washington. St. Mary’s Academy is distinguished by its development of the whole person, and is the only school in the state to receive three U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon Schools awards.
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