Virginia Section Chemistry Olympiad

November 2009

I have just submitted my request to participate again this year.  So the information below is now updated for the correct dates in 2010.  I hope to send out my invitation by mail in early December and will be accepting applications through February.  Testing will begin in March and the National Olympiad test will occur in mid-April. 

I hope the schools who won the team awards will come to the section meeting this December at Virginia Union University to receive their plaques. 

Ann Sullivan, Chair
 

• Request Information
  • Letter of Invitation
• Organize the testing at your school
• How to nominate your students for the local Olympiad examination?
  • Web Registration Form
  • Paper Registration Form (Word)
  • Student Registration Form
• What happens after the Local Examination?
• School Categories Awards and Recognition
• How to contact the local Chemistry Olympiad Chair?
   
• American Chemical Society Chemistry Olympiad Homepage
   
• Important Dates
   
• Past Examinations
  • ACS National Exam
  • Local Olympiad Website
     
• Results of the Local Exam
  • 2008 Results
  • 2007 Results
  • 2006 Results
  • 2005 Results 
  • 2004 Results
  • 2003 Results

Any student interested in participating who is nominated by their teacher.  The local examination is separated into two levels.  

• The first year exam is for students who are doing well in their first year of chemistry.   The exam is an excellent preparation for the SOL Chemistry exam. 
• The second year exam is for students taking a second year of chemistry, AP or IB chemistry or are taking a college credit course.  This exam is an excellent preparation for an advanced placement exam.  These students will be eligible to be nominated to take the National Examination.  
• A teacher can nominate one student or their whole class presently taking chemistry. A teacher may also nominate students who have taken chemistry previously and are still attending the school but are not presently in a chemistry class.   
   

Teachers may request to give the examination within their school by providing a secure location in which a counselor or administrator will proctor the exam to their students.  The Deadline for registration is 22 February 2010.  The test must be completed on a single day between March 1 and March 27

• Neither the students’ chemistry teacher nor anyone directly involved in the instruction of chemistry should be involved in the administration of this examination.  
• The test administrator in each school will be responsible for test security, proctoring the test, and returning the completed answer sheets.  A single copy of the exam will be mailed along with answer sheets and the testing directions to the test administrator at least 24 hours in advance of the school’s selected date for giving the examination. 
• All tests and materials are sent to the administrator of the exam in the school, not to the teacher.  It is asked that the test administrator make enough copies of the examination to be given to each student registered in the competition.
• Within 24 hours following the examination, the Administrator must return ONLY the answer sheets.  The administrator is to secure the test booklets until after April 1 when the examination may be released to the teachers and students.

• Complete the online or paper registration form.
  • Teachers should fill out the online form at http://staff.jsr.vccs.edu/asullivan/ACS/registration.htm
  • The paper form can be mailed or faxed to the chair.
• The teacher needs to email or submit a list of students who will participate in the local examination at least one week before their examination is given. 
  • For the First year examination, only the student's name and teacher is required. 
  • For the Second year examination, the student's name, teacher and the student's home phone number and email address is essential. If the students is nominated for the National examination, the student's chemistry teacher will be the first contact but the student may need to be contacted.

• Teachers will be notified of their student’s scores and be provided a copy of the local exam by May 15th, if possible.  
• No later than April 1st, I will contact the teacher of the students who had the top twenty scores on second year examinations.  These students will be nominated to take the National Exam.   I need to have very quick turnaround for this process because I would like to have all 13 slots filled and will continue down the list until they are.  The student will only be contacted with the provided home phone number or email only if the test administrator or student's teacher does not reply within three days.     
• According to the rules,  these students must be U. S. citizens.   Only two students from each school can take the exam.  The complete rules for the National Examination are available at Exam Rules The National Examination will be given at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Richmond on April 24. 
• If the student is one of the top 20 scores on the National exam, they will be invited to attend the US Olympiad camp at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, that takes place from June 1 - 15,  2008. 
• From competition within this camp, five students will be chosen the represent the United States at the International Chemistry Olympiad competition in Budapest, Hungary between July 12 - 21, 2008. 

• The teacher will receive the answer sheets for your students, along with gift certificates they may have won for having top scores on the test, answer keys to the exam, charts of the results for all the students who took each test and the average score and the standard deviation for each exam and your students.  I plan that you will receive that package in early May.

Schools will be classified into two categories:

• Small Public, Private or Governor's Schools with under 500 total enrollment
• Large Public, Private or Governor's Schools with over 500 total enrollment

Recognitions organized by the above categories.

• Each student who participates will receive a certificate of participation.
• The highest scoring student from each school will receive a Chemistry Olympiad pin.
• The three highest scoring students in each category: 1st, 2nd and 3rd place for each test, will receive a chemistry Olympiad pin and a gift certificate.
• Within each category, the school with the highest total of the top three student's score for each test,  will receive a plaque and a certificate of award.  This is called the team award.  This award will be given to the Teacher at the Virginia Section's Award Ceremony usually held in December.
• The students who are nominated by the local section to take the National examination will represent all categories and will receive a chemistry Olympiad pin and a gift certificate.

Dr. Ann M. Sullivan

Email:  asullivan at reynolds.edu  
Phone at (804) 862-4260 or (804) 943-2941 or (804) 523-5777
FAX:  (804) 732-6077

Mailing Address:

J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College
Mathematics and Science, Downtown Campus
P.O. Box 85622
Richmond, Virginia  23285-5622

April 28

May 3

May 5

June 9 - 24