By By MICHELE GERLACH Publisher
A group of 25 Brewton Middle School students and four teachers who coach them will depart this afternoon for the National Science Olympiad at the University of Illinois.
They'll be accompanied by 18 parents.
The BMS Science Olympiad team won a berth in the national competition in March, when they finished second in the state. They, along with Auburn Junior High, will represent Alabama at the national competition.
Brown said parents have been really involved, preparing banners, hats and T-shirts for the students.
The students will sport T-shirts with the log "We put the BAM in Alabama."
Science Olympiad competitions ask students to apply the principles of biology, chemistry, physics, earth sciences, problem-solving and technology to events that ask competitors to do everything from constructing a bridge to reconstructing a crime scene.
The Science Olympiad brings out the talents, resourcefulness and skills of the top young scientific minds in the state as teams create different science projects for competition in 23 events. The events, which can involve individuals or teams, allow students to think creatively while building an elaborate project.
The group will depart Brewton Wednesday afternoon between 3:30 and 4. They'll drive to Franklin, Ky., where they'll spend the night.
On Thursday, students will be treated to a side trip to the Corvette museum before completing the trip to Champaign, Ill., Thursday night.
On Friday, they'll participate in the Parade of States, which begins at 5:30 p.m. and can be viewed online. Because the states are lined up alphabetically, Auburn and Brewton will lead the parade.
Friday night, students will participate in a swap meet.
On Saturday, competition begins at 7:30 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m. Brewton Middle School will be among 60 participating teams.
Awards will be presented at 4:30 p.m. At the conclusion of the awards ceremony, Brewton's team will board the bus and head home to Alabama, where they are expected to arrive between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. Sunday.
Additional information about National Science Olympiad is available online at http://www.nso.uiuc.edu/.