Overview

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	Morgantown High, winners of the 2012 West Virginia Regional Science Bowl. From left, Nima Ronaghi, Samet Demircan, Dev Someshwar, Shiv Sunil, Andrew Maloney, and Joe Melia (coach).

The U.S. Department of Energy National Science Bowl® is a nationwide competition held annually to promote science and technology in education.  High school students compete as teams in an action-packed quiz bowl format to answer questions on science, math, and engineering. 

The West Virginia Regional Science Bowl® is held to determine the top team from West Virginia who will represent the state at the National Science Bowl competition.  Last year, over 15,000 students from 1,600 high schools participated in regional competitions across the nation for the honor of being one of the 65 teams who competed in the national competition.  Morgantown High advanced through the double elimination final tournament to claim 4^th place at Nationals in 2012. This truly outstanding performance marked the best finish of the WV State Qualifier in the 21 years of West Virginia Regional Science Bowl. In 2009, West Virginia Regional Science Bowl Winner, Woodrow Wilson High from Beckley, qualified to compete in the double elimination finals at the Nationals and brought home a check for $1,000 for their school’s science program.  This was the first time a West Virginia team qualified for the double elimination finals, making them one of the top 16 schools in the nation.

To promote equal participation in the state, each of the eight West Virginia RESA agencies are requested to select at least three teams to participate in the Regional event.  It is suggested that within the RESAs, preliminary Science Bowl “style” competitions be held at the local level to select these three teams.  High schools in your RESA are encouraged to host this competition with your support.  This approach fosters statewide student participation and is the fairest method of selection for all of the state's teams interested in participating.  By supporting preliminary Science Bowl tournaments throughout the state, the West Virginia educational system demonstrates its commitment to excellence in math and science and sets an example for recognition of the best and brightest students in the state. 

September 1st through January 3rd, 2013
Local competitions at the RESA level will determine the top two teams (and one alternate) from each RESA who will advance to the Regional Science Bowl. Click here (Pending) for a list of RESA level competition dates and contacts.

February 2nd, 2013 (Snow Date February 9th)
The regional competition will be held at the National Energy Technology Lab in Morgantown, WV.  Top teams from around the state will compete to determine one winner (along with an alternate) who will represent West Virginia in the national competition.

April 25th - 29th, 2013
The National Science Bowl event held at the National 4-H Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland (just outside Washington DC).  More information can be found at the National Science Bowl Website.

Format Summary

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	Regional teams compete at 2012 WV Science Bowl.

The Regional Science Bowl competition lasts all day and happens at the National Energy Technology Laboratory in Morgantown, WV.  The morning consists of a round-robin format tournament where all teams compete.  The top four teams will advance to a double-elimination, tournament style competition in the afternoon to determine the winner and runner-up.  During the afternoon session, other hands-on activities are planned for the teams that do not advance to the tournament.

Teams consist of four contestants and one substitute.  Questions are multiple choice or short answer and come from the following categories: astronomy, biology, chemistry, earth science, general science, mathematics, and physics.  The competition consists of a 16-minute round of questioning, split into two halves.  During questioning, both teams will have a chance to buzz-in to correctly answer a Toss-Up question, earning them 4 points and the chance at a follow-up Bonus question for 10 more points.  Questioning continues until time or the list of questions runs out.  There are more rules than those described here, so a more complete set of rules for the 2013 competition may be found online.

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