Middle school students from schools on St. Croix and St. Thomas will compete in the annual MATHCOUNTS® Competition Series, the nation’s premier math competition, on Feb. 27 in their respective districts.
St. Thomas-St. John District
The St. Thomas-St. John competition will take place at 9 a.m. at the University of the Virgin Islands ACC building. A total of 40 mathletes from four schools will compete in this year’s contest: Addelita Cancryn Intermediate Junior High School, Bertha C. Boschulte Middle School, Antilles School and the Virgin Islands Montessori School.
The chapter competition has been organized by members of the Virgin Islands Department of Education’s (VIDE) Curriculum and Instruction Division and the Rotary Club of St. Thomas Mid-Isle.
St. Croix District
The St. Croix competition will take place at 9 a.m. at the University of the Virgin Islands Great Hall. A total of 41 mathletes from four schools will compete in this year’s contest: John H. Woodson Jr. High School, Ricardo Richards Elementary School, Good Hope Country-Day and Church of God Holiness Academy.
Teachers and students in both school districts have been preparing for the prestigious competition since the fall. Students will compete individually and in teams on both written and oral matches. Winners will receive trophies and the opportunity to represent the island in the state competition in March with a chance to advance to the national competition in Orlando, Fla., May 12-13.
MATHCOUNTS is a national program with a mission to build confidence and improve attitudes about math and problem-solving. The program focuses on middle school students, who are at a crucial stage for cultivating their interests and math skills. Without developing strong problem-solving skills, students face an uphill battle in pursuing science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) careers of the future.
The Competition Series will consist of over 100,000 students, representing more than 5,200 schools from every U.S. state and territory, as well as schools affiliated with the Department of Defense and the State Department.
The national sponsors of MATHCOUNTS Foundation are Raytheon Company, Northrop Grumman Foundation, U.S. Department of Defense STEM, the National Society of Professional Engineers, 3Mgives, Texas Instruments Inc., CNA Insurance, Art of Problem Solving and NextThought.
MATHCOUNTS was founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and CNA Insurance.
