North Carolina Science Olympiad Joins NC State University

The North Carolina Science Olympiad (NCSO), the largest and oldest Science Olympiad program in the country, has joined the College of Sciences at NC State as an official university program.

The N.C. Science Olympiad has a long history of collaboration with NC State. The university has been the longtime host of the annual state Science Olympiad tournament and hosted the 1997 National Science Olympiad Tournament. The program’s staff work on the university’s Centennial Campus.

“North Carolina Science Olympiad is an outstanding program that supports our mission of cultivating the next generation of science leaders,” said Chris McGahan, dean of the College of Sciences. “We’re happy to welcome them to our college.”

NCSO had previously been a separate nonprofit organization that worked closely with The Science House, the college’s K-12 outreach program that reaches 200,000 students across the state each year. Now, NCSO is formally housed within The Science House, solidifying a partnership that supports the shared goal of both organizations to expand access to innovative STEM learning opportunities for students and teachers across North Carolina.

NCSO aims to expand the pool of K-12 students entering science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) degrees and careers in North Carolina. Every year, the organization hosts tournaments on university, community college and public school campuses across the state. These rigorous academic interscholastic competitions consist of a series of different hands-on, interactive, challenging and inquiry-based events that are balanced among biology, earth science, environmental science, chemistry, physics, engineering and technology.

“We’re excited to be officially part of NC State, which has long been our home,” said Kim Gervase, executive director of NCSO. “Joining forces with the university will strengthen our ability to provide quality K-12 STEM educational opportunities in North Carolina.”