The AESA Science Olympiad Committee organizes an annual competition among Armenian students from Armenian and public schools in the Los Angeles area and abroad. The Olympiad is an interscholastic academic competition in the fields of physical and life sciences.
The Science Olympiad Committee (SOC) was established in February 2002 with the ultimate goal to increase interest in sciences and engineering among young Armenian students, foster their knowledge beyond the confines of a classroom, and provide recognition of outstanding achievements by students and teachers.
The committee organizes an annual Science Olympiad competition among Armenian students from Armenian and public schools. The Olympiad provides interscholastic academic competition in the fields of Physical Sciences and Life Sciences for two grade levels: Middle School (grades 6-8) and High School (grades 9-12). Students’ projects are evaluated based on creativity, scientific approach, comprehension, and presentation. The Science Olympiad follows the California State Science Fair rules and regulations. The competition is judged by engineering professionals and scientists, many of whom hold advanced degrees in their fields and also serve at the Los Angeles County and California State science fairs. Participating students submit their projects and posters and are visited by a number of judges throughout the competition day. During the evaluation and interview process, the judges provide constructive feedback to all students for future improvements of their projects and presentations.
One of the purposes of the Science Olympiad is to prepare students for the county and state competitions as well as nurture their passion for engineering and science. Custom-made obsidian medals from Armenia are given to winners of the Science Olympiad competition, in addition to the following cash prizes:
| Level of winner | Senior (9-12) | Junior (6-8) |
| 1st place | $250 | $250 |
| 2nd place | $150 | $150 |
| 3rd | $100 | $100 |
| Honorable mention | $50 | $50 |
An annual School Appreciation Award consisting of $300 has been given since the 4th AESA Science Olympiad. The school will receive this amount through the purchase of scientific equipment for its science laboratories. As of 2012, an additional $300 personal financial award has been added. It is given to the teacher who receives the most points based on the following scoring criteria:
All monetary Awards are supported by a special AESA fund called the Science Olympiad Endowment Fund.
Junior Level (Students grades 6-8)
Senior Level (Students grades 9-12)
If you are interested in volunteering, mentoring, or judging, please fill out this form:
