After taking first place in their respective regional Science Bowl competitions, Princeton Senior High School (Princeton, West Virginia) and Franklin Regional High School (Murrysville, Pennsylvania) competed in the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Science Bowl® high school preliminary rounds Saturday, May 22. Unfortunately, neither team advanced to the elimination rounds.

The 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. Across the country, 5,740 high school students competed on 1,184 teams from 796 schools over the weekend. First-place winners of regional competitions competed in three preliminary rounds, with the top 32 teams advancing to the elimination rounds. All events were held virtually due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

This year, NETL celebrated its 30th anniversary of hosting the West Virginia Regional Science Bowl and Western Pennsylvania Regional Science Bowl for the next generation of scientists and innovators. Students from Princeton Senior High School and Franklin Regional High School placed first in the West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania Regional Science Bowls on Feb. 6 and Feb. 27, respectively. The regional competitions were held virtually for the first time over the Zoom videoconferencing platform.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory develops and demonstrates for commercialization advanced technologies that provide clean energy while safeguarding the environment. NETL’s work supports DOE’s mission to ensure America’s security and prosperity by addressing its energy and environmental challenges through transformative science and technology solutions.