Center for Excellence in Education Announces Winners of the International Biology Olympiad

Four-Member US Team—Four Medals

Vienna, Virginia, July 17, 2003 —The Center for Excellence in Education (CEE) today announced that the four-member US team won four medals—two silver and two bronze—at the International Biology Olympiad (IBO).

One hundred and sixty-four participants representing 41countries competed in this prestigious competition in Minsk, Belarus. This is the first time that the USA has participated in the International Competition.

The Medallists at the International Biology Olympiad all attended public schools.

Silver Medals went to
· Kay Aull, 17, Thomas Jefferson High School, Virginia
· Michael Xiang, 17, Bridgewater-Raritan High School, New Jersey.

Bronze Medals went to
· Kelley Harris, 15, McClatchy High School, California
· Victor Li, 17, Monta Vista High School, California.

The USA Biology Olympiad Team with US Ambassador Michael Kozak
From left: Michael Xiang, Victor Li, Kay Aull, Kelley Harris and Ambassador Kozak

"We’re delighted at our team’s performance….The competition was very intense, but the students held up well. The fact that they have brought home medals in the first international competition attests to the strength of our program," says Joann DiGennaro, President of the Center for Excellence in Education.

According to a joint statement issued by Dr. Bill Stuart, Director of the USABO, and a Juror at the IBO, and Dr. Alan Christensen, Coach of the USABO, faculty member at George Mason University, and also a Juror at the IBO, “We weren’t surprised at our students’ performance…These kids are extraordinarily motivated, and refreshingly diverse in personality and intellectual style. As tomorrow’s scholars and researchers in biology, these students will be honing the dynamic edge of biological sciences in the future.”

Sponsored by the Center for Excellence in Education, the USA Biology Olympiad is well on its way to becoming a major competition in the United States for biology students.

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CONTACT:

Maite Ballestero
Vice President, Programs
Center for Excellence in Education
703-448-9062 ext 235
maite@cee.org