One Step from Glory: Can Science Olympiad Break the QHSS Curse?

Queens High School was founded in 2002, and so began the QHSS curse: a terrifying legacy of always being so close yet so far. QHSS collaborates with a university, yet still remains so far from being a large school. With QHSS’ low SHSAT cutoff score, many students enter the school because of an SHSAT score so close to the threshold for admission, yet so far from the higher ranks that would place them in other specialized schools like Stuyvesant or Bronx Science. On February 1st, the QHSS curse followed the Science Olympiad team into their regional competition.

QHSS’ Science Olympiad began with a method that didn’t look much different to other schools’ teams. Some Science Olympians met at one’s house to build apparatures if the subjects they competed in, named events, required a build. Other Olympians would learn the topics relevant to their events before joining virtual and club meetings. Every Olympian worked together to get one common goal: win in the regional competition. If they worked hard enough to become one of the top 7 schools in the south NYC region, they would progress to the state-wide competition.

Each meeting brought them closer to winning. Especially in the month following the competition, students buckled in for long nights filled with studying, with one student even noting that she studied for nearly 50 hours in one week of January. But the week before the regional, the team was suddenly stripped of their confidence and builds. Science Olympiad entered a practice competition known as an invitational the week before the regional competition, and left without an apparatus for the Wind Power event which was stolen, and the bigger sting – without any medals. Within 3 days of the regional competition, the previously malfunctioning robot for the Robot Tour event burst into flames.

The team walked into Grover Cleveland high school to compete for their regional on February 1st at 6:30 AM. Most wore tired, long faces as they were stuffed in a small, cramped classroom. Some were gloomy. Others still brimmed with optimism, holding onto the hope that they’d bring a medal home for their individual events. One Olympian, Hailey Yuen, recounts having no hope in getting to states, “but I was really confident in Experimental Design. My other events, not so much.” The biggest optimists, notably the executive board members, still held onto the hope that they’d make it to states.

Between 6:30 AM and 7:30 PM, the Olympians went in and out of their events. No two reactions were the same. The bungee drop team came back beaming, with no doubt in their minds that they received a top 10 placement after watching the performance of other teams. The electric vehicle team also came back with a smile on their faces – but not from happiness, but shock. Their wiring detached, leaving the vehicle useless in the middle of their event.

At 7:30 PM, results rolled out one after another. By the end of the day, QHSS’ science olympiad won five top 10 placements, and achieved ten top 20 placements. Out of the NYC region, they were the 8th best team – just one place away from progressing to states. Again, the QHSS curse struck. So close to states, yet so far.

But Science Olympiad’s story isn’t over yet. Most Olympians are confident that making it to states next year is well within reach. In the president of Science Olympiad’s words, “I’m proud of the medals we’ve amassed and of getting so close to states. Now, we have a fiery ambition to achieve better than the greatness we’ve already achieved.”