[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 72 (Friday, April 28, 2023)] [House] [Pages H2108-H2112] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Date: 2023-04-28
Chamber: HOUSE
Mr. DUNCAN: that is what you call making it just in time. I thank the gentleman from California for yielding just a little time in this Special Order hour in order for me to recognize a very special group of students down in Clinton, South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, today I recognize the Clinton High School and Clinton Middle School Olympiad teams for both bringing home the State championship in Charleston this past month and qualifying for the National Science Olympiad tournament in Kansas this May. Now, the Science Olympiad was founded in 1984 as the premier team STEM competition in the Nation and provides standards-based challenges to 6,000 teams at 425 tournaments in all 50 States. Winning the State Olympiad is a tremendous accomplishment alone, but the fact that Clinton has a history of excellence in the Science Olympiad is even more impressive. Listen to this: Clinton has been involved in the Olympiad since 1986, and I am proud of Clinton's continued success in this competition. The Clinton Middle School, formerly Bell Street Middle School where my sons went to middle school, has won the State Olympiad title 19 times in the last 21 years--19 times in the last 21 years--and Clinton High School has won the State title 12 of the last 15 years. I congratulate the coaches and members of the Clinton State Championship Science Olympiad team for their win this year and applaud them for their wins over the years. This year's middle school team included Jackie Alcudia, Liam Bell, Madison Boyter, Lauren Ficklin, Sam Hunt, Salaam Jenkins, Jacob King, Matthew King, Shayne Kiselak, Hank Lanford, Landen Lowman, Kelly Nelson, Sidney Nelson, Arohi Patel, Shrey Patel, Ada Tiller, Brian Phillips, Aubrie Watts, Ben Wiggins, and Marlee Williamson. This year's high school team included Kaelyn Bell, Jules Darden, Keegan Fortman, Julieta Garcia, Becca King, Anna Litzenberger, Addison Lowman, Shane Nelson, Junia Nolan, Wes Ray, Helen Sarah, Bailey Suarez, and Rachel Vondergeest. Now, of course, we have to remember the coaches because a team is only as good as the leadership, so you have head coach Terri O'Shields and David O'Shields, who is our superintendent in that district. They are both dear friends of mine. Kevin Cox, Michael Mack, Jason Smith, Ami Vaughn, Allison Lanford, Stan Walsh, Jimbo Langston, Scott Shiflet, Dianne Summer, Sharon Lone, David Bell, Katie Scarlett, Maggie O'Shields, and Asheton Wilbanks. Clinton High School defeated 14 other high school teams to win, and they brought home the gold medal in astronomy, bridge building, chemistry lab, dynamic planet, environmental chemistry, forestry, remote sensing, and the WiFi lab. What great categories for STEM education. Clinton Middle School defeated all of its competition in each event. Congratulations to the students of Clinton High School and Clinton Middle School for another Science Olympiad State championship. Their success is a testament not only to their talent and the hard work that they put in and the dedication, but it is a testament to the leaders and the teachers and the coaches that really helped them navigate this success. South Carolina is rooting for them as they compete in the National Science Olympiad tournament next month. They have bright futures, and they are the innovators of tomorrow. The sky is the limit. I thank them for what they do. I congratulate them on their win, and God bless them.