MMI Preparatory School’s team of Lauren Babinetz, Alexander Sessock, Kaitlyn McGeehan, Dominique Kline, and Grant Warren finished in fifth place at the Pennsylvania Envirothon state competition in Selinsgrove. Schools from across 65 counties competed in the event.
The MMI team posted an overall score of 500.33 points out of a possible 600 and finished with a score above 75 in each event category. The team’s category scores were: Oral Component (94.33), Soils and Land Use (85), Aquatics (83), Current Issue – Grassland and Pastureland Management (81), Forestry (80), and Wildlife (77).
Michael Mele, MMI Science instructor and Envirothon advisor, said, “Our students did an outstanding job preparing for this competition and I’m very proud of their performance. This year’s team consists of three brand new team members so this placement is truly remarkable. The students spent their free time preparing for six, 100-point, one-hour long exams, including five exams they took consecutively on the same day.”
MMI also finished in the top 10 last year, placing eighth overall.
Hundreds of teachers and professionals throughout Pennsylvania guide high school students through the Envirothon, which is a natural resource environmental education program that combines classroom learning and outdoor activities. This exposure to nature and seeing how humans affects the natural world provide invaluable lessons for understanding ecosystems and our environment.
At the Envirothon, teams of five high school students compete in field-testing using their knowledge in five topic areas – Soils and Land Use, Aquatic Ecology, Forestry, Wildlife, and Environmental Issues. A current environmental issue is chosen each year as the “hot topic” for the focus of this station as well as the oral presentation component.
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CAPTION: MMI Preparatory School’s team of, from left: Alexander Sessock, Lauren Babinetz, Kaitlyn McGeehan, Dominique Kline, and Grant Warren. Also pictured, at far left, is advisor Michael Mele.