By Matt Koper/ne news editor
Seven district students received cash prizes for winning the Jim Bolen Mathematics Competition.
Partial or full-ride four-year university transfer scholarships went to Hector Bas III, Natalie Nelson, Thien Lac Tran, Thinh Doan, Minwoo Kim, Hong Vu and Kevin Castiano.
NE student Castiano said winning a scholarship was reassuring because he had a low score on one of the tests during the competition.
“Each test is a maximum of 40 points, and for the first test I got 18,” he said. “So it’s kind of discouraging to say, ‘Oh, I only got half the points,’ but then to do as well as I did, it’s like ‘OK, I guess I did pretty well.’”
NE student Natalie Nelson said in preparation for the competition, she attended many workshops offered but did not go overboard.
“TCC provided workshops to attend, and I just went to those as often as I could,” she said. “And I went to the extent that I wouldn’t get discouraged or anything like that.”
NE math associate professor Olena Shevchenko, who helps coordinate the competition on NE, said the competition is a good step for students interested in math and science beyond TCC.
“It brings students to the next level,” she said. “It prepares them for four-year schools, especially those who are planning to be math majors or majoring in STEM.”
South math instructor Maggie Foster, who helps coordinate on South, said placing in the competition highlights the importance of math.
“It’s a wonderful achievement for the students,” she said. “It gives them self-confidence, and it allows them to see how math is important in their lives.”
Shevchenko said how her students performed in the competition exceeded expectations.
“I actually didn’t expect so many good scores this year,” she said. “I didn’t see that coming. Of course, I always believe in my students, but this year I think it was exceptional, the way they were dedicated in how they prepared for that. It makes me proud of them.”
Nelson said winning a scholarship in this competition has opened doors for her here and now.
“I always imagined university as something that was so far off in my future,” she said. “And I think part of that reason was because I had no idea how in the world I was going to pay for it. And being blessed with a scholarship has made my dream so much more attainable.”
