This year's competitions for the Upper School Math Club added up to success with the group tying for first place in Delaware County and fourth in the state.

Some one hundred high schools competed in six Pennsylvania Math League (PAML) contests from October through March. Club members took monthly tests with six questions each. 

"We’ve had an awesome few years for our Math Club and our performance on area and state-wide competitions," said Math Department Chair C.J. Yespelkis, Hon. "We have a group of students that are enthusiastic, push one another, and really enjoy what they do."

EA students include Rohan Dalal, JD Krasnick, Connor Myers, David Ding, Xinxin Fang, Daniel Adibi, Joseph Xu, and Minsi Cui.

Top EA scorers were Rohan (tied for fourth place), JD, Connor, David, and Xinxin, scoring among the top 50 in Pennsylvania. 

"Each school simply counts the five students with the highest scores for the month," explained Upper School Math Teacher and club advisor Tom Goebeler, Hon. "After six tests, the cumulative total determines the outcome in the state. We've had strong years, but this year is our best showing."

"One of the best things about competition math is that it rarely requires high-level math coursework," explained Mr. Yespelkis. "The competitions are usually very accessible for students with basic Algebra and Geometry and instead focus on creative thinking and problem-solving."

The Math Club practices a lot of contest math and also competes in AMC, AIME, and the Philly Math League.

"Success at the American Mathematics Competitions (AMC) leads to the American Invitational Mathematics Exam (AIME)," said Dr. Goebeler. "We had six students advance to the AIME. While it is common for a student to correctly answer only one or two questions out of 15, all six competitors answered at least four. Freshman Michael Zhao set the school record by correctly answering nine questions. It's quite an achievement."

"There are many others who participated throughout the year and whose scores contributed to the overall score for EA," said Mr. Yespelkis. "The club is always a diverse group of all grades, and the student leaders are inclusive to students at all levels."