Physic Students Excel at 'Physic Olympics'

The State of Iowa Physics Competition is a series of five physics events for high school (Grades 9-12) students. The competition stresses creativity and ingenuity as well as an understanding of physics related principles and is intended to stimulate interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). The competition emphasizes the scientific and engineering practices found in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and participation in the competition integrated with appropriate instruction can address the Iowa Core.

The 2024-25 State Physics Competition was held on Tuesday, April 8 at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) Maucker Union in Central Ballrooms A, B, & C. Hillcrest Academy Physics students competed in three events:

Andrew Kaufman ’25 and Zoey Curtiss ’26: Optical Slalom
Rowan Miller ’26 and Lincoln Miller ’26: Optical Slalom (photo)
Micah Kacmarynski ’26 and Andrew Kaufman ’25: Mousetrap Car (video)

All Hillcrest teams did well in the first round, but only two teams advanced to the final round (Micah and Andrew finished 3rd in preliminary round) and (Rowan and Lincoln tied for 2nd in preliminary round). The top 10 teams advance.

Micah and Andrew won the mousetrap car event in the final round.

All results are posted in a shared Google Drive here: 2025 State of Iowa Physics Competition Results.

Physic Students Excel at ‘Physic Olympics’