Cindy Zhao is a chemistry champion

National chemistry champion Cindy Zhao has qualified to compete for one of four spots on the U.S. team bound for the 44^th annual International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO).  A junior at Brecksville-Broadview High School in Broadview Heights, she is one of only 20 students nation-wide invited to a two-week intensive study camp at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado.                                                                                                        

The competition to be part of the international event is fierce, beginning with a three-part exam taken by at least 12,000 high school students in the U.S.  Cindy’s performance on this exam resulted in the opportunity to take the National Chemistry Olympiad test. Out of more than 1,000 of the nation’s brightest chemistry students who took the national test, she advanced to the top 20and next she will head to the study camp being held June 5-20.

During the camp, Cindy will receive college-level training, with an emphasis on organic chemistry, through a series of lectures, problem-solving exercises, lab work, and testing. At the camp’s conclusion, four students will be chosen to represent the U.S. at the International Chemistry Olympiad where they will compete with their peers from more than 70 nations for gold, silver and bronze medals.

 This year, for the first time since 1992, the U.S. will host the International Chemistry Olympiad, to be held July 21-30, at the University of Maryland, College Park. The American Chemical Society (ACS) is the official organizer and The Dow Chemical Company is the official sponsor of the overall international event.

  “The students who compete in the IChO are the brightest minds in chemistry,” said ACS president Bassam Shakhashiri. “These young people are the ones who will make the discoveries that shape our future by curing disease, addressing climate change, feeding our rapidly expanding population and much more.”