Student Activities

Academic Team

The goal of the Academic Teams organization is to promote academics and to encourage student participation in all areas of academic competition. By offering students several venues of competition, the Academic Teams will encourage students of all abilities to participate. The Academic Team is an umbrella organization covering the following competitions:

The World Wide Youth in Science and Engineering (WYSE) Academic Team Challenge is a competitive series of tests created and administered by WYSE and offered to high school students in Illinois and Missouri. The tests are now offered by more than 50 community colleges and universities and are designed to present a challenge to the brightest students.

According to the WYSE website, "test material is drawn from senior high school and freshman level college curricula. Written by teams of college and university faculty, subjects include biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering graphics, English, mathematics, and physics. Each test production team produces three tests of increasing levels of difficulty, regional, sectional and state finals. Students compete as individuals and as part of a team (when their school fields a team); they have 40 minutes to complete multiple-choice tests that range in length from 30 questions (computer science) to 100 questions (English)."

The Bridge Breaking Competition has a long history in the physics classes here at Notre Dame. Now, the competition is being opened to the entire student body. This is an excellent opportunity for students who work well with their hands and have good imaginations. Students are given the opportunity to build the strongest bridge from balsa wood. Bridges are judged by the amount of weight they can sustain. Competitions are held at the local and state levels.

Moderator: Ms. Erin O'Connor
WYSE Membership: By invitation only
Bridge Breaking Membership: Open to any student