Trig-Star winners were, from left: Amir Ahmad Samadian, first place; Oscar Arroyo-Mejia, second place; and Tyler Benjamin, third place, pictured with Michael Given, Pennsylvania Society of Land Surveyors director to the National Society of Professional Surveyors and Pete Brothers, Pennsylvania Society of Land Surveyors president.
DALLAS, Pa. — An annual trigonometry competition for high school students was held March 24 at Penn State Wilkes-Barre.
The Trig-Star Competition is an annual high school mathematics contest sponsored by the National Society of Professional Surveyors and the Pennsylvania Land Surveyors’ Foundation and focuses on the practical applications of trigonometry. The competition aims to promote and recognize mastery of trigonometry among high school students; acquaint students with practical applications of trigonometry in the engineering professions; and build awareness of surveying engineering among students, career guidance counselors and high school math teachers.
Winners, who each received a plaque, were: first place, Amir Ahmad Samadian, Wilkes-Barre Area STEM Academy, who earned second place in the competition last year; second place, Oscar Arroyo-Mejia, Wilkes-Barre Area; and third place, Tyler Benjamin, Wilkes-Barre Area STEM Academy. For the second consecutive year, a student from Wilkes-Barre Area STEM Academy won the trophy that the winning school retains for one year.
The event at Penn State Wilkes-Barre was the regional level of competition, with winners advancing to the state level. State winners go on to compete at the national competition.
During the event, representatives from the National Society of Professional Surveyors, the Pennsylvania Land Surveyors’ Foundation, and Penn State Wilkes-Barre spoke to students before an exam was administered. Students were able to take part in a demonstration and tour the campus before the awards ceremony was held.
Trig-Star was part of a week of events on campus commemorating National Surveyors Week in March. Participants also had the opportunity to learn about surveying engineering and Penn State Wilkes-Barre’s program, which is the only accredited surveying engineering program in Pennsylvania and one of just 25 throughout the United States. The campus offers an associate degree in surveying engineering technology and a bachelor’s degree in surveying engineering.
