West Shore Regional High School Chemistry Competition

The Manistee High School team of Haley Johnson and Liam Quinn earned first place during Thursday’s West Shore Regional High School Chemistry Competition.

Thursday marked the event’s eighth year and is sponsored by the chemistry department at West Shore Community College, the Mason-Lake Oceana Mathematics and Science Center and Manistee ISD.

The contest included two-person teams from high schools in Manistee, Mason, Newaygo, and Oceana counties. The teams competed in a written test and a laboratory portion of the day-long event.

In addition to Johnson and Quinn earning first-place honors, the Ludington High School team of Anlin Larson and Trent Thompson took second place and the Shelby High School team of Katelyn Brown and Nick Felt took third place.

Each student in first, second or third place received plaque and a gift card to Meijer.

The competition was adjudicated by Dr. Sonja Siewert, WSCC professor of chemistry, and Dr. Richard Dallinger, a retired professor of chemistry from Wabash College.

“Students were introduced to new instrumentation at  the college including vortex mixers, microwave reactors, FTIR spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance imaging, which is similar technology to MRI’s used in medical fields,” said Siewert.

“The knowledge gained from science, technology, engineering and mathematics are important to our economic growth as a state and as a nation,” she added. “The chemistry competition gives students a chance to display their academic strengths in a field that is vital to our future.”