The Indiana High School Math Team is a group of students who use their math knowledge in competitions against other schools. It is an opportunity to challenge their intellectual abilities. 

Senior Chloe Williams states, “We get together to compete in three competitions yearly, at Clarion, Pitt Greensburg, and IUP. We also participate in online math competitions such as Math Madness (weekly) and AMC (yearly).” 

There are many benefits to being a member of the math team. It allows students to expand their knowledge in math while being part of a team and gives them advantages while applying for colleges. Senior Luca Cosentino informs, “Entering these competitions allows for scholarship opportunities and gives students an edge when applying for colleges. It provides an extracurricular to challenge students’ minds and allows them to learn more than what is found in your normal high school class.” 

Williams adds, “The math team is important because it increases interest in STEM and fosters a community within our school and with the other local competitors.”

To prepare for the competitions, the Math Team takes practice exams to challenge themselves and prepare them for when they compete. After competitions, the members of the math team review their answers together. 

Williams expresses, “My favorite part about being on the Math Team is helping others. After every competition, when we discuss our answers to the questions, we are all able to teach each other something and it encourages everyone to speak up and offer their perspective on problems.” 

The Math Team is an opportunity for students to use their math skills to compete against other students with the same interests as them. Cosentino explains how he got involved, “I was already in advanced math classes, and after hearing about the math team from Dr. Layden, I joined my freshman year. It had been canceled for the past two years due to Covid-19, but I was very happy to enter the competition at Clarion earlier this semester, and I look forward to our next Competition at Pitt-Greensburg.”

Becoming a member of the team not only allows for learning opportunities beyond the classroom but also allows students to be part of a team so that they can expand their knowledge in a fun and competitive way. 

Williams informs, “I joined the team because I’ve always had a passion for math and wanted to find others who loved it just as much as I did. Despite the fact that I was younger than many other competitors, I felt that joining the Math Team would provide me with an opportunity to become part of a team of like-minded people.”