TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama will host a regional Science Olympiad competition for middle and high school students Saturday, March 3, at 9 a.m.

More than 500 students will participate in events held on UA’s campus. Some of the events scheduled are a balloon race, designer genes, ecology, food science, chemistry lab, oceanography, remote sensing and a robot ramble.

Events taking place in the various buildings include:

• Bevill – awesome aquifer, oceanography, rocks and minerals, and science word
• Biology – anatomy, designer genes, disease detective, don’t bug me, ecology, entomology and heredity
• Farrah – meteorology, remote sensing, road scholar
• Gallallee – astronomy, circuit lab, physics lab, simple machines, solar system and sounds of music
• H.M. Comer – the balloon race, boomilever, fermi questions, metric mastery and tower building
• Hardaway – mission possible, scrambler, wheeled vehicle, write it do it
• Shelby – chemistry lab, five star science, food science, forensics, science crime busters
• Student Recreation Center – Wright stuff

The events will conclude with an awards presentation at 3:15 p.m. in the Ferguson Center.

Area schools participating in this year’s event include Clay Chalkville High School, Corner High School, Curry High School, Faith Academy, Hamilton High School, Hewitt-Trussville High School, Holy Spirit Catholic High School, Jefferson County International Baccalaureate High School, John Carroll Catholic High School, Leeds High School, Meek High School, Minor High School, Mortimer Jordan High School, Muscle Shoals High School, Pelham High School, Pleasant Grove High School, Sand Rock High School, Shades Valley High School, Tuscaloosa County High School, Wetumpka High School, Berry Middle School, Gresham Middle School, Hewitt-Trussville Middle School, Meek High School, Our Lady of the Valley, Pittman Middle School, Pleasant Grove High School, Prattville Junior High School.

UA’s College of Engineering is coordinating the competition with the College of Arts and Sciences.

In 1837, The University of Alabama became one of the first five universities in the nation to offer engineering classes. Today, UA’s fully accredited College of Engineering has about 1,900 students and nearly 100 faculty. In the last seven years, students in the College have been named USA Today All-USA College Academic Team members, Goldwater scholars, Hollings scholars and Portz scholars.

The University of Alabama, a student-centered research university, is in the midst of a planned, steady enrollment growth with a goal of reaching 28,000 students by 2010. This growth, which is positively impacting the campus and the state's economy, is in keeping with UA’s vision to be the university of choice for the best and brightest students. UA, the state’s flagship university, is an academic community united in its commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all Alabamians.