Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science

The Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science, sponsored by the Pennsylvania Academy of Science, as an Affiliate of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), is organized with the following objectives:

• To promote greater participation in science and mathematics activities among the youth of Pennsylvania.
• To improve the quality of achievement in mathematics and science by encouraging students to participate in research and develop original ideas.
• To develop an understanding of the scientific community through close association with leaders in the sciences.
• To seek the improvement of science clubs activities through the cooperative regional and state meetings.
• To inculcate among its members true scientific attitudes and humanistic ideals that shall lead to the greater development of service to man.[3][4]

The Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science (PJAS) is a statewide organization of junior and senior high school students designed to stimulate and promote interest in science among its members through the development of research projects and investigations.[5] The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is divided into 12 PJAS regions. Each PJAS region consists of two or more counties. Every PJAS region has one or more directors and a treasurer who oversee the operation of the region. PJAS also has a State Director, a State Secretary, and State Treasurer as well as committees for Judging, Safety, Technicians, and Awards.

In the early 1930s, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) appointed a national executive committee to coordinate the activities of the various state Junior Academies of Science (JAS). Thus, the JAS movement became an integral part of the AAAS organization with the formation of the National Junior Academy of Science (NJAS). A paper presented at the Pennsylvania Academy of Science (PAS) at its West Chester meeting in 1932 resulted in the appointment of a committee to consider the development of a junior academy in Pennsylvania; the senior PAS became the parent organization of PJAS as a result of this committee. Two years later on March 31, 1934 in Reading, PA, delegates from 14 high school science clubs from all parts of the Commonwealth approved a constitution for the PJAS organization. The Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science had become a reality. Dr. Otis W. Caldwell from Columbia University served as an official delegate of the AAAS and welcomed the new group. Pennsylvania was added to the states of Indiana, Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, and others that already established junior academies of science. The first PJAS State Director was Dr. Karl F. Oerlein of the California State Teachers College in California, PA. He continued his office until 1941.

PJAS has grown through the efforts and dedication of many adult sponsors, students, and alumni. PJAS conducted the early state meetings at various resorts and convention centers throughout the Commonwealth. The last such convention was at Seven Springs Resort in 1990.[6] Because of the enormous growth in the number of students participating; the State Meeting was moved to Penn State University at University Park, PA, in 1991 where it has occurred since.

In 2010, 551 schools participated in PJAS (compared to 14 schools in 1934); over 6000 students presented their scientific research at the regional level in 2010. The 2016 state meeting hosted 2350 presenters in 231 units. Units are groups of students with projects in similar categories – for example, Unit 14 could be 10th grade Biochemistry, Unit 79 could be 9th and 10th grade Physics, etc. The number of units and the category of each unit varies each year based upon the number of student presenters and their projects. The total number at the State Meeting including student presenters, technicians, sponsors and chaperones was almost 4000 in 2016. Each year a different region hosts the State Meeting.

PJAS projects fall under four main groups: Science, Mathematics, Computer Science, or Engineering projects. Each of these categories use their own individualized rubric.[7]

The program is split up into 12 regions (including regions 1A, 1B, and 1C) spanning from Philadelphia to Lake Erie. Each of these regions hold a private science competition between January and March where students present their research to a panel of judges. These judges score the student's project using PJAS rubrics for the specific category (see Projects) - projects are not judged against each other, but against a set of criteria (see Scoring Rubrics). Each region has its own regional director(s) in charge of coordinating the regions for the regional and state meet, in addition to school sponsor(s) (teacher(s) hosting a school team). It is possible to have regional director(s) also acting as school sponsor(s).

After students present their research, the judges deliberate and determine the student's score based on the appropriate PJAS rubric. Some regions host an awards ceremony or an awards dinner. At these events, students receive a certificate and a bar with the color of their award (See Pin & Bars). Some regions gain enough funding to also support special awards (like Director's awards or ones sponsored by societies or companies) for students who score the highest in their respective category or based on other criterion. For example, Region 1A had awards at their 2016 Regional Meet for students with exceptional analysis sections, exceptional research, or outstanding projects their judges nominate. Special awards at the regional meet aren't required for PJAS and thus, depend on each region.

The PJAS State meet is a multi-day event similar to Regional Meets, always occurring from a Sunday to Tuesday in mid-May. Students who earned a first award at their respective regional meet are invited to travel to the main campus (University Park) of the Pennsylvania State University to present their projects; students who earned a 2nd or 3rd award at their Regional Meet could attend States as a technician, but will not present their projects. Students stay in the PSU dorms and eat in the dining halls while at the State Meet. Students present the same project they presented at the Regional Meet for the chance to win awards and scholarships.

An example PJAS Pin and Bars from a senior in 2014.

The PJAS pin and bars are unique to the organization. Students earn bar(s) for each competition (except for honorable mention) that are colored to reflect performance. Students can earn bars at each regional meet and each state meet they present a project and connect them together to form a chain or history of their performance. The bar attached to the pin is the oldest project and the newest project is at the bottom. Returning members of PJAS like to wear their pins and bar while presenting during meets. Depending on the student and his/her projects, it is possible for students to earn more than the 10 bars that could be earned if the student participated for all five years. Students earning a First Award Perfect Score earn two pins - one for their first award and a second for their perfect score. Therefore, it is theoretically possible for a student who competes in all 12 competitions to earn a maximum of 24 bars if the student earns a perfect score at every meet for all six years.

In the example pin and bar on the right, it can be seen that the student's first project earned a 1st Award at his Regional Meet and a 2nd Award at the State Meet. In his second year, he earned a 1st at Regionals and 1st Award Perfect Score at States. Then, a 1st award at both the Regional and State Meets in his third year, followed by a 1st Award Perfect Score at his fourth Regional Meet and a 1st Award at the State Meet. In his fifth and final year as a presenter, he earned 1st Award Perfect Scores at both the Regional and State Meets for that particular project.

PJAS participants and their projects are not judged against each other like other fairs. Instead, each project is independently judged based on a rubric. Each rubric for the four project types consists of five categories with a maximum score of 5.00 points in each category. Each judge's numbers influence the final score because it is their combined average that make up the point value. To proceed to the state meet, a participant must receive an average score of 4.00 or greater (or a perfect 5.00) to earn a 1st Award at the Regional Meet. Participants who receive 2nd awards (an average score between 3.00 and 3.99) may be eligible to go on the state trip as a technician possibly. Participants that go over 10 minutes in presentation length automatically earn a second award based on the criteria in each rubric and thus are ineligible to compete at the state meet.

For each category, on each rubric, 1-5 points may be awarded. The following table describes each point value.

Scoring rubrics vary by category type but share two of the same sections between all rubric types (italicized). These are the category section on each rubric.[9][10]