Dear Math Coordinators,
I am writing to remind you of the rescheduled 2019 OSU High School Math Day, which is scheduled to take place on Monday, April 13, 2020, and to update you about our planning with regard to the coronavirus. Please share this information with your high school's academic coach, interested faculty members, and students.
OSU's administration is monitoring the coronavirus situation closely, and will act in the best interests of OSU's students, faculty, and prospective future students. So:
(1) If OSU is open as normal on April 13, we will hold the math day as scheduled on campus. However, if any schools or students are unable or unwilling to travel due to the coronavirus, we will allow you to take the individual competition at your school, just as we already do for schools more than 150 miles from Stillwater. (If you wish to take advantage of this option, please fill out the Remote Site Registration Form here: http://math.okstate.edu/people/mermin/hsc/remote_testing_hsc2019.pdf)
(2) If OSU closes campus, cancels in-person classes, or moves to significantly restrict employee domestic travel during any part of April, we will cancel the on-campus part of the Math Day. In this case, we will mail copies of the competition to all registered schools, so that you can take it on your campus.
(While I was composing this message, OSU announced significant restrictions to employee travel, effective immediately. If those restrictions are still in effect on April 1, I will announce the cancellation of our on-campus events at that time.)
(3) If the virus makes it impossible for your students to take the competition on the afternoon of April 13, we ask that you honor the spirit of the rules (students should get 75 minutes without calculators or similar tools, should not have had access to the questions beforehand, and should refrain from discussing them on the internet for at least a few days afterwards) while getting the timing as close as you safely can.
What's below is a boilerplate announcement of the Math Day. It may not make sense by the time you read it; in particular, please consider the deadlines to be flexible.
As a reminder, the math day consists of a 75-minute multiple-choice contest, followed by breakout sessions featuring presentations by OSU faculty, a low-intensity team competition, and activities organized by OSU's undergraduate math club.
The contest is a challenging exam which emphasizes creativity, logic and problem solving skills. All juniors and seniors with an interest in mathematics are highly encouraged to participate. Students in earlier grades who have a strong background and aptitude for mathematics are also eligible, and are welcome to join the event.
The day will begin with the contest, held in the Student Union Ballroom on OSU's Stillwater Campus on Monday, April 13, 2020, from 1:00 p.m. to approximately 2:15 p.m. The student union is on the south end of our Stillwater campus; the ballroom is on the second floor.
After the contest, we'll have two rounds of breakout sessions, tentatively including presentations by OSU faculty, a team competition, and a problem-solving activity run by OSU's undergraduate math club, and then a brief awards ceremony. The day should conclude between 4:00 and 4:30.
To ensure that we have enough space, we are asking that all participants be registered by April 3, 2020. The registration form is available online at https://math.okstate.edu/people/mermin/hsc/. Please mail or fax a completed form by this deadline.
Last year's exam, solutions, and related material may be found on the website https://math.okstate.edu/people/mermin/hsc/2018.html.
We normally request a materials fee of 5 dollars per student, payable in advance or on the day of the exam. This year, for students taking the contest at our Stillwater location only, we are able to waive the materials fee.
Out of state entrants and those more than 150 miles from Stillwater should contact us. Off-site testing is possible. All other information including an announcement, parking instructions, and a campus map are available on the contest website https://math.okstate.edu/people/mermin/hsc/.
If you have questions about the contest, please contact me or Angela McFarlin at hsc@math.okstate.edu or at (405) 744-5688. For other questions about OSU, you may also contact the Office of High School and College Relations at 1-800-852-1255 if you are outside the state of Oklahoma, or 1-800-233-5019 Ext. 3 if you are within the state.
I look forward to seeing you and your students on the OSU Stillwater Campus for the contest.
Sincerely,
Jeff Mermin