MATHCOUNTS is a national math coaching and competition program for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students. The program is run by the MATHCOUNTS Foundation, state and local chapters of the NSPE, and many, many volunteers. Participation in the program is through your school. MATHCOUNTS provides an opportunity for students to have fun while exploring areas of math that they may not see in their normal class curriculum. It also gives students a chance to be recognized for their achievements on both team and individual bases. The program targets this age group in order to influence their thinking about math, and to encourage them to continue challenging themselves in the subject as they select high school courses. A link to the national MATHCOUNTS web site is below.

MATHCOUNTS has three major programs: the Competition Program, the Club Program, and the Math Video Challenge

In the Competition Program, schools receive math problems, activities, and a school competition package that they can use to prepare for regional (chapter) competitions in February. Winning teams and individuals at the regional competitions advance to compete in the state competition in March. The top 4 individuals and the coach of the winning team from the state competition receive an all-expense-paid trip to the National Competition in May where they represent Indiana and compete against students from across the country. Indiana has performed well at the national level, winning the team national championship in 1995 and 2015, and the individual national championship in 2008, 2012, and 2015.

In the Club Program (free), schools are provided the structure, activities, and problems they can use to form a math club. Participating schools are eligible for prize drawings.

In the Math Video Challenge (free) students develop their math, communication, and technology skills through a collaborative video project. Finalists in the Math Video Challenge will travel to the National Competition to present their videos to the Competition Series national competitors.

Indiana MATHCOUNTS

Program Status

April 9, 2022:  On March 12th, 115 mathletes from all over Indiana gathered at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute to participate in the Indiana State MATHCOUNTS Competition.  It was a heated competition on a cold late-winter day.  The two official individual written rounds were followed by a just-for-fun team round with ad-hoc teams formed from the individual competitors. After a catered lunch, the top 24 individual finishers competed in a fun countdown round.  Here are the top ten individual finishers from the competition:

Here are some statistics from the competition:

The top four finishers, Edward, Elaine, Kaitlyn, and Jennifer receive an all-expense-paid trip to Washington D.C. where they will represent Indiana in the Raytheon Technologies MATHCOUNTS National Competition on May 8th and 9th.  They will be led by the coach of the Sycamore School team, Trent Tormoehlen.  Here’s the Indiana state team:

(photo by Mark Gibson, Envisionary Media)

Although the season is wrapping up, we are always looking for volunteers. If you are interested in joining in, please contact the appropriate coordinator below.

You can find your coordinator’s e-mail address on the national MATHCOUNTS website here, filter the displayed list for Indiana (IN), and click on the appropriate chapter name.

Note: Due to the pandemic, the national MATHCOUNTS office has decided that this year the official chapter competition will be conducted virtually. It will be held on February 17, 2022. Unofficial, in-person chapter competitions (with a problem set different from the official set) can be held if coordinators and schools decide they are feasible and desired. Participation in these would be completely voluntary.

FOUNDING SPONSORS

National Society of Professional Engineers
CNA Foundation
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

NATIONAL SPONSORS

Raytheon Company
U.S. Department of Defense
Northrop Grumman Foundation
3M Foundation
Texas Instruments Inc.
Art of Problem Solving

LOCAL SPONSORS

Purdue Federal Credit Union (West Lafayette and Fort Wayne Campuses)
Purdue University
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Raytheon Company

For more information, visit the MATHCOUNTS website.