Over the weekend, UMBC's American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) ChemE Jeopardy team returned to the National competition and came home with second place in the National Championship, for the second year in a row. 

The 2021 national competition team members were: 

• John Laporte, Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology & Bioengineering track; 

• Sumana Peddibhotla, Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology & Bioengineering track; 

• Erin Huber, Chemical Engineering, Traditional track; 

• Max Bobbin, Chemical Engineering, Environmental Engineering & Sustainability track. 

To prepare for this year's competition, the team practiced virtually and in person regularly with other students in the department and were coached by Dr. Neha Raikar.

The AIChE ChemE Jeopardy team is part of the UMBC AIChE Student Chapter that houses ChemE Jeopardy, ChemE Car, and ChemE-Sports; co-advised by Dr. Mariajosé Castellanos and Dr. Neha Raikar.

The team reached the national competition after winning the AIChE Regional competition in April 2021. There are nine AIChE Student Chapter Regions, with approximately fifty teams total. UMBC belongs to the Mid-Atlantic Region. The national competition took place in Boston, MA at the 2021 AIChE Annual Student Conference. The team made it through two rounds of competition, including a tie breaker, to reach the finals. 

In the finals, UMBC faced off against Iowa State and University of Iowa. We are so proud of the UMBC-CBEE team members and the continued success in the AIChE Jeopardy competition! 

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• continued success of UMBC’s AIChE ChemE Jeopardy Team.
• Learn more about the AIChE ChemE Jeopardy Competition
• UMBC News article

(Excerpt) 

UMBC chemical engineering students take second place in national Jeopardy competition

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY | NOVEMBER 23, 2020 | MEGAN HANKS

Last weekend, four UMBC students earned second prize in the national Jeopardy competition hosted virtually by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE). The team competed against 12 other teams at the national level after winning the Mid-Atlantic regional competition in October. 

UMBC’s team included Cameron Sloan ‘21, Nicholas Balasus ‘21, Ellie Vonderhorst ‘22, and Chris Ashby ‘21, all chemical engineering majors. Sloan is chair of the Jeopardy project in UMBC’s student chapter of AIChE, the professional organization for chemical engineers. He explains that participating in the competition was an important moment for the group, though the move to an online format wasn’t ideal. 

“Competing virtually had its challenges, for sure, but all in all it was a fantastic experience,” says Sloan. “I wish we would have had the opportunity to meet our competitors and be able to speak to them, rather than just seeing their digitized faces on our screens.”

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Congratulations!

• Bellese - “Good booth overall, student presentations were great”
• Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab - “Reps were extremely friendly, well-coordinated and great speakers”
• Clearview Group - “I’m not recruiting engineers, but this association’s booth caught my attention. It clearly showcases the focus of AICHE and indicates the members put thought into their presentation. This booth stood out to me more than any other! I forgot to mention they also included demonstrations so it was interactive. Great job!”