Clover Middle student wins state chemistry event for second year

For the second year in a row, Clover Middle School eighth-grader Nolan Promin has won a state chemistry competition for middle school students.

Nolan, 14, recently won the South Carolina You Be the Chemist Challenge, an interactive academic challenge for grades five to eight, sponsored by BASF Corp. and Brenntag North America. He competed against 17 other students to advance to the national event in Philadelphia on June 20.

“I’ve always been interested in chemistry,” Nolan said Friday. “I want to know what makes up the substances we use every day, and what makes up us.”

Two other York County students placed in the event. They are first runner-up Emma Westergard, from Oakridge Middle School in Clover, and third runner-up Jack Veltkamp, from York Preparatory Academy in Rock Hill.

Nolan, who has yet to take a class in chemistry, a subject not offered in most schools until high school, said he pored over a study guide released by the Chemical Education Foundation to prepare for the events.

He learned about scientific methods, types of matter, radioactivity, carbon dating and the periodic tables, which show how elements are related to each other based on groups, and can be used to determine chemical properties.

“I’m proud of myself, and I’m just glad I worked hard,” he said.

Nolan said both the state and national You Be the Chemist competitions, where he competed last year as one of 36 students, are conducted the same.

“They show a question on a screen, and there are four answer choices,” he said. Competitors have a short time limit to buzz in their answer on a key pad.

During last year’s national competition, Nolan said, he was out after the second round. This year’s event includes 39 students, all state champions.

He said he believes his experience last year will help him. “I remember everything I studied from last year, and I’m also studying more this year.”

At the national competition on June 20, the top four finalists will receive scholarships totaling $18,500.

Nolan said he’d like to use his interest in biology and chemistry in a career, but he’s not sure what that will be. “I’m just naturally curious about the world and our surroundings,” he said.

This story was originally published May 6, 2016 at 3:34 PM with the headline "Clover Middle student wins state chemistry event for second year."