Students qualify for national math competition
The Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District announced that 59 students at Los Gatos and Saratoga high schools have qualified to participate in the American Invitational Mathematics Competition (AIME) on Feb. 1.
With more than 100 students taking the American Mathematics Competition (AMC) 10/12 in November, students must score high enough to qualify for the next level of competition, the AIME. The AMC 10/12 is the first in a series of competitions that eventually will lead to the International Mathematical Olympiad.
For the AMC test, students took a 25-question, 75-minute, multiple choice exam designed to promote the development and enhancement of problem-solving skills. The AIME exam, the next step in the competition, will be a 15-question, three-hour examination.
The Los Gatos High School students who qualified are: (Hunk) Haohsiang Chen, Andreas Haapalainen, Edwin Hou, Eric Hou, Henry Lee, Nolan Lin, Jack Mei, David Roh, Mehaan Sibal and (Lucas) Zihe Wang.
The Saratoga High School students who qualified are: Advaith Avadhanam, Ishani Agarwal, Arinjay Basak, Vihaan Bhaduri, Akshat Bora, Alan Cai, (Redacted Name), Kathy Chen, Muyi Chen, Richard Chung, Lynn Dai, Kirby Fung, Quinn Gifford, Ashish Goswami, Nicole Hao, Florence Hu, Victoria Hu, Benjamin Kuo, Vivian Lei, Bryan Li, Ella Li, Zitian Li, Brady Liang, Alexander Lu, Allan Lu, Andy Lu, Seabert Mao, Skyler Mao, Nikhil Mathihalli, Pranav Murthy, Vedant Padhi, Medha Ravi, Rushil Saraf, Meha Sekaran, Jeremy Si, Ethan Tian, Nidhi Vadlamudi, Derek Wang, Lawson Wang, Nolan Woo, Emily Wu, Victor Wu, Su Xie, Warren Yang, Aiden Ye, Timothy Wei, Lingbo Zhang, Luke Zhang and Vivian Zhong.
The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) website states that, “The questions on the AIME are much more difficult than those on the AMC 10 and AMC 12 competitions. Top scoring students on the AIME are invited to take the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO) or the United States of America Junior Mathematical Olympiad (USAJMO).”
Last school year, the district had three students place in the 2023 USA Math Olympiad competition: Saratoga High School graduated senior Anthony Wang and current senior Advaith Avadhanam both were awarded gold medals, and senior Victoria Hu received Honorable Mention.
“I am incredibly proud of these students for the hard work they put in to these rigorous competitions,” Superintendent Bill W. Sanderson said. “I wish them the best of luck on their upcoming tests and hope these experiences inspire them to continue their love of mathematics.”
‘Lost Wild’ exhibit set to open
“Lost Wild – Art On The Edge Of The Anthropocene” opens Feb. 1 at Whitney Modern, 24 N. Santa Cruz Ave. (second floor) in Los Gatos.
In the exhibit, 10 Bay Area artists share work that is full of mystery, reverence, beauty and hope for the world, a press release states.
Artists Tamera Avery, Dean Bensen, Demetra Theofanous, Marie Cameron, Theresa Giammattei, Melissa Mohammadi, Karen Olsen-Dunn, Keith Petersen, Marcia Stuermer and Sheila Metcalf Tobin will share work in diverse mediums including oil, acrylic, watercolor, mixed media, mono-prints, wall decal murals, photography and glass.
This group exhibition is curated by Los Gatos artist Marie Cameron.
The show runs from Feb. 1-March 30 with a reception and artist talk on Feb. 10 from 3-5pm.
The gallery is open 11am-5:30pm, Wednesday through Sunday. Admission and parking are free.
Voting workshops scheduled in different languages
The Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters will host a variety of language workshops aimed at informing voters about the upcoming March 5 Presidential Primary Election.
All workshops will be presented in the designated language. The presenters are bilingual and can answer any questions in the specific language, or in English. English-speaking and bilingual members of the public are invited to attend these workshops, where they will learn how to vote and where to vote.
“Our mission is to protect and ensure the community’s right to participate in fair, inclusive, accurate and transparent elections,” Registrar of Voters Shannon Bushey said. “These workshops serve as essential resources that empower our diverse community to engage in democracy.”
Attendees will also learn how they can get involved in the election process, including how to become an election worker or volunteer.
All meetings will be held online via Zoom from 6-7pm. Bilingual support will be provided. Registration information can be found online at tinyurl.com/5n95wwdu.
The dates of the workshops are as follows:
• Jan. 24: Chinese
• Jan. 25: Vietnamese
• Jan. 29: Nepali
• Jan. 30: Tagalog
• Jan. 31: Hindi
• Feb. 1: Spanish
• Feb. 5: Gujarati
• Feb. 6: Punjabi
• Feb. 7: Telugu
• Feb. 8: Tamil
• Feb. 13: Korean
• Feb. 14: Khmer
• Feb. 15: Japanese
A workshop in English was held earlier in the week.
For information, contact the Registrar of Voters’ Office at 408.299-8683, toll-free at 866.430.8683 or ou******@ro*.org.
Seismic retrofit grants available for homeowners
Thousands of California homeowners are now eligible to apply for Earthquake Brace + Bolt (EBB) seismic retrofit grants as approximately 300 new ZIP codes have been added to the program, including Los Gatos.
Through Feb. 21, eligible homeowners can apply for $3,000 seismic retrofit grants to help strengthen their homes against earthquake damage.
More than $20 million in grant funding will be available to help offset the cost of seismic retrofits that brace the crawl space walls of older homes, when present, and bolt houses to their foundations, making them less vulnerable to earthquake damage.
The EBB grant program is administered by the California Residential Mitigation Program (CRMP), a Joint Powers Authority between the California Earthquake Authority (CEA) and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES).
“California has an ever-present risk of earthquakes and no one knows when or where the next Big One might hit. But we know older homes near faults are at greater risk if they haven’t been strengthened with a seismic retrofit,” said Janiele Maffei, the chief mitigation officer of CEA and executive director of CRMP. “By expanding to 815 ZIP codes, we’re broadening our reach to help more homeowners safeguard their families and properties. I strongly encourage homeowners to seize this opportunity and join the growing community of Californians who’ve taken this vital step towards resilience.”
Income-eligible homeowners may also qualify for supplemental grants. Up to $7,000 in additional grant funds are available for households with an annual income at or below $87,360, which may be able to provide up to 100% of the funds needed to cover a seismic retrofit. Grants are contingent upon meeting eligibility requirements and available funds.
Eligible homeowners can apply for a retrofit grant at EarthquakeBraceBolt.com.
Cacciaguidi recognized at Nazareth University
Mackenzie Cacciaguidi of Los Gatos has been named to the dean’s list for the fall 2023 semester at Nazareth University.
A student’s grade point average must be at least 3.5 or above, and they must complete 12 credit hours of graded work that semester in order to be included on the dean’s list at Nazareth.
Nazareth University is located in Rochester, N.Y.
Ruiz named to Missouri State University’s dean’s list
Jenna Ruiz from Los Gatos was named to Missouri State University’s dean’s list for fall 2023.
For undergraduate students, criteria include enrollment in at least 12 credit hours during the fall semester and at least a 3.50 grade point average on a 4.0 scale.
Ruiz was among more than 5,100 students named to the fall 2023 dean’s list.
Missouri State University is a public, university system in Springfield, Mo.
