BY KATHY DOUGAN, MSWCC
RAYMOND – For the 12th time in the past 13 years of state-level competition, Oxford High School Team A placed first among 20 teams participating in the State Envirothon event, held Apr. 23 at the FFA Center in Raymond.
Oxford Team A won the competition with a score of 434.16 out of a possible 600 points. Oxford High School Team B placed second with a score of 389.67; Purvis FFA won third place with a score of 337.83; Delta Academy Team A placed fourth with 319.66; and Hillcrest Christian School Team C came in fifth with a score of 317.5.
High Scores in categories and points earned (out of a possible 100 points per category) were as follows:
Oxford High School Team A placed first in five categories: Aquatic Ecology (74); Current Issue (72); Forestry (67.5); Soils/Land Use (70); and Oral Presentation (88.66).
Oxford High School Team B placed first in the Wildlife category (68).
Oxford High School Team A next advances to the NCF-Envirothon Nebraska National Competition, to be held virtually over several days beginning Sunday, July 25.
This year because of the COVID-19 pandemic and inclement weather concerns, the four area competitions (North, Delta, Central and South) were cancelled, and all teams were invited to compete at the state-level event.
Teams competing at the 2021 State Competition on April 23 included:
Byhalia High School Teams A and B; Houston FFA; Lafayette; Oxford High School Teams A and B; Southhaven High School Teams A, B and C; Delta Academy Teams A and B; Copiah Educational Foundation; Hillcrest Christian School Teams A, B and C; Yazoo County High School; Pascagoula High School Teams A and B; Purvis High School FFA, and Purvis High School team.
Those participating in the event included 20 teams with 111 students and 17 team advisors, as well as testing experts in each category, personnel from Soil and Water Conservation Districts, the Mississippi Soil and Water Conservation Commission, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, the Natural Resource Conservation Service/USDA, the Mississippi Forestry Association, Mississippi State University and volunteers.
Mississippi Envirothon, a program of the Mississippi Soil and Water Conservation Commission and supported by Mississippi Association of Conservation Districts, is a hands-on competition designed to challenge five-member student teams in grades 9 through 12 to explore nature.
Mississippi Envirothon is funded through grants from Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Chevron. Scholarships are funded by Georgia-Pacific Monticello Mill.
To view more 2021 State Envirothon Competition photos, please click this link