“Best Team” award winners of the 2024 Chemistry Titration Competition on March 7 at the University of Guam. (From left) Happi-Sleepi Perez and Timothy Gumataotao (Notre Dame High School), first place; Bernard Malicsi and Vincent Sablan (Father Dueñas Memorial School), second place; and Chanju Lee and Kaori Updegrove (St. John’s School), third place. (Photos courtesy of the University of Guam)
Students from Notre Dame, St. John’s, Father Dueñas, and Okkodo high schools took home trophies in the 15th annual University of Guam Chemistry Titration Competition that was held during UOG’s Charter Day celebration on Thursday. This year’s competition hosted seven high schools, which each entered four students.
Hosted by the chemistry faculty under the UOG College of Natural & Applied Sciences and with chemistry majors serving as the judges, the two-part competition tests students’ lab skills and precision in determining the concentration of a base and the mass of an acid through titration — or volume measurement.
“We’ve been practicing for how many months, so to finally be in the competition was amazing — just to go through the bolts of it was very fun. I enjoy titrating,” said Bernard Malicsi of Father Dueñas Memorial School, who plans to pursue a degree in biochemistry and eventually become a doctor.
Teammates Chanju Lee and Kaori Updegrove from St. John’s School said they enjoy titration process because it involves challenging calculations and is interesting to watch the chemical reaction take place.
The winners of the competition were:
Best Individual
1st place: Timothy Gumataotao (Notre Dame High School)
2nd place: Bernard Malicsi (Father Dueñas Memorial School)
3rd place: Chanju Lee (St. John’s School)
Best Laboratory Skill
1st place: Kaori Updegrove (St. John’s School)
2nd place: Bernard Malicsi (Father Dueñas Memorial School)
3rd place: Myka Imbat (Okkodo High School)
Best Team
1st place: Timothy Gumataotao and Happi-Sleepi Perez (Notre Dame High School)
2nd place: Bernard Malicsi and Vincent Sablan (Father Dueñas Memorial School)
3rd place: Chanju Lee and Kaori Updegrove (St. John’s School)
Also participating in the competition were Harvest Christian Academy, Tiyan High School, and Academy of Our Lady of Guam.
In remarks before the competition, UOG Senior Vice President and Provost Dr. Sharleen Santos-Bamba shared how UOG chemistry graduates have gone on to become medical doctors, pharmacists, professors, and researchers in Guam and in countries abroad. One example is Allen Marc Soriano, a student from Father Dueñas Memorial School who won the UOG titration competition in 2009, who went on to earn a biology degree from UOG and is now a licensed pharmacist at Guam Regional Medical City.
The associate dean of the college, Dr. Maika Vuki, encouraged the high school students to consider degree paths in STEM. “Scientists are problem-solvers, and that is what the world needs,” he said.
The University of Guam Chemistry Program offers concentrations in chemistry, pre-pharmacy, chemistry-biology, and forensic chemistry — a new track to the program as of January.
Photos are available on the University of Guam CNAS Facebook page.
“Best Individual” award winners of the 2024 Chemistry Titration Competition on March 7 at the University of Guam. (From left) Timothy Gumataotao (Notre Dame High School), first place; Bernard Malicsi (Father Dueñas Memorial School), second place; and Chanju Lee (St. John’s School), third place. (Photos courtesy of the University of Guam)
“Best Laboratory Skill” award winners of the 2024 Chemistry Titration Competition on March 7 at the University of Guam. (From left) Myka Imbat (Okkodo High School), third place; Bernard Malicsi (Father Dueñas Memorial School), second place; and Kaori Updegrove (St. John’s School), first place. (Photos courtesy of the University of Guam)
Zoe Leung of Harvest Christian Academy pours sodium hydroxide into a burette during the UOG Chemistry Titration Competition on March 7. (Photos courtesy of the University of Guam)
Teammates Segundo Garrido and Isaiah Moreno compete for Tiyan High School at the UOG Chemistry Titration Competition on March 7. (Photos courtesy of the University of Guam)
Dr. John F.K. Limtiaco, an assistant professor chemistry at UOG and an alumnus of UOG’s Chemistry Program, welcomes 28 high school students to the University of Guam on March 7 for the annual Chemistry Titration Competition. (Photos courtesy of the University of Guam)
