2023-2024 MATHCOUNTS ANNUAL REPORT

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2023-2024 MATHCOUNTS ANNUAL REPORT

Going the Distance
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The 224 national competitors at the 2024 RTX MATHCOUNTS National Competition in front of a screen that says "Welcome, Mathletes!"


Since MATHCOUNTS began in 1983, we have been calling our participants “Mathletes.” After more than 40 years, it’s come to feel like a natural fit, and something we and our participants say without thinking about why. But the word “Mathlete” represents so much of what makes MATHCOUNTS unique…competitive and exciting, yet brainy and intellectual—a blending of different ideas reflective, too, of the diverse founders that came together to create something entirely new.

Mathletes embody many of the qualities athletes do: thinking on their feet, mastering the fundamentals, practicing, supporting teammates and persevering through wins and losses. There is no denying that a live MATHCOUNTS Countdown Round can be just as nail-biting and entertaining as a sports match…you might even forget you’re watching students prepare to solve society’s toughest problems.

The skills students build in middle school will sustain their groundbreaking advancements of the future. MATHCOUNTS programs build skills in the most effective way: as a fun game that brings students joy and pride. The positive attitudes our Mathletes have about math will set them up to go the distance for the rest of their lives.

We invite you to join us in reviewing this season’s scores, stats, MVPs and recaps that make us very hopeful for the future. 

Ready, set, go!

Nancy Blackwell & Kristen Chandler Headshots/Signatures
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Text: National Competition

 

RTX logo

 

 

 

 

At the 2024 RTX MATHCOUNTS National Competition, we welcomed the top Mathletes from all 50 states (plus US territories and schools that serve the US departments of State and Defense) to a sports-themed event that elevated their feats to those of athletes.

On Sunday, May 12, the 224 national competitors flexed their mathletic muscles during individual and team portions of the Written Competition. The 12 highest-scoring Mathletes advanced to the Countdown Round the next day.

Students work on the Team Competition at a table.

On May 13, the top 12 Mathletes raced against the clock in an exciting Countdown Round where National Champion Ben Jiang came out on top. Julie Montoya of RTX moderated the event for the third year in a row.

Two students onstage during the Countdown Round

We hosted our third annual MATHCOUNTS party on May 13, complete with dancing, games and the Spirit Award presentation.

Watch Ben Jiang's Winning Moment
Video file

Ben Jiang answered the following question in 16 seconds during his final match with runner-up Selena Ge to earn the title of RTX MATHCOUNTS National Champion:

“Kat finds the square root of n, and then she divides it by ten. If she gets seven point four, and not a bit more, then what was the value of n?"

INDIVIDUAL WINNERS

Ben cheers after his winning moment.
Benjamin Jiang, 2024 National Champion
Selena Ge hitting her buzzer during the Countdown Round
Selena Ge, 2024 Runner-Up

2024 National Champion: Benjamin Jiang (FL)

Semifinalists onstage with coaches and MATHCOUNTS representatives
2024 semifinalists with coaches and MATHCOUNTS representatives

Ben won the $20,000 Donald G. Weinert College Scholarship.

Countdown Round Runner-Up: Selena Ge (MA)

Written Competition Champion: Channing Yang (TX)

Written Competition Runner-Up: Selena Ge (MA)

Countdown Round Semifinalists:

  • Benjamin Song (NY)
  • Laura Wang (WA)

Countdown Round Quarterfinalists:

  • Shunyao Yan (VA)
  • Channing Yang (TX)
  • Vincent Wang (TX)
  • Alex Zhan (CA)

Countdown Round Participants:

  • Eric Ding (MN)
  • Rohan Mallick (CA)
  • Alex Liu (VA)
  • Advait Joshi (NJ)

 

TEAM WINNERS

Texas team onstage with coach and MATHCOUNTS representatives
Texas team onstage with MATHCOUNTS representatives
Department of Defense team holds the spirit stick and baseballs at the MATHCOUNTS party
The Department of Defense team with the spirit stick

First Place Team: Texas

  • Nathan Liu
  • Drake Tan
  • Vincent Wang
  • Channing Yang
  • Coach: Hui Quan

Second Place Team: Massachusetts

  • Selena Ge
  • Rajarshi Mandal
  • Brandon Ni
  • Danyang Xu
  • Coach: Josh Frost

Third Place Team: California

  • Rohan Mallick
  • Yichen Wu
  • Ali Zaman
  • Alex Zhan
  • Coach: Vandana Kadam

Most Improved Team: Minnesota

  • Eric Ding
  • Andreas Walexon
  • Sam Wu
  • Jefferson Zhou
  • Coach: Jack Failor

Spirit Award: Department of Defense

  • Narmin Guliyeva
  • Cooper McCann
  • Ada McCaskey
  • Lucas Sze
  • Coach: Senem Kadioglu

REPEAT NATIONAL COMPETITORS

Three-Time National Competitors

Three-time national competitors participated in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 National Competitions.

  • Akshaj Arora (GA)
  • Sanjiv Bachan (VI)
  • Luis Carlos Collazo (PR)
  • Eric Ding (MN)
  • Selena Ge (MA)
     
  • Prabhas Gupta (IA)
  • Samuel Henderson (KY)
  • Quentin Hill (AZ)
  • Ian Jung (MS)
  • Julian Kuang (NV)
  • Levi Mei (MS)
  • Brooke Peng (AK)
  • Christopher Sakaliyski (IL)

Two-Time National Competitors

  • Tank Chandler (VT)
  • Wensi Cui (NE)
  • Taiwen Feng (MI)
  • Hudson Fong (OK)
  • Joseph Girotto (CT)
  • Sudhan Grinolds (ND)
  • Holden Hadidi (MT)
  • Evan Ho (HI)
  • Leo Hong (NC)
  • Gloria Hu (WV)
  • Nicholas Hu (SC)
  • Ben Jiang (FL)
  • Jason Jiang (TN)
  • Thomas Kanitkar (ME)
  • Keshav Karumbunathan (OR)
  • Rayoon Kim (PA)
     
  • Arush Krisp (OH)
  • Jason Lee (NC)
  • Sean Lee (SS)
  • Kaylee Li (WY)
  • Alex Liu (VA)
  • Joyce Liu (KY)
  • Andrew Madsen (NM)
  • Puranjay Madupu (AZ)
  • Aashita Mandiwal (UT)
  • Maddox Nguyen (PR)
  • Vincent Pirozzo (MI)
  • Girish Prasad (CT)
  • Anirudh Pulugurtha (NH)
  • Augie Reeder (WI)
  • Ryan Renjith (AR)
  • Bowen Shan (AZ)
  • He Shan (PR)
  • Enoch Shao (ID)
  • Daniel Shea (RI)
  • Tanish Shetty (UT)
  • Ruize Sun (ID)
  • Max Tsai (NV)
  • Gavin Wang (DC)
  • Helen Wu (ND)
  • Jonathan Wu (UT)
  • Kyros Wu (IA)
  • Shunyao Yan (VA)
  • Channing Yang (TX)
  • Charles Yong (MO)
  • David Yu (MD)
  • Eddy Zhang (PA)
  • Jefferson Zhou (MN)
  • Alex Zhu (AL)
  • Ziang Zhuang (LA)
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Text: National Math Club
An Enhanced Program
The National Math Club Logo

 

 

The National Math Club gives students in all US states and territories the opportunity to explore math in a free, fun, low-stress way. This year, based on feedback from club leaders, MATHCOUNTS enhanced the National Math Club program with new benefits for participants!

Students pose on each other's shoulders for a group photo.
This Year's Changes
New Gold Level Projects

Clubs that wanted to achieve Gold Level this year had new project options. Students could work together on a collaborative art, video or community service project.

There was 20% increase in the number of students in Gold Level clubs this year!
 

Extra Recognition

Active clubs that achieved Silver and Gold Level this year received recognition on the MATHCOUNTS website and could upload a photo of their club members, school logo or project.

90% of educators whose clubs received this honor agreed it was an improvement worth keeping!

More Online Resources

This year, we introduced new monthly 5-problem challenges and activity recommendations, in addition to the three new activities and Club Leader Guide available online.

In surveys, 96% of club leaders agreed MATHCOUNTS club resources were of high quality

 

Gold Level Honor Roll
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See some of the excellent projects selected for the 2024 Gold Level Honor Roll by a panel of education experts. 

  • Math in Art: recreate a famous painting, incorporating math elements.
  • Instructional Video: teach a math concept.
  • Community Service: complete a math-based service project. Not in video: service project by John W. Moore Middle School (SC).
     
Prize-Winning Clubs

GOLD LEVEL PRIZE WINNERS

Clubs receive Gold Level Status after completing a collaborative project. The following five Gold Level clubs were randomly drawn to receive $200 gift cards:

  • Dent Middle School (SC)
  • Eisenhower Junior High School (IL)
  • Hawthorne Middle School (ID)
  • Saint John Bosco Catholic School (AZ)
  • Trinity Valley School (TX)

SILVER LEVEL PRIZE WINNERS

Clubs reach Silver Level Status after meeting at least five times. The following 20 Silver Level clubs were randomly drawn to receive $100 gift cards:

  • The Banff School (TX)
  • Baumholder Middle/High School (DD)
  • Caddo Parish Middle Magnet School (LA)
  • Coastal Montessori Charter School (SC)
  • Collierville Middle School (TN)
  • Edward Bleeker Junior High School 185 (NY)
  • Good Teacher, Great Books!
    Homeschool Co-op (MN)
  • Hardyston Middle School (NH)
  • John Hopkins Middle School (FL)
  • Kittredge Magnet School (GA)
  • Laurelhurst K-8 (OR)
  • Math Ninja Math Club (WA)
  • Northern Lehigh Middle School (PA)
  • Orlando Science Schools (FL)
  • Ottoville (OH)
  • South Loop Elementary Schoo (IL)
  • Summit Middle Charter School (CO)
  • Troy South Middle School - Master Mind Mathletes (MO)
  • Vermont Christian School (CA)
  • Wesleyan School (GA)
This Year in Numbers
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40,121 students participated
(a 10% increase from last year!)

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A 22% increase in Title I (low-income) schools that participated this year

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488 clubs went the extra mile to achieve Silver Level or Gold Level Status

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98% of club leaders surveyed agreed the Club was a positive experience for them and their students

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Text: Competition Series
Students in the auditorium at the 2024 Manhattan Chapter Competition

Mathletes experienced the thrill of competition and teamwork at the school, chapter, state and national levels this year. To prepare, all coaches received a copy of the 2023-2024 MATHCOUNTS School Handbook, plus helpful online resources. New and coaches at targeted Title I schools received extra resources and support through weekly emails.

This year, 169 schools in targeted underserved communities received free Competition series registration and extra resources, thanks to a grant from 3Mgives. Outreach and recruitment efforts to low-income areas have increased during the past 5 years. In 2023-2024, nearly 32% of Competition Series registrations were for Title I schools.
 

This Year in Numbers
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Students with backpacks icon

65,259 students participated
(including 33,158 who attended chapter competitions)

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3,747 schools participated in 538 chapter-, state- and national-level competitions

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The number of registered schools increased in 24 states this year
 

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96% of coaches surveyed agreed after participating in the Competition Series, their students enjoyed math more 

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Text: Alumni Engagement

 

 

DoD STEM logo

 

 

 

Each year since 2014, MATHCOUNTS has presented a $3000 scholarship to an exceptional MATHCOUNTS alum whose experience in our programs was influential. The Alumni Scholarship and our other alumni initiatives are supported by title sponsor DoD STEM.

Jaemin Kim headshot

Jaemin Kim just graduated from Hunter College High School in New York City and participated in MATHCOUNTS from 2018-2020.

“MATHCOUNTS taught me how to find a community and how to build it. It taught me how to share my love of mathematics and how to have it returned twofold. It taught me how to find a calling in mathematics and how to find a calling in each other.”
 

Jaemin holding a MATHCOUNTS trophy as a middle school student

Jaemin was a chapter competitor in 2018 who reached the state level in 2019 and was the co-captain of the first place team at the 2020 New York State Competition. MATHCOUNTS catalyzed Jaemin’s love for competition math, and he became the co-captain of the New York City math team.

MATHCOUNTS inspired Jaemin to make a difference with math in many ways—he founded a company called Autosurgic Inc. to engineer novel surgical devices, he leads annual math fairs for Hunter College Elementary School, he writes math content for organizations like Girls Are Great at Math and he is developing a free app called Numera to make math education more accessible.

Jaemin in a costume in a classroom
  • Srinivas Arun (CO)
  • Robert Hardy (GA)
  • Adam Inamasu (HI)
  • Amari Minh Luu (CO)
  • Bhaumik Mehta (NJ)
  • Krish Mody (OK)
  • Laura Zhang (VA)
Community Coaching Scholarship

This year, MATHCOUNTS supported a group of nine alumni who established and coached MATHCOUNTS programs at underserved schools. Two alumni, Amritha Praveen (IL) and Adithya Puninchittaya (NH) each won a $3,000 Community Coaching Scholarship last year, and all nine community coaches received a plaque and letter of recommendation.

Each community coach received free Competition Series registration, a free subscription to the MATHCOUNTS online problem library and a gift card to buy supplies for their team. MATHCOUNTS sent weekly check-in emails, plus brought together the cohort for three online sessions during the year.        

2023-24 Community Coaching Cohort

  • Arjun Agarwal (OR): Aloha-Huber Park School 
  • Ryan Cai (CA): Farb Middle School
  • Nityant Chandupatla (OK): Deer Creek Middle School
  • Yejoon Ham (TN): Bearden Middle School 
  • Samhitha Kovi (GA): Little Mill Middle School
  • Amritha Praveen (IL): Jack London Middle School 
  • Adithya Puninchittaya (NH): Kreiva Academy 
  • Narayani Shankar (UT): Northwest Middle School
  • Eric Wang (AZ): Ingleside Middle School
     
Adithya talking to middle school students working in a classroom
The most rewarding part of coaching a MATHCOUNTS team is witnessing the transformation of our students' mathematical abilities and confidence.
Amritha Praveen, 2023 Community Coaching Scholarship recipient, pictured at far right with her team
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One of the 2023 Community Coaching Scholarship winners with her team
2024-2025 Community Coaching Cohort
Scholarship Winner
Indrani Das Sarma

Coach at the I Promise School (OH)
Indrani is a junior at Hawken School in Chesterland, OH. She is a math and Science Olympiad tutor who has also had success in debate and essay competitions.
 

Scholarship Winner
Mahi Kohli

Coach at Hickman Mills Middle School (MO)
Mahi is a sophomore at Olathe North High School in Overland Park, KS. She has conducted award-winning Alzheimer’s research and founded a nonprofit called STEMing with the Stars.

Full Cohort
  • Indrani Das Sarma (OH)
  • Ali Fasihuddin (NV)
  • Hope Hallock (FL)
  • Rishidharan Jayakumar (NC)
  • Mahi Kohli (KS)
  • Jason Lee (NC)
  • Anvita Rayabarapu (KS)
  • Jason Shi (MO)
  • Rishabh Venkataramani (CA)
  • Eric Wang (AZ)
More Alumni Engagement

ALUMNI MONTHLY

Screenshot from an Alumni Monthly email highlighting a volunteer, scholarship and networking opportunity

Each month, the MATHCOUNTS staff sends an email to nearly 59,000 alumni in our database with internship, scholarship and volunteer opportunities from our partners.

We have also continued the opportunity for MATHCOUNTS alumni to join a networking Facebook group.

ALUMNI CHATS

Speech bubble with graduation cap. Text: Alumni Chats

This summer, MATHCOUNTS revamped Alumni Chats as an interview series highlighting successful alumni in our community. Alumni Chats kicked off in July 2024 with an interview with Natalie Boyle, a former teacher and current Manager of Math Content Creation for MATHCOUNTS.

CAPSTONE'S ANNUAL CHARITY NIGHT

Kristen Chandler poses with Emma Kerwin holding a MATHCOUNTS trophy.
Kristen Chandler (MATHCOUNTS Executive Director) presents Emma with a distinguished alumni award.

MATHCOUNTS alumna Emma Kerwin, a Business Intelligence Strategist at Capstone, nominated MATHCOUNTS as the charity supported at the company’s Annual Charity Night. Since the inaugural event in 2009, the events have helped raise over $3.5 million, supporting different organizations each year selected by Capstone employees. 

LIVE BY PO-SHEN LOH

Alumnus Po-Shen Loh and his team of young alumni hosted their fourth annual MATHCOUNTS Live Solve series, where they solved this year’s Chapter and State Competitions during interactive livestreams.

A collage of 4 screens with different hosts solving math problems.
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Text: Resource + Outreach Partnerships
Engineers Week

MATHCOUNTS teamed up with BAE Systems for our fifth annual Engineers Week (EWeek) celebration! From February 19-26, we posted five Problems of the Day, plus a bonus activity, to introduce students and the general public to hydraulic, software, electrical and environmental engineering, plus the engineering involved in computer science and packaging.

As a teacher, I like that the different engineering disciplines are highlighted. Many students say they want to be an engineer, but have no idea what that means or what options are available.
Teacher of EWeek participants
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Text: EWeek 2024
EWeek in Numbers
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7,328 participants this year
(a 76% increase from 2023)!

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52,509 total visits across all pages during EWeek

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95% of participants agreed EWeek helped grow their or their students’ math or problem-solving skills

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gift icon

10 groups and 5 individuals won gift cards in prize drawings 
 

DoD STEM Ambassadors

Each year, as part of the Defense STEM Education Consortium (DSEC), MATHCOUNTS selects a coach to join a cohort of DoD STEM Ambassadors. These expert teachers advance STEM education by creating resources and designing their own community impact projects.

Courtney Heikkila 

MATHCOUNTS selected coach and club leader Courtney Heikkila as the 2023-2024 ambassador. Courtney is an instructional coach at Mallard Creek STEM Academy in Charlotte, NC. For her impact project, Courtney held a MATHCOUNTS-style event in March 2024, bringing together 50 girls from 8 local middle schools to compete in Team & Countdown Rounds (pictured at right), plus play National Math Club games! Fellow MATHCOUNTS coach (and 2021-2022 ambassador) Tyler Erb also supported this event by helping recruit local high school students to volunteer.

Chris Ray 

UC San Diego CREATE, a MATHCOUNTS outreach partner and DSEC member, selected MATHCOUNTS coach and club leader Chris Ray as their 2023-2024 ambassador. Chris is a mathematics teacher at Albert Einstein Academies in SanDiego, CA. Together with club leaders Gen Esmende (also the 2020-2021 ambassador for CREATE) and Claudia Pruitt, Chris ran Math Fest in March 2024 for his impact project, bringing together 50 students and their families.

 

Two girls participate in a Countdown Round with other girls watching in the background.
I aim to serve as a role model by encouraging girls that STEM is for them...I'm committed to providing exposure to STEM from an early age, knowing its importance in fostering long-term interest and participation.
Courtney Heikkila, 2023-2024 DoD STEM Ambassador
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Headshot of Courtney
More Outreach Initiatives

MATHCOUNTS Monthly

Each month, the MATHCOUNTS staff emailed helpful tips to all coaches and club leaders, drawing from educational sources like founding sponsor the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)

MATHCOUNTS has partnered with NSBE for more than a decade. This year, MATHCOUNTS staff provided competition materials for regional NSBE Jr. events and hosted a MATHCOUNTS-style event at the NSBE Annual Convention in Atlanta, GA in March 2024. 
 

Brilliant

MATHCOUNTS partnered with Brilliant again this year to provide exclusive resources and webinars for coaches and club leaders, plus a Brilliant Premium subscription for each 2024 national competitor.

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Text: Support + Financials

 

 
In July 2024, MATHCOUNTS was nominated for a Charity Navigator Community Choice Award 
for being a top-rated non-profit organization.
2023-2024 National Organization Donors
RTX

Title Sponsor of the MATHCOUNTS National Competition

U.S. Department of Defense STEM

Title Sponsor of Alumni Engagement

Northrop Grumman Foundation

Lead Sponsor

National Sponsors

National Society of Professional Engineers

Capstone Investment Advisors

3Mgives

Texas Instruments Incorporated

Art of Problem Solving

Executive Sponsors

BAE Systems

Bentley Systems Incorporated

Carina Initiatives, Inc.

Sustaining Sponsors

National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying

CNA Insurance

Patron Sponsors

Anonymous (12)

Blue Owl Capital

Goldman Sachs

Google

Patron Sponsors

RGA Reinsurance Company

Societe Generale

Tourmaline Partners, LLC

Supporting Sponsors

Anonymous (2) 

Brilliant

Grist Labs

Mouser Electronics, Inc.

Additional Sponsors

Anonymous (1)

Wiley Publishing, Inc.

Founding Sponsors

National Society of Professional Engineers

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

CNA Insurance

Thank You!

Support from our sponsors makes MATHCOUNTS programs possible.

Key Information for 2023-2024

Click the buttons below to download PDFs of our most recent financials, plus lists of the people supporting the MATHCOUNTS mission, including our incredible donors and volunteer coordinators!