Joining an ARML team
Team selection for the American Regions Mathematics League varies from state to state.
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Georgia
Georgia ARML has sent two teams to ARML each year since 1991. In the past, the A team competed in the A division and the B team in the B division, but recently, the B team placed highly in the B division and so will compete in the A division at least until 2009. Usually, three alternates compete as well. Students interested in participation should do well in local tournaments and the AMC and AIME. In addition to schools invited to the annual varsity state tournament, the Georgia ARML coaches invite other individuals that are under serious consideration for the ARML team.The coaches select the team members during the state tournament based on USAMO index, performance in local tournaments, and score at the state tournament. Underclassmen are given leeway, as they have years to improve: middle schoolers, however, are rarely selected. For more detailed information on team selection, see the Georgia ARML website.
The team usually practices on Sundays from the state tournament until the trip to ARML. The specific compositions of the A and B teams are not usually determined long before ARML. Whether a team member will be on the A team, will be on the B team, or will be an alternate depends on the person's performance against other team members in practice individual rounds and the coaches's discretion.
Minnesota
Minnesota sends two teams to ARML each year, with the Gold and Maroon teams usually competing in divisions A and B, respectively.
Roughly 35 students are invited to ARML practices, which take place on three consecutive Saturdays in May. There is no practice Memorial Day weekend. Invitations to the ARML team are extended to the top 10 state scorers on the AMC12, the top 10 regular-season scorers on the Minnesota High School Math League, and the top 10 scorers on the Invitational Event at the statewide math league tournament (held in March).
Since these lists tend to overlap quite a bit, invitations are usually given to students "further down" these lists until enough invites have been given to fill two 15-person teams.
In addition, an extra 5 or so younger students (typically in grades 8 through 10) are invited to be ARML "students in training". They may or may not go to ARML, but often serve as alternates (in the event that other students cannot attend). The expectation is that a student in training will learn from the practices, and the following year will be on one of the two teams. Since the creation of the AMC8 and AMC10 exams, the top scorers from these exams have typically been invited to ARML practices, either as team members or students in training.
Usually at least one student in training is invited to go to ARML. This is to prevent a last-minute no-show (due to illness or emergency, for example) from crippling one of the teams.
The 2007 MN ARML team has already been selected.
Ohio
Invitation is based on OCTM (a state-wide competition) and AMC scores. Also, at the OHMIO (second level of OCTM) the offer to join is extended to anyone who is interested. Team placement is based on a combination of OCTM scores, AMC scores, and how well the person does in practices. Ohio normally sends two teams, but is sending three this year because enough students were interested. Also, starting this year, the Ohio A team is competing in division A. The other two teams are competing in division B.
The first practice is Sunday, April 22, and the second is Saturday, May 19.
San Francisco Bay Area
Any student is welcome to join the SFBA ARML team. Practices are held every Sunday at Stanford University, usually from 2:00 until 4:30 or 5:00. Coaches also set up practices at Berkeley on some weeks for students who live closer to there than Stanford. Practices begin in mid-April and run until the weekend before Memorial Day. Team placement is determined sometime in May by a combination of AMC/AIME scores and practice ARML tests.
To join the team and receive announcements about practices, join the "SFBA-ARML" Yahoo group, or just show up at practice. You can also send an AoPS PM to Sly Si for more information. If you're a Stanford student and interested in coaching, send a PM to Sly Si.
The April 22 practice at Stanford has been changed to 3:15-5:30.
South Carolina
To join the SC All-State Team, one must take a preliminary exam administered through their school. For more information, please contact ronskimomo@hotmail.com.
The preliminary exam is composed of 25 questions (non multiple choice), and is usually composed of easy to mid range AMC-12 level questions. From this exam, approximately 50-60 (in 2006 it was 49) of the top scorers from the state are selected into the South Carolina All State Mathematics Team. The qualifying floor this year was 11 out of the 25 questions. After an individual is accepted into the SC All State Team, he or she is invited to one or two ARML practices which are usually composed of individual tests, team tests, and a power round test.
Southern California
The Southern California team is open to residents of the following Southern California counties: Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, Kern, San Bernardino, and Riverside. The organization fields three teams (45 students) and competes at the western ARML site in Las Vegas.
Practices are held throughout the school year, approximately once a month, on the campus of California State University, Long Beach. Practices are normally held on Saturday afternoons. In addition, there is a Santa Barbara area group that meets and practices in Goleta and becomes part of the Southern California team.
Team selection is based on all of the following criteria:
- Attendence at practice sessions.
- Performance on problems at practice sessions.
- Performance at ARML itself in previous years.
- Performance on AMC and AIME, including current and previous years.
- Performance at CSULB Math Day at the Beach, a contest held in March.
The coach is Dr. Kent Merryfield, a professor at CSULB. His AoPS user name is Kent Merryfield. Please contact him for further information.
