25-26 Student Competitions
ARIN IU28
ARIN Regional Competition: October 14, 2025 - Elderton HS Gym - 8:30 am - 2:00 pm
State Competition: N/A
Cost: FREE
Lunch: Pizza will be provided or students may pack their own lunch.
REGISTER HERE by October 1, 2025
Please print, distribute, and collect both Parent Release Forms for each student participating.
Description / Details: A FREE, one-day STEM challenge for students in grades 5-12! No prep required—just bring your creativity and problem-solving skills, similar to a hack-a-thon. Work in teams of up to 5 students to tackle real-world challenges, design innovative solutions, and showcase your ideas. It’s a hands-on, fun experience with no barriers to participation—get ready to innovate and inspire!
Key Details:
- Open to students in grades 5–12
- Teams are organized by grade bands (5–6, 7–8, and 9–12)
- Schools can bring ONE team per grade band
- Schools can bring teams of 4–5 students per grade band
- The problem is revealed the morning of the event and simulcast across the state
There is no state final, but the goal is to help students develop an initial prototype or idea they could grow into a submission for other competitions like Invention Convention, PA Media and Design Competition, or another competition.
ARIN Regional Competition - December 16, 2025 - Elderton HS Gym - 9:00 am - 1:30 pm
State Competition: February 2026, Hershey, PA
Cost: FREE
Lunch: Students should pack a lunch for the day.
Event Details
- Winners of the regional event will be eligible for the state competition: February 2026, Hershey, PA
- Print, distribute, and collect both Parent Release Forms for each student participant
Participation Guidelines
- Due to space limitations, each district may register ONE team (2–4 students) per grade band (K-4, 5-8, 9-12) for the regional competition.
- If your district has multiple teams that are interested, please hold an in-house competition to determine who attends the regional competition; OR, compete virtually.
- Districts with more than one interested team can request to be added to the waitlist, and if space is available, will be given an additional registration.
Registration
- Register Here for the in-person Regional Competition by November 26, 2025
- OR
- Compete virtually and submit materials online as per the Virtual Submission Guidelines by November 30, 2025
For rules, rubric, and logbook templates, visit the PA Invention Convention website: https://www.pennsylvaniainventionconvention.com/
Visit the PA Invention Convention website for more information.
🚨PA Invention Convention Website🚨
🚨STEM Design Challenge Information Website🚨
ARIN Regional Competition - March 10, 2026 - Elderton HS Gym - 9:00 am - 1:30 pm
State Competition: May 2026, Harrisburg, PA
Cost: FREE
Lunch will not be provided. Students and advisors should pack a non-perishable lunch.
REGISTER HERE by February 20, 2026
Participation :
Please print, distribute, and collect both Parent Release Forms for each student participating.
Description / Details:
- Students can use Engino and/or K'Nex pieces.
- You can purchase the STEM Design Challenge Engino kit from this link.
- This event is for students in grade bands 4-5 and 6-8.
- Teams can use K'Nex, Engino, or a mix of both. (They don't connect together but teams could use both in their prototype.
- Visit the STEM Design Challenge website for more information.
ARIN Regional Competition -(Virtual) - Submissions due April 1, 2026
State Competition: May 2026, TBD
The PA Media and Design Competition is an annual event that highlights Pennsylvania students’ application skills, creativity and knowledge. Students are able to unleash their creativity, learn how to convey information more dynamically, and enhance the learning process. Regional winners move onto state competition held in May 2026.
- There is no limit to the number of projects you may submit
- Open to Grades 6-12.
- Students can work individually or in teams of up to 3.
- All projects and required paperwork must be submitted by April 1, 2026.
- Registration, as well as information about each category, including requirements and scoring rubrics are available at https://mediadesigncompetition.org.
Categories: 3D Design, Animation, Digital Movie, Logo and Graphic Design, Programming, or Web Page Design.
Regional Competition Submission Deadline: April 1, 2026
We follow all of the rules and use the exact scoring rubric as the state competition does. Please read all of the details carefully on the PA Media and Design Website.
ARIN Regional Competition - May 7, 2026 - Elderton HS Gym - 9:30 am - 2:00 pm
Cost: $8 per participant
Lunch: Pizza will be provided or students may pack their own lunch.
REGISTER HERE by April 30, 2026
Please print, distribute, and collect both Parent Release Forms for each student participating.
Description / Details: The 24 Math Challenge is a card game that contains various numbers, and the main goal of the game is to do math calculations (add, subtract, multiply and divide) to reach the answer of 24. Districts have a set number of seats; however, if districts do not participate that will open additional seats for interested schools.