Selecting Exhibits
PLEASE READ INSTRUCTIONS:
We thank you for volunteering to judge this "virtual" online Tri-County Science & Technology Fair. You will need to choose the exhibits that you wish to evaluate from April 1 at 8:00 AM to April 5 at 6:00 PM EDT.
BEFORE you use the Exhibit Selection Form below, please review the preliminary list of exhibits and remember the password and your primary email address (provided in your orientation email on April 1). Keep in mind that this list is subject to change before judging begins on April 8. Some exhibits will drop off, and others may be added and possibly assigned to you after you make your selections.
Please note: We have some recent developments in our virtual fair:
The Tri-County Science & Technology Fair strives to assign a minimum of three judges per exhibit across all grade levels. But when a category within a grade level may attract more than the minimum number of judges needed, the fair’s organizers reserve the right to assign more than three judges per exhibit to all exhibits equally within that category and grade level.
This form allows you to select up to 7 exhibits at one grade level only at Middle School OR at High School to judge on a first-come, first served basis, depending on which exhibits still remain unassigned to the maximum allowed number of judges. You may select exhibits in solely one or across more than one category
However, the number of available slots from which to select exhibits depends on the number of exhibits registered in that category vs. the number of confirmed judges who have selected that category. Consequently, some categories will offer only three slots per exhibit, while others may more..
We have a significant number of exhibits registered in the categories of Biology, Medicine and Medical Science & Technology, and Environment yet not enough judges who have expressed interest in evaluating exhibits from these categories. Please select some exhibits in these areas if you feel comfortable with evaluating them based on your technical expertise and background.
Because very few Elementary School exhibits have registered, we are assigning all these exhibits only to judges who cannot judge any other level because of potential conflict-of-interest and then to judges who have expressed an interest in judging at the Elementary School level.
If there are fewer exhibits available to select on the form than you had anticipated, it may mean that your original choices had already been selected by other judges beforehand based on when they completed the Exhibit Selection Form.
Therefore, PLEASE plan to have alternate choices at a different level or categories when you make your selections, especially categories where exhibits remain available. If you see very few exhibits in the level and category of your choice in the Preliminary List of Exhibits, then the odds are not likely that those exhibits will remain available to select.
While you cannot select exhibits across different levels, you can back out after choosing one level if you find an insufficient number of remaining exhibits. You can then choose a different level as long as you did not click the "Submit" button on the form.
Keep in mind: The earlier you access the Exhibit Selection Form, the more likely you get to judge the exhibits of your choice!
Levels and Categories of Exhibits
When attempting to select exhibits online, PLEASE PAY ATTENTION TO THE BREAKDOWN OF THE PRELIMINARY LIST OF EXHIBITS!! We have no control over the number of exhibits that eventually register in each category. It is entirely possible that the category at the level that you chose initially may not have enough exhibits for all the judges who selected them. Refer to the chart below, "Coverage by Confirmed Judges," which shows our coverage from Confirmed judges based on their preferred levels and categories as well as the number of exhibits competing, for guidance on selecting exhibits.
For example, categories like Engineering/Technology, Health/Nutrition, and Math/Computers across various levels typically have far fewer exhibits that can accommodate the number of judges that attempt to select from those areas. These are represented by the green-shaded cells. You will find more competition from other judges to select exhibits from those areas.
Conversely, we struggle to find enough judges to handle the number of exhibits in areas such as Earth/Space, Environment, Medicine, or Psychology categories at the High School level. These are represented by red-shaded or unshaded cells in the chart. You are more likely to find many exhibits still available in those areas for you to select, especially those with low coverage percentages. We ask that you please try to select exhibits in these areas if you feel comfortable with evaluating them based on your technical expertise and background.
Please also note there is no guarantee that all your original selections from the Exhibit Selection Form will still be available to evaluate by April 8 because some exhibits may drop out if they cannot develop their video presentation and supporting materials in time. Your Exhibit Evaluation Form will automatically remove those dropped-out exhibits.
After you select the exhibits to judge through our online form, you will receive a confirmation email acknowledging your selections.
A few days before the evaluations begin, you will receive a final reminder email with a list of the exhibits assigned to you from your online selections.
Your Exhibit Evaluation Form will be pre-populated with your (up to 10 ) choices from the Exhibit Selection Form. All your selections from the Exhibit Selection Form are FINAL. Please do not attempt to submit the scores on this form more than once -- only your first set of selections will count!
If you do NOT select exhibits online by April 5, 6:00 PM EDT, you may still be assigned with any remaining exhibits to evaluate that have not been selected by at least three judges.
If your plans suddenly change, i.e., you choose to no longer judge at the fair because there are not enough exhibits in your category (and level) of choice, or if you have any questions regarding the fair or judging, PLEASE contact the Judges' Committee as soon as possible at Judges@DiscoveryCtr.org or 845-621-1260 x-402. If you have already selected exhibits and later decide to opt out of judging, we will need sufficient time to release and reassign your exhibits to other judges.
Exhibit Selection Form
The form will be available from Monday, April 1, 8:00 AM to Friday, April 5, 6:00 PM EDT!!
You must use the form password that you received in your orientation email to access the Exhibit Selection Form. Once in the form, you must use your primary email address, which you have designated when you confirmed your attendance as a judge in the Confirmation form, to allow you to make your selections.
Please note: The form password and your primary email address that you enter in the form are case sensitive -- they must be entered in all lower case!
The Exhibit Selection Form will limit the choice of exhibits to those that still remain unassigned to three separate judges, and the form will limit you from selecting more than 10 exhibits. We strongly recommend that you be prepared to submit all your selections in one session -- you will NOT be able to save your choices and change them at a later time! After clicking the "Submit" button, you will receive an immediate acknowledgement of your exhibit selections and a later email confirming your assignments.
After you have completed your selections, please proceed to the next section to review Evaluating Exhibits