Olympics of the Mind exhibition

An "Olympics of the Mind" exhibition will begin Wednesday, Nov. 11 at the Salisbury Mall, featuring talents of students in grades 3-8 in areas of art, music, science, sculpture, writing and poetry. The exhibit begins at 1 p.m. on and continues through Saturday, Nov. 14. All of these students will receive certificates of participation and other gifts.

Elementary and middle school students will perform instrumental music, vocal and dance at Center Court in the Mall at 4 p.m. on Wednesday.

High school students will compete in this exhibition under a national program, ACT–SO, an acronym for Academic, Cultural, Technical and Scientific Olympics. Students in grades 9-12 will exhibit and perform in a variety of areas. The winner in each division will have an opportunity to compete in the state ACT-SO competition in Raleigh in the spring, 2010. They will compete for gold, silver and bronze medals. They will receive other gifts of recognition also.

In the high school division (ACT-SO), students have prepared visual arts, creative writing, poetry, science and the performing arts in areas of dance, instruments and singing. Space is still available to high school students to compete in the science and technical divisions as well as writing, which may include, but is not limited to, senior projects.

The high school performing arts competition will take place on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 4 p.m. at Center Court at the Salisbury Mall. Everyone is invited to come to the Mall to encourage these students for their efforts.

This event is sponsored by the Salisbury–Rowan Branch of the NAACP in partnership with the Rowan-Salisbury Schools. The purpose of this "Olympics" is to encourage African-American youth to reach higher levels of academic, cultural, and scientific excellence by promoting showcasing student's strength in each of these areas.

If you believe that you have some special talents but have been heard about this program from a teacher or guidance counselor, you may call 704-636-3654 for more information no later than Monday, Nov. 9.