A team of fourth and fifth graders from Bear Creek School demonstrated their literary expertise at the 2025 Reading Olympics, hosted by the Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13 (IU13). The team from Etown, consisting of ten dedicated students, was among the highest-scoring teams, earning an impressive 50+ points in this year's competition.

The Reading Olympics is an academic event that challenges students to read and comprehend twenty-five designated novels between May 2024 and the competition date in February the following year. The event consists of three quiz bowl-style rounds, where teams face off against other schools, answering a wide range of questions covering characters, themes, and details from the assigned books.

At the heart of this competition is teamwork, and the Bear Creek team showcased outstanding collaboration and commitment throughout their journey. 

The 2025 Etown Bears team members included:

Fifth Graders:

• Bryce Zimmerman (Captain)
• Calvin Witman
• Jacob Hirst
• Timothy Leaman
• Jack Messick
• Levin McMullin

Fourth Graders:

• Fianna Clark
• Reese Groff
• Arju Subedi
• Aubrielle Powell

The Reading Olympics celebrates not only reading comprehension and literary analysis but also the joy of reading and teamwork. Schools from across the region participated, with teams earning different levels of recognition based on their scores, ranging from Blue Ribbon status (50+ points) to Yellow Ribbon status (29 points and below).

The students' success reflects the strong support and guidance of their coaches, gifted education teachers Eric Balak and Crystal Hirst.