State
Finals

New York State Fairgrounds (for Problems 1, 3, 4 & 5) 581 State Fair Blvd, Syracuse, NY 13209 Solvay High School (for Problem 2 and Spontaneous) 600 Gertrude Ave, Solvay, NY 13209

Problem 1: Div I, Div 2/3 NYS Fairgrounds, Micron Center of Progress Problem 2: Div I, Div 2/3 Solvay High School, Auditorium & Gymnasium Problem 3: Div 1, Div 2, Div 3 NYS Fairgrounds, Art and Home Center ​Problem 4 Div I, Div 2/3 NYS Fairgrounds, Exhibit Center (Dairy & Cattle Building) Problem 5 Div I, Div 2, Div 2 NYS Fairgrounds, Horticulture Building Check out the Venues page

Both the Fairgrounds and Solvay HS will be open from 6:30am. For Problem 4 the Weigh-In Site in the Dairy & Cattle building will open at 7:00 am, but teams performing in the afternoon should not report to weigh in prior to 11:00am, because priority in the queue is given to teams closest to their performance time.

Spontaneous is being held at Solvay High School, 600 Gertrude Avenue, Solvay, NY 13209. Registration is just inside the Auditorium ​Note: Only one coach and the team should go to Spontaneous Registration. Additional coaches and supporters should not accompany the team. Supporters should not to make noise or celebrate loudly as the teams exit spontaneous as this can interfere with other teams competing inside.

There is limited parking at Solvay HS. Three shuttle buses will be running continuously in a loop from the Fairgrounds to Solvay and back again. All teams doing Spontaneous, and general audience members wanting to watch the Problem 1 performances at Solvay, should take the shuttle (a 15-minute ride) to get to Solvay. The bus can be caught outside the Science and Industry Building, opposite the Gate 2 Main Entrance at the Fairgrounds.

Yes. NYSOMA has reserved a block of rooms and several Syracuse hotels, with special rates available till various cut-off dates in March. Check out the Team Hotels page for details.

This year we are doing something special again! We have a giant mobile LED screen which will be displaying photos and messages to the teams, outside the Science and Industry building during the day and in the Micron Center of Progress prior to awards. Coaches and supporters can submit a Shout-On online at the following page: www.nyodyssey.org/shout-outs-submit

Please hand in any found items to the Information Booth located in the Science and Industry building or to Spontaneous Registration at Solvay. Items will be taken to the Awards Ceremony at the Micron Center of Progress so that they can be retrieved by their rightful owners. Items not claimed by the end of awards will be held at the Security Office at the Fairgrounds. It is the responsibility of the owner to contact Security at 315-728-4486 to retrieve.

You can submit the on-line submission form here, or by scanning the appropriate QR code posted around the venues. All OMER nominations will be reviewed by a Special Awards Committee and, if awarded, will be announced during the Awards Ceremony.

Successful individuals and teams whose submissions were judged worthy by the Scholarship Committee will be contacted prior to State Finals and be invited to attend on April 13th (if they aren't already competing). Awardees will be announced and a brief clip of their winning videos will be played on the giant LED Screen during the Awards. All honorees will be presented with a check to help with college expenses. Later the winning submitted videos will be featured on the nyodysey.org web page.

The draft schedule will be posted here by Tuesday March 25 sometime in the evening (or before if possible). Schedule change request must be submitted by Friday March 28th at noon. After 12 noon on Friday March 28 the schedule will be final, and no further changes will be made.

Coaches are strongly encouraged to complete Fast-Track registration before they arrive by: 1. Completing and uploading the Media Release form 2. Paying the tournament fee ($225 per team) Go to the Team Information - State Finals page for more details. Coaches will be notified by email when both the media release and payment have been accepted. Fast-Track status can also be checked here. Coaches who have been notified or their Fast-Track status is shown as Complete, do NOT have to go to Team Registration on Friday/Saturday and may go directly to their scheduled Spontaneous or Long-Term sites. The Staging Area judges will have your Team envelopes at the Long-Term performance sites.

If you have not completed online Fast-Track registration by April 4th at www.nyodyssey.org/Team-Information-State-Finals you must register in person, to turn in the media release form and/or payment, in order to compete. One person may complete registration for a team or for multiple teams. The Staging Area judges will have your Team envelopes at the Long-Term performance sites. Friday, April 4th 3:00-8:00 pm Arts & Home Building, NYS Fairgrounds Saturday, April 5th 6:30-10:00 am, Arts & Home Building, NYS Fairgrounds Saturday, April 5th after 10:00 am, by arrangement - call or text Jean @ 716-307-0877 Note: A media release form is mandatory this year for all the team members and coaches. It should be signed by a parent/guardian for each child, as well as by the team coach(es). Teams will not be allowed to register without a fully completed and signed media release form. The form can be downloaded here.

A $225 per team fee is required before your team may compete. You must submit payment prior to State Tournament by mail/online OR at Regular (in-person) Team Registration, Friday, April 4th and Saturday, April 5th To pay by Credit Card or PayPal: PLEASE do this before arriving at Team Registration at www.nyodyssey.org/payment-state-tournament To pay by Check: Make payable to NYSOMA Mail to NYSOMA Registrar, PO Box 1431, Ellicottville, NY 14731 Checks must be received by April 3rd (after that date, please hand deliver at registration) A Purchase Order does NOT constitute payment At Team Registration, if there is no record of payment, the coach will be required to pay (check, credit card or cash) before the team can compete. Payment will be held until the school district’s payment is received.

The NYS Fairgrounds is located at: 581 State Fair Blvd, Syracuse, NY 13209 Directions can be found on their website. All vehicles please enter through Gate 2.

Problem 1 Div I, Div 2&3 Micron Center of Progress Problem 3 Div I, 2, 3 Arts and Home Center ​Problem 4 Div I, 2&3 Exhibit Center (Dairy & Cattle Building) Problem 5 Div 1, 2, 3 Horticulture Building, Art and Home Center

For this year we a trialling a new procedure allowing teams who are competing in the Center of Progress (Problem 1), Arts & Home (Problem 5) or the Dairy & Cattle (Problem 4) buildings to drop their props off the day before the tournament April ,4th from 3 to 7pm. This should ease traffic congestion dropping props off at performance sites on Tournament day. Buildings will be locked after 7pm for security. If teams abuse this priviledge or damage other teams props they will be subject to unmsportsmanlike conduct penalties and early prop drop off will not be available next year.

Each long-term problem has designated areas to drop off props and for prop storage inside each performance building. These areas are marked on the maps (check out the venue diagrams at www.nyodyssey.org/venue). There is limited prop drop off (3-7pm) the day before the Competition (April 4th) in: Center of Progress (P1), Dairy & Cattle (P4) and the Horticulture (P5) buildings. Space for prop storage is limited so it is important to remove props from these areas as soon as possible. Teams and supporters should be very aware of making too much noise in the prop storage areas, as sound travels in large open venues, and can negatively impact other teams.

At least 60 minutes before its scheduled performance time, the team members should report to the Weigh-In location in Dairy & Cattle with their structure. For Problem 4 the Weigh-In Site in the Dairy & Cattle building will open at 7:00 am, but teams performing in the afternoon should not report to weigh in prior to 11:00am, because priority in the queue is given to teams closest to their performance time. The structure will remain at the Weigh-In Site after successful completion of Weigh-In. Teams should report to their performance site 25 minutes prior to their scheduled time with everything they will use in their solution. At that time, a team member, accompanied by an official, will go to the Weigh-In Site to pick up the team's structure.

No, there are no dumpsters. Props cannot be left at the Fairgrounds. Please do not destroy your props immediately if you do not advance to World Finals as it is possible that if another team decides not to advance, you might be offered that spot.

There is lots of parking available. Check out the map at www.nyodyssey.org/venue. There will be signage after entry to the Fairgrounds and Fairgrounds parking staff will be on hand to direct you to the appropriate lot.

A parking lot has been designated for larger vehicles – the Empire RV Park above the Midway parking, see map at www.nyodyssey.org/venue

At the NY State Fairgrounds, the floors in the Center of Progress, the Exhibit Center (Dairy & Cattle) and the Horticulture Building are concrete. The Art and Home building has a mixture of tiled, wooden and carpeted flooring.

Watch other teams compete - there's always something to learn... Take pictures and upload for our Slide Show prior to awards Visit the Science and Industry building to: Buy NY Odyssey Souvenirs and Pins Take a picture of your team in front of our new banner! Do activities with the Syracuse Crunch (and maybe pick up some freebies!) Try your luck at OMER’s Plinko game and win a prize Have a go at the Fishing game and win a goodie bag Visit the Syracuse Visitors Bureau desk for give aways and to enjoy their fun game Enjoy food from the Food Trucks and the Concession booths and use the picnic tables at the Science and Industry building. There are several photo opportunities and selfie-stations for your team and family throughout the Fairgrounds.

Yes, NYSOMA is delighted to welcome everybody to come watch performances and enjoy the day. Many of our venues have multiple performance sites in one building so it is important to keep the noise down when performances are happening. To help control noise there will be "No Congregating" zones outside the performance areas. Please respect this and provide other teams and spectators the best environment for competing.

Souvenirs and pins will be available for sale in the Science and Industry Building from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM. LED blinky items will be on sale in the Center of Progress prior to the awards geremony.

Food Trucks will be parked outside the Science and Industry building between 7:00 am – 4:00 pm. There are concessions booths selling fast food at both the Horticulture Building and the Center of Progress. Food may be purchased using cash or credit cards. Check out details of food trucks and concession booths at www.nyodyssey.org/food

Designated eating areas can be found in the Science and Industry Building. The concession stands in the Center of Progress and the Horticulture buildings have their own seating. Please no eating or drinking in the performance and prop areas!

Problem 2 - Mech-Animal Sidekick High School Gym & Auditorium Spontaneous for all problems Registration - Outside the Music Room

Solvay High School is located at 600 Gertrude Ave, Solvay, NY 13209. There is VERY LIMITED parking at Solvay High School. It is highly recommended that all teams and supporters park at the Fairgrounds and use the continuously operating shuttle buses from the Science and Industry Building to Solvay HS. Three buses will run a continuous loop between the 2 sites. - The first bus leaves the Fairgrounds at 7:30am - The last bus leaves Solvay High School at 4:30pm Shuttle stops are located at: - The Fairgrounds, outside the Science and Industry Building on Hiawatha Ave. - Solvay High School, at the bus loop in front of the school. Only team and one adult (coach) can ride the bus.

There is very limited parking on school grounds at Solvay. There is some street parking and a small parking lot nearby. Police will be monitoring traffic and parking, and you will be ticketed if you park illegally. It is highly recommended that teams and supporters park at the Fairgrounds and use the continuously operating shuttle buses leaving from the Science and Industry Building. Props may be delivered to Solvay but trucks and other vehicles can only use the designated prop parking areas at Solvay for a limited time. After dropping off props, and removing them after the performance time, all vehicles carrying props should return to the Fairgrounds School buses may not park at Solvay and must return to the Fairgrounds to wait for the team to be finished. A parking lot has been designated at the Fairgrounds for larger vehicles – the Empire RV Park above the Midway parking, see maps at www.nyodyssey.org/venue.

Problem 2 has designated areas for prop storage inside the school. These areas are marked on the maps (check out the venue diagrams at www.nyodyssey.org/venue. Space for prop storage is limited for teams so it is important to remove props from the school as soon as possible. Teams and supporters at Solvay should be very aware of making too much noise outside the school as teams exit from Spontaneous in the hallways and prop storage areas. Sound travels and can negatively impact other teams and the Spontaneous competition taking place throughout the day.

No, there are no dumpsters. Props cannot be left at Solvay. Please do not destroy your props immediately if you do not advance to World Finals as it is possible that if another team decides not to advance, you might be offered that spot.

Yes, NYSOMA is delighted to welcome everybody to come watch the Problem 2 performances and enjoy the day. Be aware that the Spontaneous competition is also being held in the same building so it is important to keep the noise down outside of the performance areas, in the hallways and outside the school entrance/exits. Spectators are NOT allowed to watch spontaneous. Sorry, its top secret!

The performance areas at Solvay are on a typical gymnasium floor and on a fantastic stage in the auditorium.

Please try to be on time but if you do run late, please text or call: Liz Hall at (585) 330-2299.

Entrance to the Spontaneous venue is through the main entrance doors on the left side of the school building. Check out the maps at nyodyssey.org/venue Team check-in will be in the hallway outside the Music Room if you go straight ahead after entering the left hand entrance the building. The holding room will be in the Music Room (1st floor) and the Chorus Room (2nd floor). Note: Only one coach and the team should go to Spontaneous Registration. Additional coaches and supporters should not accompany the team or wait outside. After you have finished competing in Spontaneous you will exit through the same doors you entered. The entry to the competition sites for Problem 2 Teams and Props is via the main entrance to the school on the right hand side of the building. Audience members for Problem 2 may also enter through the main entrance doors at the right of the Building.

A food truck from the Fair Deli will be stationed at in the parking lot at Solvay for Problem 2 teams, and all teams doing spontaneous. Payment can be via cash or credit card Check out details of food truck at Solvay and the Fairgrounds at www.nyodyssey.org/food A Solvay HS booster club will be selling drinks and snacks inside the school cafeteria (cash only).

Designated eating areas can be found in the Cafeteria (enter through the left hand doors at the front of the building). Please no eating or drinking in the performance and prop areas!

The Awards Ceremony will be held in the Micron Center of Progress and will start around 6:30PM.

Yes – the DJ will start the dance party at 4:30PM at the Micron Center of Progress. We will also be doing our t-shirt and pin raffle. Our portable Jumbotron will be showing a slide show of team submitted photos and “shout-outs” from friends and family. Coaches and supporters can submit a Shout-On online at the following page:

This year we will advance the top 2 places in each problem and division (including ties) to represent New York State at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals to be held this year at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan from 21st-24th May 2025. Ranatra Fusca winners at the NY State Finals are also invited to compete at World Finals.

Yes - there will be a brief meeting immediately after the Awards ceremony. It is critical that one coach attend this meeting as vital information regarding tournament and housing registration will be shared, given the short period of time between our State Tournament and World Finals. If teams do not complete their housing applications promptly, they run the risk of being unable to stay on campus. There will also be a Zoom Meeting for coaches of advancing teams on Sunday April 20th at 7pm. Details will be sent via email to advancing coaches.

Yes. Check the video page on the NY Odyssey website for details.