Two teams from Beaufort High School took the top two positions in Beaufort County’s fourth annual Academic WorldQuest Competition.
Beaufort High’s Green Team finished No. 1, while the school’s White Team finished second. A team from Hilton Head Island High finished third.
First-place Beaufort High Green Team members were Noah Kimbrell, Max Crisologo, Alex Mazzeo and John Manos. Second-place White Team members were Reagan Kilpatrick, Hays McDaniel, Isaac Norton and Rasikh Hamid. Teacher Debi Kidd coached both teams.
The World Affairs Council of Hilton Head hosted the annual Academic WorldQuest Competition in partnership with the Beaufort County School District. During Saturday’s competition at Hilton Head Island High, eight high school teams faced a screen where multiple-choice questions were projected. Using electronic “clickers,” they had 30 seconds to answer each question posed. Audience members sat behind the competing teams and were able to see the questions as they were projected on the screen.
This year’s categories for questions focused on key national security issues as determined by the World Affairs Council leaders across the country. Those issues included current events; Russia/Eurasia; Asia and the New Global Economy; Africa Rising; the Future of Energy; Great Decisions; Youth, Jobs and Social Unrest; Food and Water, Human Trafficking; and Millennium Development Goals: 2015 and Beyond.
This year’s winning team from Beaufort County will travel to Washington for the national competition, said Carlton Dallas, a Hilton Head businessman who serves as the project director for WorldQuest in Beaufort County.
“In a world that’s increasingly connected – and interconnected – young people who understand how that world works will be more successful in it,” Dallas said. “Tomorrow’s leaders must be knowledgeable about other countries and cultures.”
The second-place Beaufort High Green Team members each received a $100 Best Buy gift certificate, and the third-place Hilton Head Island High team members each received a $50 gift certificate.
The competition’s moderator was James Edward Alexander, a former broadcaster and attorney and a WACHHI member.
Academic WorldQuest is the flagship educational program of the national network of World Affairs Councils and is held annually in more than 40 U.S. cities.