TROJANS QUALIFY for National Geography Competition
IN THE CLASSROOM
The Thornton Academy Academic WorldQuest team has once again qualified to participate in the National Academic WorldQuest ( AWQ ) competition . Academic WorldQuest is a fun , fast-paced team competition for high school students that tests players ’ knowledge of current international politics , geography , global economics , history , and world cultures .
Stefania Grobelna ’ 21 ( Rozalin , Poland ), Tenley Murphy ’ 21 ( Saco ), Taylor Nelson ’ 22 ( Saco ) and Shun ‘ Kevin ’ Yao ( Shanghai , China ) made up the winning team which finished 11 points ahead of the second place team . The regional competition , sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Maine , included schools from Maine , New Hampshire , and Vermont . Their victory secured them a spot in the national competition to be held Saturday , April 17 .
“ Competing in this year ’ s AWQ regionals was very different than in the past years — besides the regular stress related to the competition , we were also concerned about the technology . Thankfully everything turned out well and all the issues we encountered were resolved promptly . We ’ re currently preparing to compete in the national contest and are very excited for it !” Grobelna said .
This is the third time that a Thornton Academy team has qualified for the National competition of Academic WorldQuest . The previous teams placed 8th in the nation in 2016 and 4th in the nation in 2018 . This year the team has hopes to finish near the top again .
The team is coached by Thornton Academy teachers Mike Nelson and Tom Rackmales . Nelson teaches AP Human Geography , a course that focuses on migration , population , economics and global affairs . Grobelna , Murphy , Nelson and Yao have all taken the course and credit the class and their teachers for helping them to prepare . Nelson and Rackmales work with the students outside of class to prepare them for the specific style of questions that appear during the AWQ competition .
“ COVID-19 posed lots of problems for the kids this year , but I have been very impressed with their dedication to and preparation for the competition ,” Nelson said .
For the 2021-2022 academic year , Thornton Academy will expand their humanities offerings to include a specific WorldQuest class , one of the only high schools in the nation to offer this specialized geography class .
108
2018 WorldQuest Team and their coaches show off their trophies .
Story by Katy Nicketakis · Photos courtesy of Mike Nelson and Thornton Academy
Taylor Nelson ’ 22 , Shun ' Kevin ' Yao , Tenley Murphy ’ 21 , Stefania Grobelna ’ 22