Ridge View High School wins Columbia World Affairs Council Regional 2017 Academic WorldQuest
February 9, 2017
The Columbia World Affairs Council (CWAC) awarded Ridge View High School first place in the Midlands Regional 2017 Academic WorldQuest competition. The team of freshmen, four students and one alternate, lead by Mrs. Sherilyn Phillips took the lead and $500 grand prize over teams from Columbia High School and Dutch Fork High School at the February 4 event hosted by CWAC and the South Carolina Geographic Alliance at the University of South Carolina’s Department of Geography.
The team will go on to compete at The Carlos and Malú Alvarez 2017 Academic WorldQuest National Competition to be held on Saturday, April 29 at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. This year’s National Competition also features a welcome reception at the U.S. Institute of Peace.
“We had a great competition and all of the students showed impressive knowledge of international affairs,” says Dickson Monk, executive director of CWAC. “We are thrilled that Ridge View will be advancing to the nationals and wish them the best of luck!”
Academic WorldQuest is the World Affairs Councils of America’s flagship student education program, now in its 15th year. The main objective of the school-year program is to inform and engage high school teens and their teachers across the country in global affairs. More than 4,000 students participate in after-school learning to test their knowledge of international affairs in team-based Academic WorldQuest competitions hosted by nearly 50 World Affairs Councils.
“My students are so excited about traveling to D.C. to compete in April,” says Mrs. Phillips. “Saturday after the competition when my students got home they immediately started brainstorming fundraising ideas.”
The prize money will be used to fund the team’s journey to the national competition, but they still need to raise the rest. For more information on CWAC’s Academic WorldQuest program for 2018 or to support Ridge View’s efforts to take the gold in D.C., please contact Mr. Monk at [email protected] or 803.252.2197.
About the Columbia World Affairs Council
Founded in 1993, the Columbia World Affairs Council (CWAC) is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization in the Midlands region of South Carolina, located in the state capital. CWAC serves as the bridge between our local community and its global counterparts. In recent years, South Carolina has experienced rapid growth in international business, politics, and culture. Devoted to promoting intercontinental awareness in South Carolina, the Columbia World Affairs Council exists not only for the state’s benefit, but also for its citizens by enhancing their opportunities to engage in projects that are beneficial to the international community.
