Students Need Funds to Reach Global Competition
Courtesy photo Amelia Earhart Elementary students will be heading to the 2015 Destination Imagination Global Finals Competition in Tennessee in May
Three Earhart Elementary teams heading to Destination Imagination Finals
Three teams of students at Amelia Earhart Elementary School recently found out they will advance to the 2015 Destination Imagination Global Finals Competition (DI) in service learning, fine arts and structural challenges. This is considered the largest creative thinking and problem solving competition in the world. DI encourages teams of learners to have fun, take risks and work collaboratively on challenges while incorporating STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), the arts and service learning.
Students compete in a regional tournament, presenting the projects they spent months developing. The highest-scoring teams then advance to state. The top level of the tournament is the Global Finals where more than 1,100 teams will gather from 45 states, seven Canadian provinces and 13 countries to compete.
"I am immensely proud of all of the Earhart students who competed in DI," said Earhart Principal Joy Dean. "The students demonstrate a relentless commitment to this incredible program starting when the teams are initially formed. They continue their efforts for several months, preparing for the tournament after school and on weekends."
Earhart students are on a roll. In the past two years, they have sent four fourth- and fifth-grade teams to the Globals. Parent volunteers manage each team, serving as advisors, trainers and coaches to the students.
Advancing Teams
• The Knights of the DI Table: Geoffrey Dubay, Liam Hofmann, Tommy Igo, Josephine Keintz, Maggie Konecky, Allison Kwon and Cordelia Spencer, and team managers: Paizley Spencer and Chris Keintz.
• The DI Express: Nicole Cramer, Adam Elmansouri, Cooper Gunning, Katy Hosokawa, Devin Kaneshiro, Amanda Lee and Maylee Witte, and team managers: Larry Witte and Bruce Kaneshiro.
• Put Down that Cookie: Max Howard, Ethan Madsen, Grant Mills and Jonathan Yim, and team managers: Mike Yim and Andy Madsen.
"In DI, there are always different ways to solve a problem." said fifth grader Katy Hosokawa. "Many times the 'what if' ideas are the best ideas. DI is hard work, but when we present our performance, and people smile and laugh, it's very rewarding."
The students launched their own fundraising efforts to cover travel costs to Knoxville, Tenn. where the competition will be held May 20 through 23. The teams need to raise approximately $40,000 to participate in Global Finals. To date, they have received over $20,000 in contributions.
The students are asking for the community's help to enable them to reach their fundraising goal. All donations are tax deductible and can be made at the teams' GoFundMe page: gofundme.com/earhartdi.
The students are also planning several fundraising activities. Families are invited for an evening Glow-in-the-Dark Fun Run/Walk at Encinal High School on Friday, May 8, from 7 to 9 p.m. where they can get some exercise, enjoy music, entertainment, prizes and glow-in-the dark accessories while helping the DI teams reach Knoxville.
Details on this event are available at www.earhartpta.org/di.
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imagination finals