Help send the St. John the Evangelist team to World Finals!

A team of 1st, 3rd, and 5th graders from St. John the Evangelist School is advancing to the Odyssey of the Mind 2024 World Finals in Iowa (May 21-24). The team is advancing to World Finals after successfully placing in the regional and state tournaments! They are the only team from all of Broome County to make it to the World Finals this year.

The team has been working since October on their problem "Opening Night Antics." The kids were challenged to create a short performance about the opening night of a play where everything goes wrong! Over the last seven months the kids created props and set pieces, wrote a full script, and practiced for hours every week to get ready.

This year, the World Finals tournament in is Iowa and will draw teams from around the United States and across the globe. It's very exciting but also very expensive to get six kids, their parents, and props to Iowa for a week. Our goal is to help cover the cost of hotel rooms, gas, and meals for the families on this exciting trip.

We are deeply grateful to our community for all of the support and encouragement we have received so far! Any assistance you can provide will be a huge help in getting the team to World Finals. This will be a once in a lifetime opportunity for the kids to showcase their hard work, meet people from across the world, and represent CSBC and Broome county!

From the Odyssey of the Mind website :

Odyssey of the Mind (OM™) teaches students how to develop and use their natural creativity to become problem-solvers. Imagine being faced with a problem that requires an original solution. It can be frightening. Now imagine not being afraid to solve that problem – that is what OM members learn. This skill and self-confidence will carry over to all areas of their lives. OM brings the classroom to life as students apply what they learn and combine it with their interests and passions to solve our unique open-ended problems. OM also emphasizes teamwork, budgeting, time management, public speaking, and so much more. This international program is designed to help students at all learning levels grow as individual learners, grow as team members, and to reach their full potential.