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Pleasant Hill Team Earns Tenth Place in International Destination ImagiNation Competition
A team of seven fourth graders from Pleasant Hill School captured tenth place among 57 competing teams in the elementary video adventure division of the Destination ImagiNation Global Finals 2003 May 21-24 in Knoxville, Tenn. The team also took eighth place in the “main challenge” portion of the elementary video adventure division.
Destination ImagiNation is one of the world’s largest creativity and problem-solving programs. Approximately 8,000 students from 47 states, the Canadian provinces and 14 other countries were in Knoxville for the finals. The Pleasant Hill team earned the opportunity to compete by winning first place at the Illinois Destination ImagiNation competition in Bloomington, IL, on April 5.
Pleasant Hill team members Vivian McBride, Jeffery Pearson, Steven Pavlakis, Eric Tchon, David Vorick, Nichole Wellhausen and Jamie Yang effectively demonstrated their problem solving and creativity skills by creating a three-level “viDIo adventure” based on research about three countries: the United States, Germany and Egypt. For the main challenge portion of the competition which earned them eighth place, they created a story of a modern-day quest set in each of the three countries. The overall rating in which they placed tenth included “side trips” and an “instant challenge” segment.
Team member Jeffrey Pearson was selected to march in the Olympic-style opening ceremony carrying the Illinois banner.
The students were accompanied to Knoxville by team managers Faye Vorick and Jen Wellhausen. “It was the best performance they ever put on,” said Vorick. “The competition is about everyone doing their best, and our team certainly did.”
After winning the state final, the team had reached a decision not to attend the international finals unless all team members could go. The students raised money to pay for the trip. “We are very appreciative to the community for the support and generosity shown our team,” Vorick said. “Now the kids are eager to tackle the challenge again next year.”
Pleasant Hill School is a Blue Ribbon award school.
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