Brookings High School Team Takes Home Regional Title and Invitation to National Science Bowl: A Journey to Washington, D.C.

The South Dakota Regional Science Bowl in February saw five students from Brookings emerge victorious, earning them an invitation to compete at the national tournament sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington, D.C. This prestigious event attracted 67 teams from across the country, along with 48 middle school teams competing in their own division.

Led by Vanessa An, Nancy Yang, Cole Knutzen, Sampada Nepal, and Mallory Wells, the Brookings High School team was unstoppable at the regional tournament and took home the title of regional champions. Accompanied by their Quiz Bowl adviser Ronda Kantack, the group was ecstatic about their success and looked forward to representing their school on a national stage.

The trip to Washington, D.C., was nothing short of exciting for these students as they embarked on tours of museums such as the Udvar-Hazy National Air and Space Museum and listened to presentations from various Department of Energy experts on artificial intelligence. They also participated in a Design Team Challenge where they were recognized as the top team in their division.

While they may not have won first place at nationals, the Brookings team still had an outstanding experience at the National Science Bowl that included visits to museums like Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and a tour of Capitol Hill. The team’s coach Ronda Kantack shared her satisfaction with her students’ performance saying “I am incredibly proud of how well my students did under pressure”.