Adair County Elementary School Academic Team participants competed Tuesday, Feb. 8, and Saturday, Feb. 12, in District 38 Governor’s Cup at Russell Springs Elementary School.
The team bested four other squads to win the title of overall District competition, Adair County Elementary also claimed a first-place finish in Future Problem Solving (FPS) and Quick Recall, while several students notched individual victories. These achievements have awarded advancement to regional competition at Joe Harrison Carter Elementary School in Tompkinsville, Kentucky, on Feb. 28 and March 5, 2022.
“They’ve been practicing for this since September, so it’s great to see all the hard work pay off,” said Lisa Newell-Hare, one of the team’s two coaches, along with Jeana Pike. “We’ve got great students and a supportive group of parents/guardians who helped make this happen.”
This year’s ACES academic team was composed of 20 members: Riley Andrew, Christopher Armenti, Alaynah Bayuk, Madison Burkhardt, Addison Chapman, Elaine Cook, Lily Coots, Wiley Feese, Leo Garsee, Chloe Grider, RyAnna Hale, Rocky Klingberg, Suzy Kotter, Patrick Oliver, Bentley Petty, Ellie Staten, Mia Stephens, Cole Stockton, Pierce Stotts, and Maddie Wethington.
The winning FPS team featured Riley Andrew, Lily Coots, Leo Garsee, Chloe Grider, RyAnna Hale, Suzy Kotter, Bentley Petty, Mia Stephens, Cole Stockton, and Pierce Stotts.
Their topic for the competition was “Building Green.”
“These students never cease to amaze me with their creativity and problem-solving skills,” said Pike, who focuses her coaching duties on FPS. “They’ve worked hard to learn and apply the six-step creative problem solving model to complex issues facing society today. It was a great challenge for them and they’re truly winners in my eyes.”
First-place individual winners for ACES include Riley Andrew (Arts & Humanities), Christopher Armenti (Science), Patrick Oliver (Mathematics & Social Studies), and Ellie Staten (Language Arts). Other top-five finishers were Riley Andrew (2nd in Written Composition), Christopher Armenti (4th in Mathematics and 2nd in Social Studies), Elaine Cook (2nd in Science and 5th in Arts & Humanities), Wiley Feese (2nd in Science and 4th in Written Composition), Cole Stockton (4th in Arts & Humanities) and Maddie Wethington (4th in Language Arts).
One of the most competitive portions of the competition Saturday was the Quick Recall event. ACES won all four matches they competed in.
“I was extremely proud of how well they persevered in a long day of competitions,” Newell-Hare said. “They kept the right attitude the whole time, encouraging their own teammates, as well as their opponents.”
Quick Recall team members were Alaynah Bayuk, Madison Burkhardt, Addison Chapman, Wiley Feese, RyAnna Hale, Rocky Klingberg, Suzy Kotter, Patrick Oliver, Cole Stockton, Pierce Stotts, and Maddie Wethington.
The ACES academic team will compete in the Governor’s Cup Region competition on Feb. 28 for FPS and Written Composition and March 5 for Written Assessments and Quick Recall.
“We can’t wait for regional competition,” Newell-Hare said. “The students are excited for the opportunity.”
