GREENEVILLE – Tusculum University welcomed high school students from four states for a competition that tested and expanded their knowledge and enabled them to experience how the higher education institution equips its Pioneers to be career-ready professionals.
Students compete in one of the matches Saturday.
Led by Dr. Chuck Pearson, chair of the Natural Sciences Department, the university hosted the Tusculum Earlybird, a quiz bowl, Saturday, Oct. 7, in the state-of-the-art Meen Center. The College of Science, Technology and Mathematics and Office of Admission sponsored the event, which attracted 18 teams from 13 high schools.
“These students are building knowledge on the traditional subject matter of academic pursuit,” Dr. Pearson said. “What we hope is that the students who participate in these types of events are going to build their cultural literacy. They are going to recognize subject matter within the academic canon, and they are going to either delve into one of those academic disciplines or be very literate across the breadth of these fields.
“That should make them better students for the long haul, but it also just makes them better-educated adults for the rest of their lives.”
The teams primarily came from Tennessee and Southwest Virginia, but the Tusculum Earlybird also brought a school from South Carolina and another from Ohio. Tusculum chose the competition’s name because it is one of the first such events in the season.
Winning the novice division was the Cookeville High School A team, which defeated Union High School from Virginia in the final. The champion in the upper division was Northmont High School in Ohio, which beat the Ridgeview High School A team from Virginia.
The Cookeville High School A team won the novice division. Left to right are team members Daniel Slater, Raymond Yang and Joshua Sasser.
The Northmont High School team won the upper division. Left to right are team members Kevin Adler, Russell Dillak, Ave Rieger and Ethan Kral.
The Tusculum Earlybird features 20 cycles of questions in every match. Among the subjects that arose during the questions are literature, history, science, religion, mythology and fine arts. Some questions touch on relatively current events. The questions come at a fast pace.
Dr. Scott Hummel, the university’s president, who addressed the teams when the event started, liked what he saw at Tusculum Earlybird.
“It was extremely impressive to see so many students seizing the opportunity to show what they have learned and acquire more knowledge through this wonderful event,” Dr. Hummel said. “Their participation in the Tusculum Earlybird and other quiz bowls is a great example of the active and experiential learning that permeates our university. We were pleased to see them and look forward to having them on campus again.”
Tusculum is interested in holding the event to let students who care about knowledge know that they have a place at Tennessee’s first higher education institution. Many Tusculum faculty, staff and students served in a variety of roles during the event to show their desire to help students who are interested in this type of activity and ensure the event was a success. The Tusculum Earlybird also benefited from assistance by others from East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia.
Tusculum staff member Laura Carr asks the questions during one of the matches.
Dr. Chuck Pearson, right, and Dr. Peter Noll discuss an item about the Tusculum Earlybird.
“Faculty and staff at Tusculum recognize the work that goes into gaining this knowledge, care about it and want to support students in their development,” Dr. Pearson said. “We have the infrastructure to support what they want to do with their knowledge moving forward and will be pleased to help them advance in their academic growth.”
Dr. Pearson is the director of the Tusculum Earlybird and has been extensively involved in these types of competitions. He has served as a moderator in matches at quiz tournaments and championships in various parts of the country and at the Tennessee Science Bowl.
He said the Meen Center is a perfect location for the Tusculum Earlybird. Teams competed in matches that were spread throughout the building. This gave students an opportunity to see the classrooms, lecture hall and labs that give students an optimal education at Tusculum.
Anyone who is interested in participating in the Tusculum Earlybird in the future or who wants to discuss academic competition at Tusculum in general can email Dr. Pearson at cpearson@tusculum.edu. More information about the university is available at www.tusculum.edu.