Local Student to Compete in State GeoBee Competition

Alexandros Cooke-Politikos, an eighth-grade student from West Hartford who attends Talcott Mountain Academy in Avon, has been notified by the National Geographic Society that he is one of the semifinalists eligible to compete in the 2019 National Geographic GeoBee Connecticut State Competition. The contest will be held at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain on Friday, March 29, 2019.

Developed by the National Geographic Society in 1988 to promote geographic knowledge among young people in the United States, the National Geographic GeoBee is an academic competition for public schools, private schools, and homeschools in the United States and its territories, as well as the Department of Defense Dependents Schools (DoDDS). Students in grades 4-8 from nearly 10,000 schools participate annually for a chance to win college scholarships and the glory of being the National Geographic GeoBee Champion.

“The GeoBee is a good opportunity for students to sharpen their geography skills and have fun at the same time. At Talcott Mountain Academy, students in grades 5-8 hold Bees in their grade levels first to determine the two students from each grade who will compete in the school-wide Bee,” said Lydia Gibb, Dean of Talcott Mountain Academy. The school champion is then eligible to take an online qualifying test to determine if they can participate at the state level.

“Coming in second last year, Alexandros took first place at this year’s school GeoBee,” said Gibb. “After completing the qualifying exam, he was thrilled to be invited by The National Geographic Society to participate with 99 other students at the state level.”

This year, National Geographic increased the prize money for all State GeoBees. State champions will receive a medal, $1,000 in cash, and other prizes, as well as a trip to Washington, D.C., to represent their state in the National Championship to be held at National Geographic Society headquarters, May 19-22, 2019. Students that come in second and third place will receive cash awards of $300 and $100, respectively.

Each State Champion will advance to the National Championship and compete for cash awards and college scholarships. In 2019, the national champion will receive a $25,000 college scholarship, $1,000 in cash, a lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society, and an all-expenses-paid Lindblad expedition to the Galápagos Islands aboard the National Geographic Endeavour ll; second place will receive at $10,000 college scholarship and $1,000 in cash; third place will receive a $5,000 college scholarship and $1,000 in cash; and seven runners-up will receive $1,000 in cash each. Visit www.natgeobee.org for more information on the National Geographic GeoBee.

Follow the National competition at National Geographic Headquarters in Washington, D.C., on May 19-22 at natgeoed.org/experiences.

About Talcott Mountain Academy
Talcott Mountain Academy in Avon, Connecticut, is an independent school for intellectually excited students K-8. Founded in 1983 as a division of the Talcott Mountain Science Center, the Academy is a unique on-site learning laboratory that nurtures children’s innate abilities from an early age. www.talcottacademy.org

About The National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society is an impact-driven global nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. Since 1888, National Geographic has been pushing the boundaries of exploration, investing in bold people and transformative ideas to increase understanding of our world and generate solutions for a healthy, more sustainable future for generations to come. Our ultimate vision: a planet in balance. To learn more about the Society and its programs, visit www.nationalgeographic.org.