Academy of Notre Dame Students Head to Nationals

TYNGSBORO, MA - A group of students and teachers from the Academy of Notre Dame will be headed to Knoxville, TN, at the end of May to represent Massachusetts at the Destination Imagination Global Finals, according to a press statement.

The Destination Imagination (DI) team of Tatiana Bazzani of Nashua; Elizabeth Bennett of Lowell, MA; Olivia Blatus of Dracut, MA; Yasmine Ebeed of Windham; Ashley Hall of Pelham; Ingrid Hanson of North Billerica, MA; and Olivia Sergi of Pepperell, MA; came in first place in the Fine Arts challenge during the state DI competition in April. The win earned them the opportunity to advance to Global Finals.

"I am so proud of the girls and everything they have accomplished," said Jacinta Patterson, an English teacher and DI Advisor. "Half of the team is participating in DI for the first time, but they represented us at States as if they were a veteran team.”

Destination Imagination (DI) teaches students the creative process through STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), the arts and service learning Challenges. DI’s project-based learning has helped more than 1.5 million students tap into their creativity and learn the skills they need to build successful careers.

Teams that participate in DI tournaments solve two types of challenges, a team challenge and an instant challenge. Team Challenges are open-ended projects that are worked on over an extended period of time, usually two-four months. Instant challenges are presented on the day of the event.

This year’s Fine Arts challenge had students combine their acting and creative muscles as they experimented with different types of artistic media and theater arts, wrote scripts, and designed costumes and props. As a point of interest, the students had to present a mystery story set on Earth in a team-chosen time period before 1990.

The Academy’s team presented a ‘whodunnit’ mystery story with an ending so mysterious even they didn't know the culprit until competition. In costumes made of paint chips and Starburst wrappers and surrounded by set pieces that helped point to the guilty party, the girls discovered the assailant and defeated the competition.

“Their teamwork, creativity, and poise have been a joy to witness,” said Patterson. “They delivered a standout performance and I know they will make me and NDA proud in Tennessee. They are truly Renaissance women!"

The top-tiered teams from each state qualify to participate in the DI Global Finals, an international tournament that takes place each May and includes more than 8,000 kids from 15-plus countries. With more than 17,000 people attending the event, Global Finals is the world’s largest celebration of creativity.

Caption: Back Row (left to right): Ingrid Hanson, Olivia Blatus, Tatiana Bazzani, Ashley Hall, Jacinta Patterson. Front Row : Olivia Sergi and Yasmine Ebeed. Not pictured: Elizabeth Bennett.

Submitted by The Academy of Notre Dame.