2022 World Affairs Council of the Year
Network of Independent World Affairs Councils of America
Gwinett School students demonstrated mastery of international affairs knowledge in World Affairs Council’s annual competition.
WorldQuest 2017 Champs – (2nd from left) Theodora Abah, Sahana Shridhar, Nondi Walters and Sebastian Williams with teacher/coach Adam Brown.
Nashville – They were the team that had the longest trip to make to the Nashville site of the 2017 Academic WorldQuest global affairs awareness tournament in Tennessee but by the end of the day the journey ended with a satisfying win as champions. Four students from the Gwinett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology in Lawrenceville, GA demonstrated their mastery of global topics in winning the match hosted by the Tennessee World Affairs Council (TNWAC) at Belmont University.
The Gwinnett team – students Sebastian Williams, Theodora Abah, Sahana Shridhar and Nondi Walters, and teacher-coach Adam Brown – prevailed in the match against teams from Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.
Academic WorldQuest is the flagship youth education program of the Tennessee World Affairs Council and the national network of World Affairs Councils. It is a team game testing high school students’ knowledge of international affairs.
The students came prepared to answer 100 questions in topics such as current events, global megacities, peace and conflict, the EU, Turkey, China, combating infectious diseases and women in technology.
This was the second year the competition hosted teams from outside Tennessee. “Teams from around our state have participated here in the past,” said TNWAC President Patrick Ryan. This year and last the council was contacted by Georgia and Alabama teams to join the tournament. “Our goal is to inspire students to know more about the world,” Ryan said, adding, “So we’re more concerned about interest and motivation, not zip codes. It was great that the Gwinnett students came that far and did so well.”
The Gwinnett team will travel an even longer road on the next step to take on World Affairs Council teams from around the United States at the April 29th national competition of WorldQuest in Washington, DC. The trip, organized by the Tennessee World Affairs Council with support from Fedex, will include two full days of touring international affairs venues including the Embassy of the Republic of Korea, the Brookings think-tank, the Capitol including a meeting with Congressman John Lewis and other foreign affairs institutions.
The national WorldQuest tournament is set for April 29th at the National Press Club where about 50 teams will compete for the title.
The Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology began in 2007 as a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) charter school. GSMST’s first decade has been one of growth and achievement. The inaugural class of one hundred paved the way for what is now a learning community of approximately one thousand students.
The Tennessee World Affairs Council is a nonpartisan, educational, nonprofit association based in Nashville, Tennessee. It works to promote an understanding of important international issues, throughout the community and with a special focus on the region’s schools. Council members believe better community education in world affairs is necessary for sound democratic citizenship. For more information visit: www.TNWAC.org.
The Tennessee World Affairs Council is a nonprofit (501c3), nonpartisan educational charity based in Nashville that works to build understanding of global issues in our communities. Learn more about the Council and find how you can join, donate and volunteer at: www.TNWAC.org — Join / Donate / Volunteer
