On Thursday at 7 p.m., in the Kirby Ballroom, 26 teams will compete to win the seventh annual WorldQuest International Trivia contest. Hosted by the Alworth Institute, students from the University of Wisconsin Superior and St. Scholastica will join UMD students in the friendly competition. Although there is a rule that there must be two students on every team, there are plenty of teams that are made up of professors and other people from the community.
Cindy Christian, the emcee for the event, would like to see more student participation.
“I’d like to have more students. It would be fun,” Christian said.
Every year the competition centers around one country — this year the theme is Germany.
Contestants will start by eating German foods for dinner. They will then start the competition, which usually takes around two hours.
According to Christian, the competition will have four rounds. During the first round contestants must answer questions about flags and capitals. The second round is all about geography. The third question focuses on people in the news. In the final round, contestants test their knowledge of international news.
The top three teams win a donation to a charity of their choice. No one will leave empty-handed, though, as the Alworth Institute starts planning the event in mid-December.
“We start in mid-December just because we need the time to gather door prizes,” Christian said.
To get the prizes, Christian writes letters to businesses and organizations asking for donations.
Additional prizes are given out for Best Team Spirit and Best Costume.
The best part for Christian is not the prizes or the competition itself. “It’s the chance to get to see faculty and students work together outside the classroom,” Christian said.
While this year’s competition is closed for registration, the event is open to spectators. If someone wishes to compete in next year’s WorldQuest, they should start low.
BY TAYLOR JENSEN
Arts and Entertainment Editor