Carroll's OM Teams Advance to World Finals

Carroll ISD Odyssey of the Mind teams made an impressive showing at the Texas State Odyssey of the Mind Tournament in Houston recently. Competing against over 115 teams from across the state; all six Carroll teams received state honors and four teams advanced to the World Finals held at Iowa State University in May.

Organizers say every Dragon team competed at the highest level, impressed the judges and spectators with their creativity and teamwork. The results are listed below, an asterisk (*) denotes advancement to the World Finals.

• Old Union Elementary School competed in Problem 2, Division 1 (Technical) and placed 3rd in the State!! Josh Neely, Caroline, Jackson, and Audry Fouras, Anna Leigh Alford, Aidan Johnson, Ethan Smith. Coaches: Colleen Neely and Peggy Forcelli
• Walnut Grove Elementary competed in Problem 5, Division 1 (Drama) and placed in the top 10 at State!!   Brianna and Kylie Swanson, Emily Bates, Elena Pulliam, Kiera Dicesare, Kaitlyn Guessner. Coaches: Leah Swanson and Scot Bates
• Eubanks Intermediate School competed in Problem 3, Division 1 (Classics) and placed 2nd in the State!!*  Sophia LeBlanc, Jenna Eads, Zack Marshall and Nolan Mikolasik (EIS), Aleksei and Jascha Weinberg (DIS) and Troy McNitt. Coaches: Margaret Weinberg and Kathy Marshall
• Dawson Middle School competed in Problem 1, Division 2 (Vehicular) and placed 2nd in the State!!*   Brandon Burlison, Michael Dachniwsky, Madeleine Newman, Nate Ruelas, Weston Salanty, Daniel Weiss and Hannah Warner. Coaches: Ann Dachniwsky and Allison Weiss 
• Carroll High School team that competed in Problem 1, Division 3 (Vehicular) were named back to back State Champions and were awarded a back to back Renatra Frusca Award (for extreme creativity).*   Ann Dahl and Allison Newman (CHS), Braden Anderson, Christie Ballew, Spencer Lankford, Mackenzie Murphy and Jack Veenker (DMS). Coaches: Megan and Carl Anderson and Shauna Newman
• The  Carroll High School team that competed in Problem 2, Division 3 (Technical) were also named Texas State Champions for the 5th time!*  Jenna Buckley, Nico Scalzo, Emilie Featherston, Nathalie Scherer, Annie Newman and Lindsey Weiss. Coaches Cynthia Featherston and Micki Scalzo

Odyssey of the Mind is a creative, problem-solving competitive program where teams of up to 7 students work together to creatively solve one of five Odyssey problems issued at the start of the school year. The teams then present their solutions during tournament competitions, with the 2 top scoring teams within each problem and age division advancing to the highest level, which culminates at World Finals competition in May.

Organizers say they are particularly proud of two Carroll High School Seniors who have exemplified excellence and were awarded the 2012 Texas State Odyssey of the Mind Scholarship; Emilie Featherston, a CISD OMer of 10 years, and Lindsey Weiss, a CISD OMer of 4 years. Emilie Featherston extended her excellence by receiving the national Odyssey of the Mind – Jimmie Jones Technology Award Scholarship for her impressive technical expertise and awards. The Southlake Carroll Odyssey of the Mind family applauds the dedication these OMers who have exhibited the true OMer spirit over many years, and we wish them all the best in their future creative endeavors!!!

Southlake Carroll has excelled in the Odyssey of the Mind program since 1999 and has enjoyed great success each year. This year we had 16 teams join in September and compete at the North Texas Regional tournament. 6 advanced to the Texas State Tournament (1 team was brand new to competition, 1 had only competed 2 years, 1 was a 3rd year team ), 4 of those will represent Southlake Carroll at World Finals. We are so proud of every team that makes up the Southlake Carroll Odyssey of the Mind family!!! What we are most proud of, is that all 16 teams have exemplified the OMer and Dragon Spirit in the best way since their first creative days in September and have learned teamwork, innovation, and that they should never under estimate the power of duct tape, power tools and their own creativity!!!

Click here for more information on Odyssey of the Mind and what the program can do for young minds. Coordinators are planning the Annual OM Information Night for next September. Visit the Odyssey of the Mind website for details.