CLOQUET, MN— Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College hosted the annual Lester “Jack” Briggs Regional High-School Quiz Bowl Championship on Friday, May 20, 2022. The one-day competition tested high school students’ knowledge of Ojibwe language, culture, and history. The team from International Falls High School won this year’s tournament with Northland Community Schools and Minisinaakwaang Leadership Academy placing second and third respectively.

The FDLTCC Lester “Jack” Briggs Regional Quiz Bowl is named after the first president of FDLTCC, Lester “Jack” Briggs, who was instrumental in its creation. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the event had been hosted annually at FDLTCC since 2014. During the tournament, teams competed one-on-one over several rounds of play with double elimination. On average, upwards of 25 teams from all regions of the State compete in the tournament. A FDLTCC Scholarship of $1,000.00 or $250.00 per student was awarded to the winning team.

“The quiz bowl provides space for high-school students to compete in a friendly way involving subjects that are sometimes overlooked or not recognized as being “important”. Our language and culture are at the center of the quiz bowl and the students take great pride in being knowledgeable in these areas,” one of the event organizers, Jeffrey Tibbetts, Title III Coordinator at FDLTCC, “It’s a good day when you can see and hear young people supporting each other in such a positive manner.”

The participants from the top three teams include:

International Falls High School

  • Brian Pearson (Grade 12)
  • Khia Porter (Grade 9)
  • Alaina Gates (Grade 9)

Northland Community Schools

  • Trey Flowers (Grade 9)
  • Landon Monroe (Grade 7)
  • Danica Heinle (Grade 8)
  • Noah Rodriguez White (Grade 7)

Minisinaakwaang Leadership Academy

  • Angelique White (Grade 8)
  • Dominique Beaulieau Garbow (Grade 11)
  • Joaquin Skinaway–Fineday (Grade 10)
  • Aanungookwe Shabiash (Grade 10)

For more information on the Lester “Jack” Briggs Regional High-School Quiz Bowl Championship at FDLTCC, please contact Jeffrey Tibbetts at jtibbetts*AT*fdltcc.edu.

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