Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence

PACE News

2012 NSC Hotel Recommendations

January 5th, 2012 by Sarah

As promised, here are some hotel recommendations based on the research of our treasurer, Aaron Rosenberg:

Teams are advised to review public transportation options before making hotel reservations.

I. Official Hotel
PACE’s official hotel for the 2012 NSC is the Sheraton Clayton Plaza. All non-local staffers not accompanying teams will be lodged here. We encourage teams to consider this option, as it is located only two blocks from the Clayton Metrolink station. From there, teams can take the Metrolink to the University City Big Bend station, located right next to the Wash U campus. The Metrolink runs every 20 minutes throughout the day including weekends.

Phone: (314) 863-0400

II. Other hotels near the university:
1. Crowne Plaza, 1.7 miles, 7750 Carondelet Avenue, (314) 727-7434
2. Seven Gables Inn, 2.0 miles, 26 North Meramec Avenue, (314) 863-8400
3. Hampton Inn and Suites at Forest Park, 2.7 miles, no Metrolink access, 5650 Oakland Avenue, (314) 655-3993

III. Hotels near the airport (10-11 miles from the university)
1. Drury Inn, 10490 Natural Bridge Rd, (314) 423-7700
2. Best Western Airport Plaza Inn, 4530 North Lindbergh Boulevard, Bridgeton, MO, (314) 731-3800
3. Holiday Inn, 4505 Woodson Road, (314) 427-4700
4. Comfort Inn Airport and Conference Center, 9600 Natural Bridge Rd, (314) 427-7600

2012 NSC Field Full

January 2nd, 2012 by Sarah

The field for the 2012 NSC is currently full at 48 teams. There are 2 teams on the waiting list. To join the waiting list, please fill out the registration form.

We will consider expanding the field in late January or early February depending on the amount of staff and rooms available to us and on interest from teams. If you wish to attend the 2012 NSC, please go ahead and sign up for the waiting list rather than wait for us to expand the field, as we can use the waiting list to see how much demand there is for more spots.

If we do choose to expand the field, we will make a public announcement and notify the waitlisted teams that they have either joined the field or, if applicable, moved up on the waiting list.

Thanks, everyone, for your interest in the 2012 NSC.

Freelance Quizbowl University Updates

December 15th, 2011 by Mike Bentley

Make sure to check out the Freelance Quizbowl University for study guides and logistical guides for hosting and producing tournaments. Recent entries in the series include a study guide on Amino Acids and a quick guide to generating Round Robin schedules for tournaments. If you have a logistics-based topic you want the Freelance Quizbowl University to address, please contact PACE President Mike Bentley.

2012 Benjamin Cooper Awards: Now Accepting Nominations

December 6th, 2011 by Sarah

2012 Benjamin Cooper Academic Ambassador Awards: Call for Nominations

The Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence is pleased to announce that it is accepting nominations for the 2012 Benjamin Cooper Academic Ambassador Awards. The awards, which recognize those who contribute to the “spirit and honor of quizbowl competition,” will be presented at the 2012 PACE National Scholastics Championship in St. Louis, Missouri, on June 9-10. The Benjamin Cooper Academic Ambassador Award will be given to a coach, advisor, administrator, tournament organizer, or other person who has made significant contributions to high school quizbowl. A second award, the Young Ambassador Award, will be given to someone affiliated with a college or high school program who, despite his or her young age, has already made valuable contributions to the high school academic competition community. Nominations will be accepted until April 1, 2012. For more information on the award and the nomination process, please see below.

The Benjamin Cooper Awards:

The Benjamin Cooper Academic Ambassador Award and the Young Ambassador Award recognize those who have made substantial contributions to the “spirit and honor of quizbowl competition.” Benjamin Cooper, for whom the award is named, was a model student at the Georgetown Day School in Washington, DC, who was well-liked among his colleagues and the faculty. He participated in many activities in school and in service to the community. Because of his enthusiasm and encouragement to promote academic competition among his team members, he was selected as the captain of the varsity team for the 1997-1998 school year. On August 12, 1997, Ben was tragically killed in an automobile accident while returning from his summer job.

The first Cooper Award was presented by PACE to Georgetown Day School team advisor Sue Ikenberry in honor of Ben at the 1998 NSC. Subsequent awards have been presented every year, and a complete list of winners is available on the PACE website. The Young Ambassador Award was first presented at the 2004 NSC.

How to Nominate:

Any member of the quizbowl community is eligible for the Cooper Award. Eligibility for the Young Ambassador Award is restricted to those currently affiliated with high school or college programs. Because there are always many deserving candidates, PACE welcomes re-nomination of those nominated last year who have continued to contribute to the quizbowl community.

To submit a nomination, please compose a statement of no more than 1,000 words detailing your nominee’s contributions to the quizbowl community. This statement should include a summary of positions held by the nominee as well as a specific explanation of why, in your opinion, he or she has contributed to the “spirit and honor of quizbowl competition.”

Please email your nomination statement to this year’s Cooper Award coordinator, George Berry, at georgeberry.vcu@gmail.com no later than April 1, 2012. George will confirm receipt of your nomination within 48 hours of the time you submit it. In your email, please include your contact information in case the PACE Cooper Award Committee wishes to contact you for additional information about the nominee. All nomination statements are strictly confidential and will be seen only by the PACE members involved in the selection process.

Announcement of Winners:

Members of the PACE Cooper Award Committee will deliberate throughout the month of April. The winners will be announced on the hsquizbowl.org message board and on the PACE website during the first week of May. The awards will be formally presented to the winners on the first day of the 2012 NSC.

If you have any questions about this year’s Cooper Award or to submit a nomination, please contact George Berry, at georgeberry.vcu@gmail.com.

2012 NSC: Registered Teams

November 30th, 2011 by Sarah

The field cap for the 2012 NSC is 48 teams. Registration has opened for platinum qualified teams. The list of qualified teams and the registration opening dates for each level of qualified teams can be found here, and the registration form is here. To get on the waiting list, please fill out the registration form. We will consider expanding the field in late January or early February based on the amount of staff and rooms available to us and on interest from teams, so if you wish to attend, please let us know that by signing up the waiting list when you’re eligible.

The following 48 teams have registered for the 2012 PACE NSC:

Alpharetta High School, Alpharetta, Georgia
Bellarmine College Preparatory School, San Jose, California
Belvidere North High School, Belvidere, Illinois
Carbondale High School A, Carbondale, Illinois
Carbondale High School B, Carbondale, Illinois
Centennial High School, Roswell, Georgia
Cistercian Preparatory School, Irving, Texas
Clayton High School, Clayton, Missouri
Culver Academics, Culver, Indiana
Danville High School, Danville, Kentucky
Detroit Country Day School A, Beverly Hills, Michigan
Detroit Country Day School B, Beverly Hills, Michigan
Fair Haven Union High School, Fair Haven, Vermont
Frenchtown High School, Frenchtown, Montana
Georgetown Day School, Washington, D.C.
Grayson County High School, Leitchfield, Kentucky
Hillsdale Academy, Hillsdale, Michigan
Hunter College High School A, New York, New York
Hunter College High School B, New York, New York
Hunter College High School C, New York, New York
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy A, Aurora, Illinois
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy B, Aurora, Illinois
Irvine High School, Irvine, California
Ladue Horton Watkins High School A, St. Louis, Missouri
Ladue Horton Watkins High School B, St. Louis, Missouri
Ladue Horton Watkins High School C, St. Louis, Missouri
Loyola Academy, Wilmette, Illinois
Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies, Richmond, Virginia
Montgomery Blair High School, Silver Spring, Maryland
New Trier High School, Winnetka, Illinois
Northmont High School, Clayton, Ohio
Oakville High School, Oakville, Missouri
Olmsted Falls High School, Olmsted Falls, Ohio
Parkway West High School, Ballwin, Missouri
Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School A, Lexington, Kentucky
Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School B, Lexington, Kentucky
Rock Bridge High School A, Columbia, Missouri
Rock Bridge High School B, Columbia, Missouri
Rockford Auburn High School, Rockford, Illinois
St. Anselm’s Abbey School, Washington, D.C.
St. John’s School, Houston, Texas
St. Joseph High School, Metuchen, New Jersey
Seven Lakes High School, Katy, Texas
Sidney High School, Sidney, Ohio
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Alexandria, Virginia
Torrey Pines High School, San Diego, California
Walt Whitman High School, Bethesda, Maryland
Warren G. Harding High School, Warren, Ohio

The 2012 NSC Field is full.

Waiting list:

1. Paul M. Dorman High School A, Roebuck, South Carolina
2. Paul M. Dorman High School B, Roebuck, South Carolina
3. St. Louis University High School, St. Louis, Missouri
4. Rock Bridge High School C, Columbia, Missouri
5. Detroit Catholic Central High School A, Novi, Michigan
6. Detroit Catholic Central High School B, Novi, Michigan
7. Adlai Stevenson High School, Lincolnshire, Illinois
8. St. Pius X High School, Kansas City, Missouri
9. Woburn Collegiate Institute, Toronto, Ontario
10. Latin School, Chicago, Illinois
11. North Hollywood High School A, North Hollywood, California
12. North Hollywood High School B, North Hollywood, California