News for December 28
| Who Is America's Most Travel-Savvy Teen? AAA Travel Challenge Plans to Find Out (posted by Public Affairs on December 28 @ 16:08 ) |
| High school students from across the United States will soon tackle questions about fjords, freeways, French-speaking islands and more, as the fifth annual AAA Travel High School Challenge returns to identify America’s most travel-savvy teen. The scholarship contest, which produced a national champion from Massachusetts and a finalist from Rhode Island last year, again offers more than $100,000 in scholarships and prizes. “The AAA Travel Challenge’s primary focus is trying to educate students about the world, as well as get them excited about exciting careers in the travel industry,” said William Sutherland, Vice President of Travel for AAA Southern New England. Participating in the AAA Travel High School Challenge is easy and involves no lengthy applications, letters of recommendation or gathering of transcripts. It begins online with one-step enrollment prior to January 8. Once enrolled, a 15-minute online quiz is taken between January 8 and 16, 2007. State semi-finalists will continue to the state finals in March. The national finals with each state champion will be held in May at Universal Studios in Orlando and provide students an opportunity to compete in a high stakes, single elimination bee for a grand prize $20,000 scholarship. In addition, the top five scorers in each state who express interest in travel-related careers will have an opportunity to submit an essay for both a state and national essay competition. Students can enroll or learn more at www.aaa.com/travelchallenge. In 2006, Karan Takhar of North Attleborough, a student at the Wheeler School in Providence, won the individual national title at the Travel Challenge. In the team portion of the competition Karan’s team finished second overall, and included the Rhode Island high school representative, Benjamin Schwartz of East Providence and LaSalle Academy. “Americans are far less likely to have passports than our global peers and our teens trail their international counterparts for geographic literacy,” said Mr. Sutherland. “Through the AAA Travel High School Challenge, we can open students’ eyes to the breadth of travel destinations and experiences in the U.S. and beyond, which we hope will get them excited about traveling and being more knowledgeable global citizens.” Sponsors of the AAA Travel High School Challenge include Bank of America, Continental Airlines, Hard Rock Live, Marriott, Pleasant Holidays, and Universal Orlando. |