Four Denver middle schools were among the 30 Colorado middle and high schools that competed at the World Affairs Challenge at the University of Denver campus on Saturday, March 8.

The competition was sponsored by the University of Denver’s Center for Teaching International Relations (CTIR). The challenge is designed to test students’ ability to creatively and strategically solve global issues.

“One of the goals of the World Affairs Challenge is to help students discover how the study of history, economics, geography, civics and foreign languages relates to global affairs, as well as to their personal and professional dreams,” said Mark Montgomery, CTIR director.

Students from 43 teams across Colorado competed in four different team events including formal presentation, global awareness quiz, collaborative question, and discovery poster. For two months students studied and researched such fields as the role of governments in supplying and distributing food, childhood hunger and resulting developmental deficiencies, and eliminating Mad Cow disease.

The following DPS schools and students participated in the competition:

• Cole Middle School - Teacher: William Sauaia; Presentation topic: How to Help Poor Countries; students: Ana Garcia, Ana Segovia, Erik Gonzalez, Genaro Puebla, Jonathan Mulato, Juan Irtiz, Juan Villegas, Maria Mendoza and Yeiry Martinez-Herrada.
• Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School - Teacher: Pete Castillo; Presentation topic: Reports from Third World Countries; Awards: Josh Bailey - 5th place in the Collaborative Question event; Leilani Cast - 3rd place in the Collaborative Question event; Josh Wolfe - 2nd place in the Collaborative Question event; Roscoe Rhoads - 1st place in the Collaborative Question event; students: Nikki Smith, Peter Escobar, Shannon Whalum, Monica Green, Monique Green, Josh Bailey, Josh Wolfe, Ricky Sierra, Justin Anderson, Dominic Ruybal, Leilani Cast, Roscoe Rhoads
• Morey Middle School - Teachers: Dan Buehler and Leanne Cook; Team 1 Presentation topic: Over-nutrition and Obesity; students: Josh Pless, Grace Friedman, Louisa Eberle, Delia Monsivais, Mary Monks, Audrey Walstrom, Olivia Hall, Cobin Brown, Carlos Cantor, Anthony Camera, Derek Cole, Charlie Koyle, Tera Jones, Liz Lyda; Team 2 Presentation topic: Impact of War on a Starving Population; Team Awards: 2nd place for Best Discovery Poster, 5th place for Best Presentation, 5th place for Best Overall Individual Awards: Kathleen Shea - 4th place in Collaborative Question event; students: Janet Matthews, Emily Berger, Jennifer Berger, Jack Bingham, Emilia C. de Baca, Caitlin Feakes, Kathleen Shea, and Sam Stewart; Team 3 Presentation topic: Government Role in Fighting Hunger; Team Awards: 5th place for Best Discovery Poster; students: Eliot Parker, Lauren Reuben, Shonnetta Henry, John Kincaid, Shay Gonzales, Jovian Lucero-Collins, Lucas Polluck. Team 4 Presentation topic: Genetically Modified Foods; Individual Awards: Sam Holden, 3rd place for Global Awareness Quiz score and 5th place in Collaborative Question event; Alysha Harlan, 3rd place in Collaborative Question event, Jesse Chastain, 2nd place in Collaborative Question event, Chandra Carney, 1st place in Collaborative Question event; students: Ryan Miller, Sam Holden, Jesse Chastain, Ben Wilkerson, Henry Perlman, Brenton Weyi, Alysha Harlan, Chandra Carney, Clio Tanaka, Lavida Givan, Reiko Anderson, Robert Romero; Team 5 Presentation topic: Famine & Genetically Modified Foods in Zambia; Students: Kyndra Henckel, Sara Williams, Cassie Warner, Claudia Marquez, and Tenisha Morgan.
• Rachel B. Noel Middle School - Teacher: Rhea Lynn Anderson; Presentation topic: Hunger in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; students: Ryan Rymer, Michael Montenegro, Martha Robles, Ashley Turner and Yenny Diaz