The public is invited to attend the Odessa Chamber of Commerce’s Inaugural National Civics Bee Saturday in Cooper Hall at the UTPB Science and Technology Building.
Doors open at 8:30 a.m. with breakfast and registration and the competition will begin at 9:30 a.m. and will be finished by 11 a.m.
The Odessa Chamber is one of five Texas Chambers participating and one of 51 participating across the country. They hope to grow the event in the coming years. Cash prices will be given to first, second and third place students and all three will advance to the Texas Civics Bee this summer.
The event was open to any sixth, seventh or eighth grade student in Odessa. They were invited to submit an essay on “identify a problem facing our community.” The essays were judged by U.S. Chamber representatives and 10 students were selected from Harmony Science Academy, Adinvita Private School and St. John’s Episcopal School to participate in the live Civics Bee in Odessa.
Three Odessans will serve as judges for the event: Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett; Young Professionals of Odessa Board Chair Kaylie Banda; and Adrian Vega, executive director of the Education Partnership of the Permian Basin. Odessa American Publisher Pat Canty will serve as the event emcee.
“In recent years, Americans’ civics knowledge has fallen significantly, with 47 percent not being able to name all three branches of government. At the same time, 76 percent of eighth graders score below proficient in civics,” Carolyn Cawley, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said in a news release. “Despite these disturbing numbers, studies show that simple interventions, such as taking a civics class early in academic life, can make a big difference in becoming active, informed and responsible citizens. This is exactly what we hope to achieve with the National Civics Bee — to inspire a new generation of Americans to be civically engaged and active in shaping the future of our communities and our nation.”
“We are so honored to be chosen by the U.S. Chamber to host this event. We are proud to show off our local students and their knowledge. It will not only be a fun event, but hopefully everyone there will leave with a better appreciation of civics and how important this topic is,” Odessa President/CEO Renee Earls said in a news release.
