Petaluma High School students headed to Washington, D.C., after winning academic competition

A group of Petaluma High School students is headed for the nation’s capital after winning an academic competition based on world affairs.

In a contest put on by the World Affairs Council of Sonoma County, Petaluma high students Darah Alpert, Max Bloom, Georgiana Morris and Eva Tate edged teams from Analy High School (Paul Koo, Mari Sow, Keshi Mayer, and Aidan Ruiz) and Roseland Collegiate Prep (David Correlas Barnabe, Rafael Favela, Amaris Flores and Kevin Lopez Lopez), who finished second and third, respectively.

The Petaluma quartet, accompanied by teacher Sarah Jacobs, will travel to Washington, D.C., for the national finals of the Academic WorldQuest, on April 27. While in the city, they will have an opportunity to tour monuments, and meet with members of California’s Congressional delegation.

The Academic WorldQuest competition is held each year across the country, with nearly 5,000 students competing to answer questions related to current world affairs, according to a news release.

The program gives students an opportunity to continue their education about global topics, said Michele Chaboudy, president of the World Affairs Council of Sonoma County board.

“It really prepares (students) to understand what’s happening out in the world,” Chaboudy told the Press Democrat last year.

The competition puts each high school team through 10 rounds of 10 questions about international affairs. Questions covered pre-announced categories, including “Securing the Future of the World’s Wildlife,” “Combating Global Food Insecurity,” “Economic Sanctions – A Double-Edged Sword,” “Battle of the Century: Autocracy vs. Democracy” and “Current Events.”

You can reach Staff Writer Austin Murphy at austin.murphy@pressdemocrat.com or on Twitter @ausmurph88.