Vermont Odyssey of the Mind

Congratulations to all our Vermont Odyssey of the Mind Participants for a successful year of creative problem solving. We are especially proud of the teams from Malletts Bay, Colchester Middle School, Cambridge Elementary, Richmond Elementary, St. Albans Town Ed Center, and Town of Brandon Rec Center who made the long trip to Iowa State University and represented Vermont so well in both their performances and their engagement with all the people they met from all over the world.

The new problem synopses for the 2018 -2019 are now available.  Check them out at the odysseyofthemind.com website.

Have a safe, enjoyable summer!

See you next fall!

Vermont Odyssey of the Mind celebrated their 39th State Tournament on Saturday, March 17, 2018 at Champlain Valley Union High.  On a bright, sunny St. Patrick’s Day, teams from all over the state came to present their solutions to one of this year’s challenges.  Using creativity and teamwork, they amazed the judges, spectators, parents and coaches with some awesome performances.  We are so proud of every team!  We thank their parents, their coaches, and all the many volunteer judges and officials who made this day possible.

Check out their scores:

https://www.odysseyofthemind.com/competitions/2018/16265_scores_menu.html

All 1st, 2nd, and Ranatra Fusca winners are eligible to attend World Finals at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, May 23 – 26, 2018.  Contact Kathy Jacob, the Association Director immediately if your team is eligible but will not be attending.  This will allow the third place team to take your place.  All teams going to World Finals are expected to attend a WF meeting Monday, March 19, 6:00 – 8:00 PM at Essex Middle School, or in the Southern Region, contact Nan Dubin.

The 39th Vermont Odyssey of the Mind State Tournament will be held March 17, 2018 at Champlain Valley Union High School in Hinesburg, VT.  Teams have worked for months preparing their creative solutions to some challenging problems.  Please come support them and cheer them on!  The Tournament Schedule can be found here:

http://vt.odysseyofthemind.org/wp/contact-info/tournament-schedule/

or by going to Information/Tournament Schedule on the Menu bar.  The Tournament Handbook, a must read for all Odyssey of the Mind coaches and team members can also be found there.

See you there!

Judge Registration:  (This needs to be done when you register your team for the tournament.) 

http://www.odysseyofthemind.com/judges/assoc_tournaments.php?assoc=VT&region=State

Judge Registration:  (This needs to be done when you register your team for the tournament.)  http://www.odysseyofthemind.com/judges/assoc_tournaments.php?assoc=VT&region=State

Coaches’ Training is a great opportunity for new coaches to learn more about the Odyssey of the Mind program and some of the finer points of coaching a team.  Each element — long-term, style, and spontaneous will be addressed.  Veteran coaches are encouraged to attend as well.  Your input and experience are valuable contributions to help new coaches build confidence and understanding of all that goes into coaching.

The Northern Coaches’ Training will be held at Essex Middle School, 60 Founders Road, Essex Junction, VT.(Note:  This is a new location from previous years.)

The Southern Coaches Training will be held at Mill River Union High School, 2321 Middle Road, North Clarendon.

Both sessions will be Saturday, November 4, 2017 from 9:00 AM – Noon.

Registration is not necessary, but please email Kathy Jacob at vtootm@accessvt.com your intentions to attend.

Odyssey of the Mind is a creative problem-solving program that is geared towards stimulating creative (out-of-the-box) thinking and developing team-work skills in young people. By challenging them with interesting, fun, and open-ended problems, they build solutions that meet the criteria, but break the mold of the “normal” everyday answer, while learning valuable life-long skills.

This is our 39th year of offering the Odyssey of the Mind program to Vermont students. Schools, community organizations, and home school groups are encouraged to check us out! We look forward to meeting you and your team at our events this year.

We say goodbye to some of our long-time volunteers and welcome some new ones.  Megen Perkins, Board Member and Problem 3 Problem Captain, has begun the next chapter of her life in New York, where she has already contacted the NY Association to get involved.  Taking on both roles of Board Member and PC is Heather Truax, a long time Odyssey volunteer.  Our Primary Problem Captain and Board Member, Leslie Sem, is devoting her time to other volunteer opportunities and is replaced by Ashley Truax, who will also be our Awards Coordinator.  And rounding out our new Board members are Bobby Wong, Head Judge for Problem 4, and Rachel Preston, who made it possible for us relocate our trainings to Essex Middle School this year. (Veteran teams take note:  New location for the workshops, training, and scrimmages.)

Check out this year’s problems:

https://www.odysseyofthemind.com/p/2018-long-term-problem-synopsis/

You can register your school’s membership right now:

https://www.odysseyofthemind.com/p/join/

Once again we will be offering workshops to develop skills in spontaneous problem solving and polishing performances.  New this year will be our Outreach Training for balsa structures.  Contact the Problem Captain, Leslie Griffiths, for more details.  Check out our Events Calendar for the date of these events and our other trainings for coaches and judges, as well as the Spontaneous Scrimmages for teams.

Our State Tournament will be held at Champlain Valley Union High School, March 17, 2018.

First place, second place, and Ranatra Fusca winners are eligible to compete at World Finals held at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, May 23 -26, 2018.  We encourage all teams to mark their calendars and make plans now to meet us in Iowa!

Best Wishes for a wonderful, creative year of problem-solving!

Kathy Jacob, Association Director

Vermont Odyssey of the Mind has celebrated another year of creativity with the successful completion of their 38th Odyssey of the Mind State Tournament.  The scores may be found here:

http://www.odysseyofthemind.com/competitions/2017/15111_scores_menu.html

Congratulations to all the World Final teams!  We will see you at Michigan State University in East Lansing, May 24 – 27.

The 2017 Vermont Odyssey of the Mind State Tournament will be held March 18, 2017 at Champlain Valley High School in Hinesburg, VT.  Competition begins at 8:00 AM and runs throughout the day.  The Awards Ceremony will begin at approximately 4:30 PM and ends at about 6:00 PM.

Students from all over the state have been working hard for months on their solutions to the long term problem they have chosen and are sharpening their spontaneous skills.

Friends, family, and everyone else are encouraged to come watch some fabulous performances!!!

SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS DUE MARCH 11, 2017.  High school seniors and college freshman who have been involved in Odyssey of the Mind are encouraged to apply for a $500 Odyssey of the Mind Scholarship to be awarded during the Awards Ceremony on March 18.  Application forms can be found by going to Registration/Forms on the tool bar.

• School name and membership number
• Team member names and grades
• Coach name and contact information
• Any scheduling conflicts (i.e. a coach with multiple teams, or team members on multiple teams, etc)
• Other issues (allergies, disabilities, etc.)
• Judge name and contact information  (Every team must supply a judge who will come to a judges’ training on March 4, 9:00 – 12:30 and then for the entire day of the tournament on March 18.  Either you or the judge must fill out the Judge Registration form.  In lieu of providing a judge, teams may pay a $50 Judge Waiver fee.  We much prefer the judge as it takes many bodies to run the tournament!)