Convent of the Sacred Heart Student to Compete in CT Geography Bee

GREENWICH, CT - A fifth-grader from Convent of the Sacred Heart has won the school championship in the National Geographic Society's geography bee and is now headed to the Connecticut State Geography Bee.

Vanessa Torres, a student from Port Chester, NY at Sacred Heart Greenwich, was selected as the school champion and will participate in the Connecticut State Bee on April 1.

To achieve this recognition, Vanessa, who loves geography, entered into a contest against finalists at Sacred Heart’s Middle School and emerged as the winner. She then passed the state bee’s qualifying test.

These eight students competed in elimination rounds before Middle School assemblies:

• 5th grade: Kasey Calacci of Rye, NY and Vanessa Torres.
• 6th grade: Libby Kaseta of Rye, NY and Charlotte Marvin of North Castle, NY.
• 7th grade: Belle Broll of New Canaan and Ellie Skinner of Bedford, NY.
• 8th grade: Christine Plaster of Cos Cob and Daniella Tocco of Eastchester, NY.

Sixth-grader Libby Kaseta finished in second place. Libby and Vanessa competed on a series of tiebreaker questions before Vanessa won by correctly answering the question: “Africa's most industrialized country is bordered by both the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Name this country. Answer: South Africa.”

“The contest is designed to inspire students to be curious about the world,” David Olson, head of the Middle School, said in a statement. “We are very proud of Vanessa’s accomplishments.”

To qualify for the state competition on April 1, Vanessa took a test designed by the National Geographic Society. She was recently notified that she had passed the test and was selected as a contestant for the Connecticut Bee.

One champion from each state and territory will advance to the national competition, which will be held May 22-25 at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C. Transportation and accommodations for the Washington, D.C. trip are provided for each state champion.

Contributed photo: Sacred Heart’s finalists in the National Georgrpahic Bee are from left, Vanessa Torres, Libby Kaseta, Christine Plaster, Charlotte Marvin, Daniella Tocco, Elie Skinner and Kasey Calacci. Missing from photo is Belle Broll.