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Creative students win top regional honors in OM match
If this newspaper has a favorite subject to brag about, it would have to be Jackson County's students. We feature all school news as prominently as possible as often as we possibly can.
And when we have not one but two regional winners in a challenging competition that pits creative kids against themselves and the clock - a problem-solving exercise that's like a combination of a puzzle and a race - we make the most of the boasting opportunity.
We are extra proud that this county produced two first-place teams after Saturday's Odyssey of the Mind competition at Western Carolina University. Hats off to Smoky Mountain High juniors and seniors Will Cowan, Shilo Harley, Dustin Huff, Scott Persons and Kari Wilson; and to Fairview sixth- and seventh-graders Patrick Savell, Martha Turpin, Tessa Rodes, Star Matheny and Elizabeth Cochran.
One OM participant said the problem-solving "challenges kids' intellects and makes them more open to new ideas."
We're for that. It's going to take a smarter, more tolerant generation to solve the ecological crises and ethnic rivalries the coming century is likely to bring.
An OM judge told us that the competition "shows kids that there's more than one solution to any given problem and that what's most important is that they learn to trust each other and find a solution that works for them."
If only Ariel Sharon and Yasser Arafat had been on the same OM team a few decades back.
A parent of an OM team member listed values like "hard work, total commitment and organization" when asked to describe the benefits that accrue when kids choose to complete this odyssey.
We can't imagine any better lessons for students to carry along life's journey.
Here's how the OM organizers describe it:
"The true reward of Odyssey of the Mind is and always will be the delightful freedom to think and to turn those thoughts into reality, the building of relationships, and cooperation among humankind, along with the satisfaction of a job well done."
Jackson County's future in OM events looks bright, given that most of this year's winners can compete again next year. And a team of SMHS freshmen - Ryan Brown, Daniel Plemmons, Carter Harley and Ben Ward - took a third place.
We've got young people who proved Saturday that they can solve a problem creatively and persevere until they finish the race.
Good luck to them in the April 17 state meet.
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