Hot Springs students test geography skills in annual bee

The Hot Springs School held its annual National Geographic Bee for the fourth through eight graders. Seventh grader Josie Uski took first place, beating out retuning champion and fellow classmate Austin Campbell who came in second. Fourth grader Odin Max came in third place.

Each class held its own competition and the top two contestants went on compete in the school wide bee. The students answered a variety of geographic questions, such as "Which state is known as the Peach State because peaches are one of its major crops: Hawaii or Georgia?"

The fourth grade competitors for the Geography Bee were Odin Max and Kara Christensen. John Waterbury and Nevaeh Bowen represented the fifth graders and Alcyone Max and Ellie Buffo were the contestants from sixth grade. Josie Uski and Austin Campbell were the challengers from seventh grade and Johnathan Lopez and Savannah Vogel were the eighth grade contenders. Josie Uski, the winner, will now take a written examination to determine if she can advance to the state competition. Montana's state champion will be eligible to compete in the national championship, with the first place prize a $50,000 scholarship.