Tri-City students to compete in state geography bee

Two Tri-City middle school students will be in Tacoma on April 1 to see if they know the lay of the land better than any other student in the state.

Andrew McCalmant, a seventh-grader at Kennewick’s Desert Hills Middle School, and Griffin Linn, an eighth-grader at Christ the King School in Richland, qualified for the state-level National Geographic Bee. They will be among as many as 100 other students competing for the opportunity represent the state at the national competition in Washington, D.C.

The National Geographic Society organizes the competition, which tests students’ geographical knowledge. Washington’s contest will be at Pacific Lutheran University.

The winner of the state-level bees, along with getting an expense-paid trip to the national competition in May, receive $100, a medal and copy of The National Parks: An Illustrated History. The national winner receives a $50,000 scholarship and lifetime membership in the society.

This story was originally published March 25, 2016 at 4:11 PM with the headline "Tri-City students to compete in state geography bee."