A team from the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts won two first place awards in the recent Arkansas Economics Challenge.
The ASMSA team won first place in the Team Presentation and test portions of the contest co-hosted by the Arkansas Center for Research in Economics at the University of Central Arkansas and Economics Arkansas, a private, nonprofit, non-partisan, educational organization that promotes economic literacy in Arkansas. The competition was held virtually on April 7.
ASMSA’s team members included juniors Talana Small of White Hall, Bethany Catron of Peel, Kiley Barton of Sims and Madison Arenaz of Piggott. The team earned a $100 prize for their win in the Team Presentation component. They won an additional $500 prize for the team for their win in the testing component.
In Team Presentations, student teams work together to create and present presentations on economic topics to a team of judges. The theme for the 2022 competition is “Where in the World,” where students explored the global supply chains behind a variety of products and learn where markets come together to meet the needs of people all over the world.
In the testing portion, students take an exam that test their knowledge of micro and macroeconomics as well as knowledge of the global economy. Team members’ scores are averaged, and the highest-scoring team is eligible to move on to the next round of the Economics Challenge.
The team competed in the David Ricardo Division, which is for students who have had no more than one economics course. Teams also competed in the Adam Smith Division, which is for students in Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or Honors Economics courses or have previously competed in the Economics Challenge.
Their win in testing portion of the state competition qualified them to participate in the national competition this summer. State winners will take a 45-question online quiz in the first round of the national competition to qualify for the semifinals. Those selected for the semifinals will conduct a virtual team case study. Four teams from the semifinal round will be chosen to compete in the final round — a quiz bowl held in New York City in June.