Northside Future Problem Solvers team wins state championship
by Jeffrey Joseph and Evan Rogers

Two Northside teams made the trek from Chicago to Illinois State University in Bloomington Normal, Illinois to compete in the state Future Problem Solvers competition, held from Thursday May 13 to Friday May 14.  The Future Problem Solvers competition features groups of four students working together to come up with a solution for a problem that might occur in the future. Using a six step writing model, the teams then create a solution to the assigned problem. The teams also have to come up with 5 minute oral presentation to demonstrate their solution to the competition judges.

The central topic for this year’s state competition was food distribution, so prior to the competition; the teams spent time researching the various problems of the food distribution system.

“We researched problems with today’s food distribution system, organizations and foundations that are involved in food production and distribution, and different technologies that are being pioneered to improve food distribution,” Future Problems Solvers team member Melissa High, Adv. 018, said.

Of the two teams that competed at the State competition,  one was composed of seniors –High, Gracie Jaffe, Adv.010,  Jennifer Sher, Adv. 108, and Deirdre Lee, Adv.012­ — and  the other was composed of freshman — Megan High,  Adv. 303, Samantha Delacruz, Adv. 304, Anna Pezanoski-Cohen, Adv. 300, and Hyunji Ward, Adv. 302.

In order to advance to the state competition, the team’s first had to complete qualifying packet for Regional competition. Then they had to compete at a regional competition held in February.

The members of the senior team have been competing  in the Future Problem Solvers competitions for the past 8 years but still practice for competitions by coaching students from their former elementary school, Bell Elementary School, every Wednesday after colloquiums.

“There are about 18 kids with whom we work,” High said. “In coaching them, we prepare a lot of lesson plans on how to use the Future Problem writing model and we present research on the competition theme. In preparing the Bell FPS Team, we prepare ourselves.”

For the members of Northside’s senior Future Problem Solvers team, this season was different than the rest because it would be their final one.

“This makes nine years that we have been competing, and although we have come very close to winning the state championship several times before, we had never actually won it until this year,” High said. “As seniors, we went into the competition knowing that this would be our last chance to advance to Internationals. Winning state was so exciting and yet somewhat emotional because we had been working towards that goal for so long.”

Having won the senior level competition, Northside’s senior team advanced now to prepare for the World Future Problem Solving  Program International competition being held on June 10 in LaCrosse, Wisconsin,