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Vermont High Schools Accept the Reserve Cup Challenge

May 3, 2011

MONTPELIER, Vt.—Vermont high schools were recently challenged to showcase their students’ abilities in economics and personal finance. Five schools accepted the Vermont Reserve Cup Challenge and it was South Burlington High School that walked away with the academic trophy for the second year in a row.

April 30, teams competed in Montpelier for the opportunity to represent the State of Vermont in the regional Reserve Cup Challenge held each fall at the Federal Reserve Bank in Boston. The Vermont State Treasurer’s Office, in partnership with the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, began holding a state tournament two years ago. The aim of the competition is to promote student interest in and knowledge of personal finance, economics, and consumer affairs topics. Using a game-show-style format, teams progress through rounds of questioning that test their grasp of these subjects.

“The state tournament provides Vermont high schools with the chance to offer students an academic challenge that underscores how financial and economic concepts apply to our daily lives,” said State Treasurer Beth Pearce. “At the competition, students receive a lot of positive feedback for their skills that will hopefully motivate them to continue their financial studies and carry that knowledge with them into their adult lives.”

After a morning of preliminary matches, three teams competed in the championship round: South Burlington High School, Fair Haven Union High School, and a combined team from Lamoille Valley Union High School and the Green Mountain Technology and Career Center. In a close match for the first two rounds, South Burlington entered the final lightning round with just a five point advantage. However, the previous experience of the South Burlington team allowed them to be quicker on the response buzzer and win the chance to answer a majority of the questions.

“It truly is an honor to win the Reserve Cup for the second year in a row,” said South Burlington High School math teacher and team coach Eric Stone. “The competition was particularly good this year. With all four of the students returning, they knew what to expect and were able to use their experience to their advantage.”

Placing second in the competition was the combined team of Lamoille Union and Green Mountain TCC. Fair Haven Union High School finished third. Other high schools participating were Montpelier High School and Mt. Mansfield Union High School.

Students competing for South Burlington were Sam Bellavance, Will Bugbee, Theophila Lee, and Kevin Wang. The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston will pay for the team’s travel to the regional contest.

“The Reserve Cup competition gives us the opportunity to reinforce with students the importance of understanding how our economy works and how their personal finances interact within the larger economic system,” said Director of Economic Education Scott Guild of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. “The Vermont competition has been especially meaningful for us because we can interact with students face-to-face and review with them some of the concepts that may be particularly challenging.”

Students competing for Lamoille Union and Green Mountain TCC were Joel Boyden, Kylie Ferland, Matthew Hoadley, and Angela Moreau. Their team was coached by business teacher Lisa Durocher.

Fair Haven Union High School was coached by business teacher Kim Ransom. Student team members were: Nathan Poczobut, Taylor Traverse, Derek Hernandez, Jake Silver, Jonathan Sanabria, and Megan Wooster.

Student team members for Mt. Mansfield Union High School were: Mackenzie Bossi, Rose McLaughlin, Matt Estes, Bruce Downes and Emily Rotax. Math teacher Marilyn Marshall coached the team.

Montpelier High School was coached by social studies teacher Lyman Castle. Student team members were: Chloe Gordon, Josh Crane, Julia Gilbert, and Gabe Sheir.

The event is underwritten by TD Bank. Members of the Vermont Jump$tart Coalition also supported the competition and volunteered at the event.