The Future Problem Solving club has begun preparing for its district competition in February. With their early start, they feel confident in their abilities.

“We’re going to rock it,” freshman Robert Santiago said. “I’m very proud of how far we’ve gotten.”

Santiago and his team have been practicing since September.

“I think our main issue is time because the writing of it just takes so long, but we’re working on it,” freshman Emily Marshall said.

Marshall and Santiago both work on team booklet, which are packets where teams of three to four people work to identify, reflect on and solve a future problem, such as how to dispose of e-waste. Freshman Sophia Fetouh works on performance, where she writes and acts out a skit in front of an audience. She also seems confident.

“I have a big strength in probably acting because I have past experience with acting,” Fetouh said. “But my weakness is that I talk too fast.”

Since Fetouh does performance, she goes directly to state competition. Marshall and Santiago also went to state competition last year and are trying to get back there at the minimum. 

“As a team, our biggest strength would probably be the creativity that we have and our ability to really think outside of the box when we’re thinking about solutions or problems,” Marshall said.

By Adam Elbouchti