UF’s Odyssey of the Mind team is preparing to compete at the World Finals in May.
The club encourages members to solve problems in creative ways, said Emily Long, the founder of UF’s team.
For example, if a student is asked what’s cold, he or she might reply “The Grinch’s heart.”
Although the team won’t compete in the state competition until Saturday, the members have already begun fundraising for the World Finals at Iowa State University.
Long said they are the only collegiate team competing in Florida.
Challenges for the international competition are unknown.
If the team competes in the international competition, it could challenge other college teams in building structures and performing music and plays, the 18-year-old said.
If the team doesn’t do well at states, it won’t move on to the World Finals, the UF journalism freshman said.
The team started a GoFundMe page to raise $4,900 for transportation, food, board and a registration fee. As of press time, it has raised $250.
“I think it would be a really great way to represent the University of Florida,” Long said. “I’m hoping, praying that this happens.”
Sara Gonzalez, a librarian at Marston Science Library and the team’s academic adviser, said the team practices every Wednesday at Marston.
“Of all the academic competitions I‘ve seen, this is one of my favorites, because it requires creativity,” she said.
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From left, clockwise, University of Florida Odyssey of the Mind team members Raymond Salzmann, John Michael Timmel, Niell Shikada, Shandy Sulen, Camilo Gonzalez, Brian Hayes Emily Long and Samantha Patten, pose for a photo. Odyssey of the Mind is a competition that tasks participants with coming up with creative solutions to a variety of problems before presenting them at local, state and world-level competitions.
