By Francine Black, Staff Reporter

Dr. Keith Amiel from Caribbean Broilers Group presents a cheque for over $3 million to Claire Grant, marketing manager of TVJ, as sponsorship of TVJ's Schools' Challenge Quiz at the competition's launch at TVJ yesterday. - Ricardo Makyn

The 38th season of Television Jamaica's Schools' Challenge Quiz was launched at its studios at Lyndhurst Road, St. Andrew, yesterday.

The season, which will see 71 schools squaring off against each other in several rounds of competition, will begin airing on TVJ on Monday. Matches will air Monday to Friday at 6:30 p.m. and on Saturday at midday.

Senator Delano Franklyn, Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and guest speaker at the function, lauded the organisers for developing the show which has been an important avenue for learning for many Jamaicans.

Take risks

He noted that the competition taught several lessons, including teamwork, how to be quick on the feet, to take risks and discipline. "It also allows for those who are involved to develop and grow mentally," he said.

Michael Gonzales, senior producer of the programme, emphasised the need for teams to continue being respectful of the competition's standards. He said he is reminding teams that the "tenets of fair play and respect remain for judges' decisions."

He also announced that four preliminary matches have been played and the winners of those matches had advanced to the first round of the competition. The winners are Dinthill Technical High School, José Marti High School, Brown's Town Community College and Titchfield High School.

Winners of the competition this year will received an all-expense-paid trip to 3M headquarters in St. Paul, Minnesota. The winners will get an opportunity to tour the recently built 3M innovation centre and meet the inventors, including the creator of Post-Its.

Representatives of some of the other sponsors, Digicel, Caribbean Broilers, Lasco and Tradewinds Citrus, also made presentations of sums ranging from $3.35 million to $4.1 million to the competition.

This year's competition has 16 seeded teams. They are Calabar High (#1), Kingston College (#2), Glenmuir High (#3), Manchester High (#4), Ardenne High (#5), Wolmer's Girls (#6), Wolmer's Boys (#7), Clarendon College (#8), Munro College (#9), Old Harbour High (#10), St. Mary High (#11), Belair High (#12), Immaculate High (#13), St. Jago High (#14), Knox College (#15) and The Queen's School (#16).