40°
“This team works together so well,” said parent and team manager Michelle Piccolo Hill. “They are extremely collaborative and consistently play to each other’s strengths. The level of trust among these students is truly spectacular.”
Team VIIPZ comprises the following Blue Mountain seventh graders: Vanessa Rossi, Indrani Malhotra, Isolde McManus, Parker Piccolo Hill and Zoe Rose. The "VIIPZ" moniker consists of each member's first initial.
The team competed in a regional tournament at Mercy College in March before achieving a first place victory at the state competition in Binghamton earlier this month.
Team VIIPZ is the first from the Hendrick Hudson School District to compete at a DI tournament.
Parent Rhonda Malhotra also serves as team manager with Hill.
Competitions consist of participants solving both instant and team challenges. Instant challenges require team members to work together to assess situation and craft an appropriate, creative solution in a matter of minutes.
Team challenges utilize each member's skills in various areas including engineering, art, writing and performance to create a solution that can take weeks or even months to develop.
“Destination Imagination enables students to work together and be creative, two of the most natural and enjoyable attributes so many students possess," Blue Mountain Middle School Principal John Owens said. "I look forward to more of this type of learning being incorporated into everyday teaching and learning for our students.”
Click here to follow Daily Voice Cortlandt and receive free news updates.
