Quiz Bowl-- Letter to the Kids

I wanted to share a letter to my students regarding what happened today at the Malden Catholic Quiz Bowl. Despite the disappointment, I think that there is a much greater lesson to be learned here; sometimes, setbacks teach you more than triumphs.


Dear Parents,

Please share the following message with your children:

Imagine that we are the Patriots.  We qualify for the Superbowl, but then
are not invited to the game.  After the Superbowl, after everyone has
left the stadium, the officials recognize that they have made an error,
and that yes, the Pats should have won.  They offer them a ring and an
apology, as an afterthought.  It's just not the same as getting to play
in the game, right?  To hear the roar of the crowd, to feel the
adrenaline pumping, to hold the trophy high in the air.  

I am so sorry that you guys missed out on the opportunity to get the
public recognition that you deserve.  I am happy and grateful that MC
recognized their mistake and is working to rectify the situation;
however, that doesn't make it hurt less and it doesn't make up for what
happened.  I am sure that in the future, they will more carefully
calculate the scores before announcing the winners; if there is a
discrepency and the moderator brings that to the judges' attention, they
need to stop the championship round and check their scores again. At the
very least, there should have been a public acknowledgment of the mistake
before that auditorium cleared out for the day.  

Regardless of what happened, I want to say how very, very proud I am of
each and every one of you.  If you had been in the championship round and
won, I would have been beaming with pride.  But you know what?  I am EVEN
PROUDER of what I saw from you when that mistake was made.  You are
entitled to feel sad, slighted, angry, hurt, disappointed -- that's all
normal.  But for you to conduct yourselves in the manner in which you did
despite the mistake -- gracefully, with dignity and class -- that is
something that is far more important than a public acknowledgment of your
success.  

Today, you won Quiz Bowl 2012 overall and Wild Card Round.  Do not let
ANYTHING take that away.  You worked hard and represented the very best
of our school, both academically and in character.  

I think there are some lessons to be learned here.  First, life is not
fair.  Assert yourself, advocate for what's right, and always hold your
head high.  That's what you did today.  Also, at the end of the day, you
know you are the winners.  You know you gave it your all, you know that
you rightfully won, and you know that you did your very best.  Sometimes,
in life, we do things that we are not recognized for.  That's not a
reason to stop doing them.  Today, you challenged yourselves, you took
risks, you competed, you were winners all around.  I COULD NOT BE any
prouder.  

Thank you all for a wonderful experience.  You are truly an amazing group
of kids and I am proud to be your teacher!!  

Ms. Conceison