Maryland, South Dakota and Texas Students Win $25,000 Scholarships in AAA Travel High School Challenge

Business Wire, April 26, 2004

Business Editors/Travel Writers/Education Writers

ORLANDO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 26, 2004

In an intense competition of travel and geography knowledge, students from Maryland, South Dakota and Texas topped more than 10,000 of their peers to take the national title in the AAA Travel High School Challenge. Each winner took home a $25,000 scholarship for placing first in the national competition that finished with game show-style finals this morning at Universal Orlando.

The winning, three-member team consisted of Joshua Baumgartner of San Antonio, Texas, a home-schooled sophomore; Nicholas Jachowski, from Rockville, Md., a junior at Thomas S. Wootton High School; and Christopher Meyer, from Sturgis, S.D., a senior at Sturgis Brown High School.

In its second year, the AAA Travel Challenge builds high school students' travel knowledge and geographic literacy, while creating awareness of career opportunities in the travel and tourism industry.

The national finals brought together state winners from all 50 states and the District of Columbia for a written, proctored exam and game show-style playoffs to determine the national winners. Each state winner received a $1,000 scholarship and a trip for two to Orlando to compete in the finals.

"Each state winner displayed exceptional knowledge about travel and geography, and answered extremely tough questions that demonstrated a desire to know more about people, places and cultures all around the world," said Sandra Hughes, AAA Travel vice president. "The AAA Travel Challenge is a way to recognize and reward students for their eagerness to learn, while encouraging others to follow in their footsteps."

The second-place team, consisting of Thomas Beihl, of Saluda, S.C., a home-schooled junior; Drew Fleeter, from Reston, Va., a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology; and Matthew Moran, from Quincy, Mass., a senior at Boston College High School put up stiff competition and walked away with $10,000 scholarships each.

According to a recent report by the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA), in 2002, the travel industry received more than $545.5 billion from domestic and international travelers, and one out of every 18 U.S. residents in the civilian labor force was employed due to direct travel spending in the U.S. Still, American youth continue to lag behind their peers in other parts of the world when it comes to geography and travel knowledge.

The Hogan Family Foundation, a Newbury Park, Calif., non-profit organization, provides the $156,000 in scholarships as part of its mission to promote a greater understanding of the importance of travel and tourism.

Corporate sponsors for the contest are Continental Airlines, Holland America Line, Marriott, MBNA America, Pleasant Holidays and Universal Orlando. The students will receive their awards at the contest awards banquet, hosted by Orlando's Hard Rock Live.

Satellite Feed Information:

Date: 4/26/04

Times: 7:00 to 7:15pm EST (19:00 to 19:15 EST)

Satellite Coordinates: (Ku-Band) AMC-05 - Transponder-13

Downlink: 12096 (V)

As North America's largest motoring and leisure travel organization, AAA provides its 47 million members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services. Since its founding in 1902, the not-for-profit, fully tax-paying AAA has been a leader and advocate for the safety and security of all travelers.

AAA news releases are available at http://www.aaa.com/news