Four Prairie View A&M students who make up the University Criminal Justice Undergraduate Quiz Bowl Team took first prize as a team at the 2018 Southwestern Association of Criminal Justice (SWACJ) Annual Competition. Although PVAMU has been participating in the competition since its inception, this was only the second time its team has won in the last decade.
The Quizbowl competition is a series of two rounds ending with a Championship round. After each round, teams are eliminated until two remain for the championship round, during which they answer questions and get rewarded for correct answers. PVAMU’s team included students David Butler, Amber Thomas, Keandra Mays and Brittany Lacy won first place in the Southwestern Association of Criminal Justice (SWACJ) Annual Competition. Their practice mates from Prairie View were Joshua Estrada, Jasmine Williams and D’odrick Jefferson.
“This win shows how capable and well-rounded the students are, thanks to the teachings of the criminal justice staff,” Estrada, a junior, said. “ I look forward to next year’s compeition; it would be a great start to building a PVAMU legacy.”
The team’s accomplishment came with a trophy and a monetary award for Alpha Phi Sigma Criminal Justice Honor Society — Beta Epsilon Nu Chapter. SWACJ includes Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Arkansas, New Mexico and Arizona. While at the SWACJ conference, students D’odrick Jefferson and Jasmine Williams also participated in a roundtable on the response to mass shootings in schools, and students Amber Thomas, Keandra Mays and Brittany Lacy presented a comparative criminal justice paper.
“Our goal (for the Quizbowl competition) was to co-operate as a team and use our sharp and keen knowledge to be able to win,” said Camille Gibson, Ph.D., professor and interim dean of the College of Juvenile Justice and Psychology. “We were delighted to bring the trophy home to PVAMU this year, as the students have worked so hard. It’s good that they were able to see the fruits of their labor and make the department, their families, themselves and the university proud.”
By Emilia Benton