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Santa Monica Teens to Compete in Trivia Quest

Santa Monica Real Estate Company, Roque and Mark

By Lookout Staff

February 15, 2013 -- Teens will get a chance to compete for $100 prize on February 23 when Santa Monica's Main Library hosts Teen Urban Quest.

Starting at 1 p.m., teens will form groups of three to four at the Main Library where they will then venture out into Downtown Santa Monica, looking for answers to questions perpared by the Library's Teen Advisory Council.

The Council, made up of 12 Santa Monica high school students, has “been play-testing the questions to make sure they make sense” in preparation for the event, said Teen Services Librarian Erica Cuyugan.

Cuyugan has been working with the Teen Advisory Council, in its current form, for six years now.

“I love it. It's one of my favorite things to do,” she said, adding that the experience of being on the Council helps teens learn a lot of leadership skills.

The Teen Urban Quest was thought up, planned out and will be implemented by members of the Teen Advisory Council, with the help of Cuyugan.

Teams will be given 30 questions, 10 for each of the three locations on the quest. Each question will range from easy to hard and a correct answer for each will be worth a certain amount of points based on the difficulty of the question.

At the end, the members of the team with the most points will get $100 each.

Each year, with the support of Friends of the Santa Monica Public Library, the Teen Advisory Council organizes an event.

Last year, it was a battle of the bands, with the winning band taking home a $500 prize.

In 2008, the Council organized a cultural festival, which cost “a few thousand dollars,” said Cuyugan.

Working on the Council is a growing experience for teens, said Cuyugan.

“I like to see the transformation from the beginning,” she said.

At the beginning, Cuyugan said, many the teens start off shy and are still figuring out how to work with each other. By the end, they usually come out of their shells, she said.

To find out more about or sign up for the Teen Urban Quest, visit http://smpl.org/teenquest.aspx.