B.R.I.T.E.
The Bridgewater-Raritan Invitational Tournament of Excellence
View the Current Score Sheet (2010)
Directions to the Tournament
Format for the BRITE Competition (Word Document)
Rules for the BRITE Competition (Word Document)
Guidelines and Background of B.R.I.T.E.
We are pleased to announce the annual Bridgewater-Raritan Invitational Tournament of Excellence (BRITE), a New Jersey State qualifying quiz contest preceding a National Academic Championship. Since 1978 we have sent champions to the national competition in Washington, D.C., Texas, Florida, and Ohio awarding more than $200,000 in scholarships to finalist schools.
This tournament is designed to provide the academically talented students of your high school a forum in which to excel and earn both prestige and prize money for the schools they represent. The tournament follows a "quiz bowl" format, pitting one school against one of many other schools in three (3) rounds of competition.
In 1978, Mr. Hugh Farley, a member of the Bridgewater-Raritan Education Association (BREA) and a respected teacher in the school district, proposed to the leadership of BREA that the Association establish a county-wide academic tournament which would celebrate the achievements of the academically talented student.
In the first year, BREA went to work and contacted all of the high schools in Somerset County: public, private and parochial, and found that fifteen of them were genuinely interested in joining to promote such a tournament. A series of meetings helped to refine the concept, tackle the problems of scheduling and awards, and determine the best method of attracting more schools to the tournament.
Since then, the program has grown by leaps and bounds. From the nucleus of fifteen Somerset County schools, more than seventy (70) schools, from all of the state, are competing annually in this tournament.
In addition to the increased number of participants, in 1984, the tournament began to offer scholarship moneys to the winning teams.
Today, the tournament has grown to become the only one in the state whose winner is an automatic qualifier for the National Academic Tournament.
Please Join Us!
Eligibility
Any secondary school in New Jersey may select by any means it deems appropriate six students who will represent the school in competition. Only four students may serve on the game panel at any one time, however, substitutions are allowed prior to the start of the next game. These students may compete in the first three rounds of the tournament and in any subsequent final rounds for which they qualify. One of the four competitors shall be the designated spokesperson for the team and shall be the sole oral respondent.
Format
Competition will take the form of a modified Jeopardy game. Each round consists of three (3) games. There are five (5) categories of questions within each game. The questions will cover a variety of subject areas and will be graduated in difficulty. Each of these will carry a point value proportionate to its degree of difficulty. Questioning will alternate from team to team, with chances to "double score" one's opponent by correctly answering a question previously answered incorrectly by the opponent.
Awards
Recognition will be awarded to outstanding schools and to individual team members at the conclusion of competition. Certificates and trophies will be awarded, and the winning schools will take home checks in a sizable amount to be deposited in the school's scholarship fund and disbursed to students pursuing higher education. These awards will be provided solely by the Bridgewater-Raritan Education Association. In addition, the winning team will receive paid registration for seven (7) team members and up to $1,000 towards the cost of transportation to the National Finals in the summer.
National Finals
The winning team from this tournament will be qualified to register as one of two New Jersey schools representing the state at a National Tournament.
Schedule for BRITE 2010
Please Note: All Rounds, except the Final Round, are played at Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School and start promptly at 4:00 p.m. IMPORTANT NOTICE - Please do NOT arrive at the Bridgewater-Raritan Middle school prior to 3:00pm.
The revised dates for the tournament:
Tuesday January 26th: Round 1 (All Teams)
Tuesday February 2nd: Round 2 (All Teams)
Tuesday February 9th: Round 3 (All Teams)
Tuesday February 23: SNOW / MAKEUP Date (If necessary)
Tuesday March 2nd: Top 16 Teams only
Tuesday March 9th: Final 8 Teams
Tuesday March 16th: Semi-finals (Final 4 Teams only)
Tuesday March 23rd: SNOW / MAKEUP Date for elimination rounds (If necessary)
Tuesday April 6th: Finals
In case of inclement weather, listen for Bridgewater-Raritan School closings on WCTC (1450 AM), WMGQ (98.3 FM), WPST (97.5 FM) and New Jersey (101.5 FM).
Internet sites regarding closings are located at brrsd.k12.nj.us (Bridgewater-Raritan School District), WeatherClosings.com or cancellations.com
If school is closed for the day, dismisses early, or cancels after school activities, the BRITE Tournament will not be held that day. For early dismissals and cancellations of after school activities, every attempt will be made to put a message on the answering machine at (908) 725-8002. However, seventy schools calling at once may create a problem.
Listening to the radio stations or checking the web sites listed above would be the best solution.
Registration
Click Here to Begin ONLINE Registration for BRITE
There is a fee of $225 per team, plus registration online. All checks should be made payable to B.R.I.T.E. The registration fee is used to defray the cost of scholarship awards, questions, trophies, refreshments and transportation of the winning team to the National Academic Championship. Forms should be completed and returned to the address printed below no later than January 4, 2009. We intend to cut off registration after receipt of the first seventy teams. First come, first served. Confirmation and further information will follow receipt of the preliminary registration form. Note Teams that withdraw must do so prior to January 19th in order to receive a refund for your team.
Click Here to Begin ONLINE Registration for BRITE
All hand-written registration forms and fees should be sent to:
BRITE
Sean Casey, Registration Director
Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School,
Merriwood Drive, Bridgewater, NJ 08807
For any questions regarding registration please contact Sean Casey at scasey@brrsd.k12.nj.us.
Sincerely yours,
Sean Casey, Registration Director
Glen Homa, Tournament Co-Director
Mauria Kunkel, Tournament Co-Director
For any questions regarding registration please contact us.
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