Salsbery and Leathers qualify for State Geo Bee

Turk Salsbery, son of Karen and Denny Salsbery who is a seventh grader at Malta Middle School and Spur Leathers, son of Cotton and Dawn Leathers who is a 4th grader at Malta Elementary School, have both been notified that they have qualified for the 2017 State Geography Bee.

This is the first time that Malta Public Schools has qualified two finalists in the same year.

The two have been notified by the National Geographic Society that they are two of the semifinalists eligible to compete in the 2017 Montana National Geographic State Bee. The contest will be held at Missoula on Friday, March 31, 2017.

This is the second level of the National Geographic Bee competition, which is now in its 29th year. School Bees were held in schools with fourth- through eighth-grade students throughout the state to determine each school champion. School champions then took a qualifying test, which they submitted to the National Geographic Society. The National Geographic Society has invited up to 100 of the top-scoring students in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Department of Defense Dependents Schools and U.S. territories to compete in the State Bees.

Each state champion will receive $100, the National Geographic Concise Atlas of the World, 4th Edition and a trip to Washington, D.C., to represent their state in the National Geographic Bee Championship to be held at National Geographic Society headquarters, May 14-17, 2017. The national champion will receive a $50,000 college scholarship, a lifetime membership in the Society, including a subscription to National Geographic magazine, and an all expenses paid Lindblad expedition to the Galápagos Islands aboard the new National Geographic Endeavour ll. Travel for the trip is provided by Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic

The National Geographic Channel and Nat Geo WILD will air the 2017 National Geographic Bee Championship, moderated by journalist and humorist Mo Rocca, on Friday, May 19, at 8 p.m. ET. Public television stations will broadcast the final round at a later date. Check local television listings for the air date and time in your area.