 "Photo: Corliss Pauling/Echo staff photographer")
During which two centuries did Shakespeare write his plays?
Which infamous rapper interrupted which country singer's acceptance speech at the 2009 VMAs?
What death-causing genetic disorder can be cured 73 percent of the time with a risky and expensive total bone marrow transplant?
This is just a small taste of the type of questions students will face during this spring's Honda Campus All-Star Challenge.
In all, students from 48 HBCUs will participate in the challenge, held each year in Orlando.
Last Thursday interested students got a taste of what to expect at the Honda Challenge at a trial campus challenge.
"I have fun competing with my friends," said computer science senior Daniel Clark, who participated in Thursday's campus event and has represented N.C. Central University in the national challenge.
"My goal is to win first in nationals this year."
According to NCCU challenge coordinator Clayton Mack, the purpose of Thursday's event was to begin selecting candidates for a four-person varsity squad which will compete in Orlando.
Every year students compete for the first-place prize of $50,000. The runner-up receives $25,000 and the semi-finalist receives $15,000.
Last spring the NCCU challenge team won $17,000 as a semi-finalist in the nationals.
In that competition, Prairie View A&M took first place and Mississippi Valley State University took second.
Each year the final four winning teams will be announced in a full-page ad in USA Today.
Honda Motor Company pays for the team, coaches, airfare and hotel, but team winnings and support from the Office of Student Affairs also helps cover the team expenses.
The challenge started in 1989 when Honda Motor Co. approached the College Bowl and asked them to create a special version of their game for undergraduates at HBCUs.
Since then, Honda has awarded more than $6 million worth of grants to participating HBCUs.
NCCU has participated in the Honda Challenge for the past 20 years.
According to Mack, NCCU has won $166,000 in awards since 1990.
"I love seeing all the schools together at the competition," said Chris Graves, who has been coaching NCCU's team for the past seven years.
"You get to learn about different HBCUs."
It's great!"
Once selected, the varsity team practices two to three times a week using sample questions from the Honda Challenge.
The team is mainly comprised of seniors from a variety of majors, although students can join no matter what their classification or major.
"I love to win," said team member Susan Creary, a history senior who competed in Orlando last spring.
"I was invited by Daniel Clark two years ago," Creary said.
"I came to a couple of practices and liked the challenge."
Students interested in joining the team should contact campus coordinator Clayton Mack at cmack@nccu.edu or 919.530.7620 for more information.
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