CLARKSVILLE — Clinton-Massie Local Schools and the Southern Ohio Educational Service Center announce that eighth-grader Sam Binau has been selected by the National Geographic Society as one of the semifinalists eligible to compete in the 2017 Ohio National Geographic State Bee.

Sam is a two-time state qualifier for the state bee as he competed in last year’s Ohio National Geographic State Bee.

The contest will be held at the Fawcett Center on the campus of The Ohio State University on Friday, March 31. This event is the second level of the National Geographic Bee competition, now in its 29th year.

In order to advance to the next level, Sam won the CM School Bee where students in fourth through eighth grades competed throughout the state to determine each school champion.

In the initial round of the competition, students were called upon to answer questions such as “The North Platte and South Platte Rivers meet in which state — New Mexico or Nebraska?” The correct answer is Nebraska.

And, “The island of Mauritius [maw-RISH-uhs] in the Indian Ocean has multicolored sand dunes. It’s weird, but it’s true! Mauritius lies off the southeast coast of which continent that includes the Kalahari Desert?” The correct answer is Africa.

Having won the title of school champion, Sam then completed an online qualifying test from which the National Geographic Society 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.

“We wish Sam the best of luck as he advances to the state competition at the end of March! His passion for geography and world knowledge will serve him well at the state bee,” said Curt Bradshaw, Gifted Services Coordinator at the Southern Ohio ESC, which worked to coordinate the local Geography Bee competition.

Each state champion will receive a cash prize of $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 at National Geographic Society headquarters May 14-17.

The national champion will receive a $50,000 college scholarship, a lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society, including a subscription to National Geographic magazine, and an all-expense 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. Visit www.natgeobee.org for more information on the National Geographic Bee.

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. 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.

Information for this article was provided by Diana Miller, who coordinates communications for several area schools.