Legacy student is finalist in state geographic bee

A Legacy Traditional School seventh-grader tied for sixth place in the state’s competition leading up to the National Geographic Bee.

Armand Santilli is the first student from the school to qualify for the state geographic bee, said Benson Wallace, his social studies teacher at Legacy Traditional School.

“I’m not surprised by Armand’s achievements,” Wallace said. “He’s always been a great student.” When the opportunity to compete in the bee presented itself, Armand “jumped into it with both feet.”

The competition was held April 4 in the Arizona State University Memorial Union. The event was sponsored by Plum Creek, one of the largest landowners in the country, and Google.

To compete, Armand first won the school geographic bee. Next, he took a written test, which placed him in the top 100 competitors, which qualified him to compete at the state level. The competitors were fourth- to eighth-grade students.

At the state bee, students were divided into four groups to compete and those top 10 winners participated in the final round of questions, said Tamara Santilli, Armand’s mother. The final round covered only questions about Canada.

Tamara is a teacher at Villago Middle School in Casa Grande and she and her son live in Maricopa.

Armand is an Honor Roll student, participates in sports and the 4-H Club and plays the trumpet and piano, his mother said. 

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