CGSC WorldQuest team engages in competition

(Gary Hobin, CGSC DJIMO) Eight faculty members from the Department of Joint, Interagency, and Multinational Operations (DJIMO) from the Army Command and General Staff College traveled to the Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center in Overland Park, Kansas, on the evening of April 30, to do battle with similar teams of experts in the annual WorldQuest Global Trivial Pursuit competition, sponsored by the Kansas City International Relations Council.

CGSC WorldQuest team members took part in WorldQuest at the Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center on April 30, 2026, taking 10th overall in the competition. Left to right: Mr. Gary Hobin, Mr. Dan Honken, LtCol Sam Short (AUS), Lt. Col. Nathan Moore, Mr. Joe Donalbain, LtCol. James Ayre (GBR), Lt. Col. Jamal Khan, Dr. John Ringquist (photo courtesy Gary Hobin)

The CGSC Foundation sponsors the College’s WorldQuest Team as part of its outreach to the Greater Kansas City community. Similar teams from local colleges, business groups and social organizations meet in the annual WorldQuest competition. Competitors respond to a series of wide-ranging questions drawn from history, geography, politics, and the arts. The emphasis is on recall of lesser-known details of international affairs, rather than understanding broader trends.

The competition consists of six rounds of ten questions each.  Teams have 45 seconds to answer each question and record the Team’s answer on an answer form.  At the end of each round, a Team member delivers the answer sheet to the judges’ table. The Team’s score for the round is the number of correct answers, which means best guess, consensus answers can increase the Team’s score.

The International Relations Council holds the annual WorldQuest Global Trivial Pursuit competition for any group interested in international relations concerns.  The Council also sponsors WorldQuest competition for high schools in the Kansas City area; winning teams from this area go on to compete regionally.  Successful teams regionally go on to compete at the national level.  Kansas City area high school teams have amassed an impressive record in the competition.

The CGSC WorldQuest Team’s record in the competition has been quite good over the past several years, usually ending among the top three teams. This year proved to be an exception.

“We had a good time this year,” said one team member, “but the final score was disappointing.”  This year’s final score put the team in 10th place.

“We’ll do better next year!”