Duncan Kromminga, an eighth-grade student at Southwest Middle School, won the school-level competition of the National Geographic Bee on Jan. 14, and a chance at a $25,000 college scholarship.

The school-level bee, at which students answered oral questions on geography, was the first round in the 22nd annual National Geographic Bee.

The preliminary competition at the school-level was held at Southwest on Dec. 16 with more than 50 students participating. From this group, 17 students advanced to the final round of the school-level competition. As school-level champion, Kromminga will now take a written test along with hundreds of students all over Minnesota to qualify for the state-level bee to be held on April 9.

The winner of the state-level bee will win an all-expenses-paid trip from the National Geographic Society to Washington, D.C., to compete in the national bee on May 25 and 26. The first-place national winner will receive a $25,000 college scholarship, a lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society and a trip to the Galapagos Islands.

Everyone can test their geography knowledge with the new GeoBee Challenge, an online geography quiz at www.nationalgeographic.com/geobee. The game poses 10 new questions a day.