The Hanged Man ([info]firmament) wrote,
@ 2008-04-03 08:03:00
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Current mood:aggravated
Entry tags:drama, education, politics

letter to my representative, over trivia?
Dear Representative Davis,

I have a concern about "H. Res. 1058: Supporting the designation of Destination ImagiNation Week," which appears at the moment to be in the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Destination Imagination is a great program that has had a positive affects in many children's lives. However, there are several statements of fact in this bill that are incorrect and I believe should be investigated before voting.

First, Destination Imagination (DI) claims to be over 25 years old. However, DI was actually created when the two organizations that ran Odyssey of the Mind (a very similar program that I participated in for many years) separated in 1999 (the other organization retained the name Odyssey of the Mind and still operates).

Interesting challenges to the claims set forth about the size of the DI program can be found at this page:

http://users.wcvt.com/perkins/DIProgram.htm

It seems unfair to recognize Destination Imagination while ignoring the work of Odyssey of the Mind especially when many of your constituents, including myself, put hours of volunteer work into Odyssey of the Mind for many years.

I am not asking that Odyssey of the Mind be recognized in place of Destination Imagination. They are both great programs with the same end goal, to inspire creativity and teamwork amongst children of all ages, and they have both done a remarkable job at it. I am merely proposing giving Odyssey of the Mind equal recognition, or if anything creating a Creativity Week, which would distinguish any and all programs that promote creativity.

If you have any questions, I suggest you contact Destination Imagination or Odyssey of the Mind; their contact information can easily be found on their websites. And of course, feel free to contact me.

Respectfully,
Matthew Brown


I'm usually pretty upset by all the bad blood over this nonsense. The best thing for everyone would be if the two organizations could reconcile and reunite, and the partisan bickering is extremely unfortunate. But I think it is a big insult to those of us who gave a lot of time to OM before and after the split for DI to claim the legacy of OM entirely for itself in the way that they have.

(Post a new comment)

it really it 25 years
(Anonymous)
2009-02-16 01:00 am UTC (link)
If you look into it Matt, the volunteer group behind OM, a much loved program, was a group called OM Association Inc. Those were the volunteers like you. They were the ones who formed the competitions and did the leg work. That group is the group that formed DI when it looked like money and not learning was becoming a main factor on the former OM. Only the money making corp was left at top level of the Odyssey group when the split happened. That's why DI can claim 25 years. They've been running OM/DI for 25 years. At the state levels, both programs are volunteer based and the volunteers are there for the kids.

(Reply to this) (Thread)
Re: it really it 25 years
[info]firmament
2009-02-16 03:31 am UTC (link)
I am aware of these things. But a lot of us (myself included) after the split continued to volunteer with Odyssey. While you may be right about the top level, state-by-state and school-by-school, volunteers ended up with each of the two new programs. Recognizing DI at the expense of OM (even though OM is now, in the top tier, run by the money-making corporation) is unfair to those of us who were never involved with DI but, for many years, were involved with OM.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

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