WE NEED CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVERS. Odyssey of the Mind, an extracurricular activity that challenges students to use their imaginations to solve unique problems, has been empowering youths for decades. Locally, two OM teams are bringing their problem-solving skills to the World Finals stage – they just need to fundraise $15,000 to get there. (May 11 fundraiser event pictured)

How do you teach creativity? While not restricted to literal arts classes, there are those music and visual arts courses built into most schooldays – to a point; by high school, arts courses are largely optional – and even then, how do you teach a thing like that?

Enter, Odyssey of the Mind (OM). Founded over four decades ago by New Jersey educator, Dr. Sam Micklus, OM was built on a simple sentiment: Learning should be fun.

In the 1970s, Dr. Sam, as he was known, challenged his industrial design students to come up with creative solutions to unique (and sometimes humorous) problems: build a vehicle without wheels; design a mechanical pie thrower; or his infamous assignment, figure out how to cross a lake without getting wet.

Dr. Sam’s classwork gained media attention and popularity, swiftly spurring similar tactics among educators across the country – and the world – to help students flex their creative muscles. Today, OM is a creative extracurricular practiced worldwide.

The OM Pablo Team, pictured, performing during the May 11 fundraiser event at Pablo Center.

Moxie, Mindy, Claire, Case and Jessica, pictured.

Each year, hundreds of OM student teams from across the globe are selected to participate at the World Finals competition, where teams duke it out for the creative problem-solver crown.

Locally, the Pablo Center at the Confluence’s STEAM Education program offers Chippewa Valley students the opportunity to participate in OM to grow their own creative muscles and let their imaginations run free.

Two of those teams earned spots in the 2026 World Finals. This year’s competition will be held over three days at Iowa State University, May 27-30, welcoming more than 800 student teams from across the U.S. and beyond, including international teams from Poland, India, Korea, China, Mexico and others.

Before then, though, the OM teams are calling on the community for support. In total, the two teams need to raise $15,000 to cover travel and competition costs – and there’s not a very long runway left to do so.

The OM Altoona Team, pictured: Cooper, Emersyn, Sienna, Ellie and Hadley (Not pictured: Maci).

The Pablo Center officially launched the OM fundraiser fund, available online at PabloCenter.org/Support, on April 16.

The local student teams, alongside their coaches, held an in-person fundraiser at the downtown Eau Claire arts center on Monday, May 11. Students performed live, offering folks a glimpse into their creative practices, while a slew of raffle prizes helped raise funds for World Finals.

About $760 was raised at the event, bringing the fundraiser’s total up to roughly $13,000 – $2,000 from the teams's $15K goal. 

You can chip into these creative students’ World Finals venture online (select “STEAM Education” and choose “Odyssey of the Mind” in the donation drop-down menu) and keep up with the teams on Facebook.