Where do intellectual curiosity and fierce competition come together? Trivia Night, of course! Every other Wednesday at 8 p.m., you can find “barstool brainiacs” eager to compete for prizes and bragging rights at Founder’s Pub.
A popular Witt Wednesday tradition, Trivia Night is hosted by Ray Dudek, who is also a chemistry professor at Wittenberg.
“Most students know me as the trivia guy, not as the chemistry professor,” he said, laughing.
Dudek began hosting trivia at Wittenberg in 2011, but he has also hosted a trivia nights at other bars in the area. He says he spends about three to four hours a week writing trivia questions that will challenge students.
Dudek’s questions tend to cover a wide variety of subjects, yet for Witt students, he tends to avoid pop-culture and sports questions in favor of more difficult, scholarly questions.
“A good question is one of two things,” he said. “Either it’s something you should know, or it’s a question you’re curious to know the answer to.”
The event does seem to cater to the curious liberal arts student. With topics covering current events, history, science, literature, geology and everything in-between [this year, Dudek even arranged a visual round of “name that dinosaur”], students are finding their Wittenberg education applicable even outside of the classroom.
Faithful trivia attendee Morgan Miller, ’17, has been a fan since his freshman year.
“It’s just fun,” he said. “It’s nice to have something in the middle of the week to unwind. It’s nice having a good team who understands a wide background of knowledge.”
Jessica Skoglund, ‘18, is also a long-time trivia participant.
“I go almost every Wednesday,” she said. “I like fun facts and I’m quite competitive.”
Competition pays off on trivia night, especially for college students who love free food. Dudek offers a bonus round where the reward is a free appetizer from the bar. First, second and third place winners also receive gift cards for up to $15 good for Founder’s food.
Even if you’ve never attended trivia night, it’s not too late to start a team of up to four members; just make sure you prepare a creative team name.
“This is the first year I’ve participated in trivia, but I love it. It’s a great way to break up my week and socialize,” Macy Winkelfoos, ‘17, said.
Different organizations can also sponsor trivia, Dudek explained. The most recent Trivia Night was sponsored by the Chemistry Club and featured a tricky fill in the blank periodic table of elements during the visual round.
Whether you play for fun or play to win, Trivia Night is a entertaining way to test your knowledge in all subjects and socialize with friends. Even if you don’t walk away with a prize, you will definitely learn something new.
