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Folsom High School’s Academic Decathlon team just completed an impressive round of competition, scoring second place in the Sacramento County Academic Decathlon, and will be heading to the state competition in March.
The Academic Decathlon Team won first place in the Super Quiz, and came in shy of first place in the county level by a mere 266 points against Bella Vista High School. Folsom High earned 44,526.8 points out of a possible 65,000 points—one of the overall highest scores they have ever received at county.
This year, students around the nation prepared for the topic, World War I. Students studied as much art, music, math, science, economics, language and literature, and social science associated with World War I as possible.
Along with mastering those subjects, students must also write a timed essay, prepare for an interview, and rehearse for a 3-4 minute speech. While three judges critiqued the speeches, another set of three judges interviewed students.
For the past eight months, the Decathletes at Folsom High immersed themselves in the World War I era. Students practiced their speeches during passing period, read their materials during lunch, and spent hours preparing for this one day that could potentially change Folsom High School history.
Kyle Hammer, junior, said he spent about 5 hours in front of the mirror practicing his speech and found at least 8 different copies of it after rummaging through his shorts. Amelia Comper, senior, said she “listen[ed] to the music while reading about the history of the piece.”
After spending hours and hours preparing for this day, the Decathletes had heads turning during the awards banquet. Folsom High walked away with 28 individual medals and three “Super Decathletes” awards.
Lukas Novak, a senior at Folsom High, was the gold winner for Honors Super Decathlete, and he gave his speech to more than 500 attendees at the awards banquet. His speech was so outstanding that Dave Gordon, County Superintendent of Schools, invited Novak to share his speech at the State Capitol.
Nonetheless, the Decathletes are heading to the state’s capitol in March to put their knowledge to the test once again, and they are ready for the challenge. Melinda Wilson, the German teacher and Academic Decathlon coach at Folsom High School, said, “The team is looking forward to the opportunity to not only find the 266 points we lost…but also to take first place [at state].”
Mehrzad Pashutanizadeh commented, “Our success this year has not only been monumental in terms of medals and scores, but also in the way we have bonded and truly come together as a team.”
Folsom High Academic Decathlon Team Heads to State
February 14, 2014
Folsom High School’s Academic Decathlon team just completed an impressive round of competition, scoring second place in the Sacramento County Academic Decathlon, and will be heading to the state competition in March.
The Academic Decathlon Team won first place in the Super Quiz, and came in shy of first place in the county level by a mere 266 points against Bella Vista High School. Folsom High earned 44,526.8 points out of a possible 65,000 points—one of the overall highest scores they have ever received at county.
This year, students around the nation prepared for the topic, World War I. Students studied as much art, music, math, science, economics, language and literature, and social science associated with World War I as possible.
Along with mastering those subjects, students must also write a timed essay, prepare for an interview, and rehearse for a 3-4 minute speech. While three judges critiqued the speeches, another set of three judges interviewed students.
For the past eight months, the Decathletes at Folsom High immersed themselves in the World War I era. Students practiced their speeches during passing period, read their materials during lunch, and spent hours preparing for this one day that could potentially change Folsom High School history.
Kyle Hammer, junior, said he spent about 5 hours in front of the mirror practicing his speech and found at least 8 different copies of it after rummaging through his shorts. Amelia Comper, senior, said she “listen[ed] to the music while reading about the history of the piece.”
After spending hours and hours preparing for this day, the Decathletes had heads turning during the awards banquet. Folsom High walked away with 28 individual medals and three “Super Decathletes” awards.
Lukas Novak, a senior at Folsom High, was the gold winner for Honors Super Decathlete, and he gave his speech to more than 500 attendees at the awards banquet. His speech was so outstanding that Dave Gordon, County Superintendent of Schools, invited Novak to share his speech at the State Capitol.
Nonetheless, the Decathletes are heading to the state’s capitol in March to put their knowledge to the test once again, and they are ready for the challenge. Melinda Wilson, the German teacher and Academic Decathlon coach at Folsom High School, said, “The team is looking forward to the opportunity to not only find the 266 points we lost…but also to take first place [at state].”
Mehrzad Pashutanizadeh commented, “Our success this year has not only been monumental in terms of medals and scores, but also in the way we have bonded and truly come together as a team.”
The team has bonded together and supported each other through failures and triumphs, nervousness, and stress—and through it all, they came out on top. Hammer described this team as a “family-like connection that you cannot find anywhere else.”
Both Melinda Wilson and Debbie Bettencourt, Superintendent, said they couldn’t be more proud of this team. Molly Mort loves being a part of Academic Decathlon and says that this experience has brought her “farther than [she] ever dreamed possible.”
We are thrilled for our Folsom High Academic Decathlon Team, and we wish them all the best in the State competition.
Both Melinda Wilson and Debbie Bettencourt, Superintendent, said they couldn’t be more proud of this team. Molly Mort loves being a part of Academic Decathlon and says that this experience has brought her “farther than [she] ever dreamed possible.”
We are thrilled for our Folsom High Academic Decathlon Team, and we wish them all the best in the State competition.