February 9, 2019
The RA Academic Decathlon team competed in the Eastern Pennsylvania Regional competition on Saturday, February 9th at North Penn High School, Lansdale, PA. The team finished 4th in the region and is awaiting the results of the two other regions to see if we will clinch a wildcard birth for the State competition.
The team set an RA record for the number of medals won at a single competition with a total of 11 medals.
Medalists include:
- Jeffry Cocci - a Gold medal in the interview category
- Larry Henck -a Gold medal in Math and a silver in Science
- Austin Nigro - A bronze in Music and a Bronze in Social Science
- And with an RA record 5 Medals, Joey Carr- 4 Silver medals, Music, Art, Literature, and Math; along with a Bronze in Interview.
Academic Decathlon Program Description: The United States Academic Decathlon emphasizes the personal and academic growth of each student who, by meeting the challenges with honesty and integrity, can reap the rewards of greater self-knowledge and self-confidence for the future. The ten-event academic program strives to foster a greater respect for knowledge, to promote wholesome inter-school academic competition, and to further develop student communication skills. A unique aspect of the U.S. Academic Decathlon is that it is designed to include students from all academic abilities and achievement levels. Each nine-member team consists of three Honor students (3.750 – 4.00 GPA), three Scholastic students (3.000 – 3.749 GPA), and three Varsity students (0.00 – 2.999 GPA). Each team member competes in all ten events against other students in his/her GPA division. Overall team scores are calculated using the top two individual scores from each division.
History of the US Academic Decathlon: The United States Academic Decathlon was first created by Dr. Robert Peterson, former Superintendent of Schools in Orange County, California. Firmly believing that everyone’s learning potential can be maximized through competitive challenge, Dr. Peterson set in motion the contest that has since come to be recognized as the most prestigious high school academic team competition in the United States. The program spread rapidly due to the success and excitement it engendered. The United States Academic Decathlon was founded in 1981.