Academic Decathlon (Period 6)

    The United States Academic Decathlon (USAD; often abbreviated to "AD", "Acadeca", "Acadec" or even "AcDec") is one of the premier academic competitions for high school students in the United States. USAD contests are held in 43 states, as well as in British Columbia, Canada. It consists of ten events, which include seven tests, two performance events and an essay. It was started by Dr. Robert Peterson in Orange County, California for local schools in 1968, but was expanded to a nation-wide competition in 1981.

    The highly touted LA High Academic Decathlon team is comprised entirely of magnet students. In previous years, the Academic Decathlon Team held a strong record of being one the top teams in the district. Los Angeles High School have always scored big in the LAUSD Academic Decathlon's exciting "Super Quiz" relay competition--a Jeopardy game-like battle of brains and intellect that pits students and schools in the district against one another. The team has also been a regular competitor at California's Academic Decathlon State Finals. Each high school enters a team of nine students: 3 "A" or Honor students, 3 "B" or Scholastic students, and 3 "C" or Varsity students.

    This nationwide non-profit organization promotes an educational experience providing a format in which teams of nine high school students compete in academic events. All California public and private high schools are eligible to compete. The Academic Decathlon embodies a partnership of business, foundations and individuals in cooperation with the education community and county offices of education.

    There are currently over 500 high schools in 42 counties and districts participating in the California Academic Decathlon. The makeup of each of the nine member teams must include three A students, three B students, and three C or below students.

    Academic Decathletes take 30 minute multiple choice tests in the subjects of Economics, Art, Music, Language and Literature, Mathematics, Science, and Social Science. In addition, each team member gives a planned 4 minute Speech and a 2 minute impromptu Speech, sits through a 7 minute Interview, and has 50 minutes to write an Essay. The only event open to the public is the Super Quiz Oral Relay which deals with either the Science or Social Science topic.

    The Academic Decathlon season involves 4 rounds of competition. The United States Academic Decathlon publishes the curriculum in May. Round 1 is a non-scoring scrimmage typically held in November. Round 2 consists of district and county competitions held on the first Saturday in February. The winners of Round 2 plus a limited number of invited teams then compete in Round 3 which is the CAD State Finals held sometime in mid-March. The State Champion then represents California in Round 4, the USAD Nationals held in late April.

    Since national competition began in 1982, California has performed in a superior manner, winning 10 national titles and posting 11 second place finishes.

    Team sign-ups are available in room 268 and in the Magnet Office.

   

• The all-time high scorer is Daniel Berdichevsky (DemiDec Dan), who scored 9297 points at the Los Angeles City Competition in 1994, competing for William Howard Taft High School in Woodland Hills (part of Los Angeles). He later went on to found DemiDec.
• The schools with the most National Titles are J.J. Pearce High School of Richardson, Texas and El Camino Real of Woodland Hills, California, both claiming five championships since the competition began.
• J.J. Pearce High School is the only school to have achieved a National Championship "Hat Trick" of sorts, winning three in a row during the 1980s. Pearce is also one of the few schools to have won the National Championship every time the school has made it to nationals, but the last time it qualified for nationals was in 1991.
  
• Friendswood High School, a 4A school in Texas, has won the Medium School title for 15 straight years. This past season, the Friendswood Academic Decathlon Team narrowly missed the National bid by 158 points, however their objective scores were nearly 1000 points greater than the 5A Champion Plano.
• Moorpark High School's 2007 Team is the only school in USAD history to get 60 out of 60 questions correct on the floor Super Quiz Event. In addition, Moorpark High School's team achieved the highest overall Super Quiz score in history at the time, scoring 5745 out of 6000. This score has only been beaten by El Camino Real at the 2007 Nationals Competition. (NOTE: Not all competition formats follow the 60 question relay format, some use 45 or 30 questions.)
• Waukesha West High School, from Wisconsin is the only team from outside the states of Texas and California to win an overall national title. They took this surprise underdog win in 2002, their first trip to the national competition. They have returned and placed within the top three overall every year since.