Academic Decathlon recently participated in their annual competition. They placed 5th in the Super Quiz and 4th as an overall team. While everyone has been doing their regular homework, our Decathletes have been going above and beyond, studying extra for the big day. The Royal Reporter’s very own Andrea Salazar ’26 earned the most medals (8) at the competition. Way to go, Andrea! The team has grown both in size and in success. They even partnered with Servite’s team to prepare. Keep reading to learn more about what it’s like to be on AcaDeca!
The preparation process is very thorough and requires a lot of individual studying. Terry Chung ’27 honestly shared, “When the new theme is announced on March 1, we spend time going over the official study packets, starting in the summer through the actual competition date in January. We held lunch meetings and sometimes after school and on weekends to check up on our progress.” Besides common subjects such as literature, social sciences, art and music, Decathletes also compete in an interview and speech category.
When asked about the preparation process, junior Suzanne Murillo explained, “We’re given seven packets across different subjects to study, so we read through them, make Quizlets/PowerPoints and take practice tests. Since Speech and Interview are also a part of the competition, we rehearse our prepared speeches, practice responding to impromptu speech topics and hold mock interviews for each other during lunch.” While all the studying and preparation might seem daunting, Suzanne goes on to share, “My favorite part of AcaDeca has been the friendships I’ve made. I was able to strengthen some existing friendships and acquire new friends, especially friends not in my same grade.” She adds that she has even gotten the opportunity to make friends from other schools on competition days.
The actual competition is spread over two days, excluding the day for the essay that is written at Rosary on the OCAD website. One day is for the Speech and Interview categories. The team shows up at the assigned time and is then separated by individual time and room to complete those two parts. On a separate date, the Decathletes have a day full of the seven objective tests and the Super Quiz. Terry highlights the contrast between the day of speeches and interviews and the day of quizzes: “When we have speech and interview day, everyone dresses formally and gives their prepared speech based on the time slot we are assigned. On the objective testing day, we dress up casually and bring LOTS of snacks to focus and go through the competition.”
While you might not think Academic Decathlon is for you, Suzanne reassuringly comments, “AcaDeca isn’t just divided into divisions but also into GPA categories, so even if you feel like you’re not the most academically inclined, you still have plenty of opportunities to win medals and awards.” From another perspective, Terry advises, “Just give it a try! Academic Decathlon (although the name itself could be devastating) is fun, and you will enjoy it and learn a lot from the materials.”
To close off the season, moderator Dr. Parmar shared in an email, “I’m really proud of our Decathletes; it was a tough season, but our team improved by over 2.5%. Many are inspired, excited and already planning for next year!”
If you are interested in joining Academic Decathlon next year, go see Dr. Parmar in Room 3 for more information. Great work this year and good luck next year, Academic Decathlon!
