Students from 13 high schools across San Joaquin County competed in the 44th Annual Academic Decathlon, hosted by the San Joaquin County Office of Education (SJCOE). Middle College High School took home the top overall award, earning the Dave Sorgent Winner’s Cup and advancing to the State Academic Decathlon Championship.
The competition, which began with virtual essay events in December, continued with speech and interview rounds on Jan. 17 at the Teachers College of San Joaquin. The final rounds, including objective tests in subjects like art, economics, literature, mathematics, music, science, and social science, took place on Feb. 1 at Lathrop High School, culminating in the high-energy Super Quiz competition and awards ceremony. This year’s theme was "Our Changing Climate."
Top Overall Schools
1st Place: Middle College High School (Lodi Unified School District)
2nd Place: Stockton Early College Academy (Stockton Unified School District)
3rd Place: Ripon High School (Ripon Unified School District)
Top-Scoring Students
Sehaj Gill (Stockton Early College Academy, Stockton Unified School District) and Archit Bhattacharyya (Kimball High School, Tracy Unified School District) were the overall top-scoring students, each receiving a $500 Walter Rathhaus Award, provided by the SJCOE Educational Foundation.
Super Quiz Winners
1st Place: Stockton Early College Academy
2nd Place (Tie): Kimball High School & Middle College High School
3rd Place: Lathrop High School
Category Winners
The competition was divided into three categories: Honors (3.75–4.0 GPA), Scholastic (3.0–3.74 GPA), and Varsity (0.0–2.99 GPA). The top-scoring students in each category received medals, certificates, and scholarships ranging from $50 to $250.
Scholarships
University of the Pacific awarded renewable $5,000 scholarships to:
Kaitlyn Vue (McNair High School, Lodi Unified School District)
Josephine Bui (Stockton Early College Academy, Stockton Unified School District)
The Academic Decathlon continues to challenge and reward students for their academic excellence, teamwork, and dedication to learning. Middle College High School will now prepare to represent San Joaquin County at the State Academic Decathlon Championship.
For more details and photos from the event, visit the SJCOE Facebook page (@thesjcoe).