| Published March 4th, 2009 | Acalanes Wins Contra Costa County's 2009 Academic Decathlon | Submitted by Jonathan B. Lance | ![](../../issue0226/images/0226-03301.jpg) | Photo submitted by Diane Morrell, Contra Costa County Office of Education
| Acalanes High School was announced as the overall team winner of the 2009 Contra Costa County Academic Decathlon. This is Acalanes' third year in a row as the County's team winner. The top high school teams that followed Acalanes were (in order) Campolindo, Miramonte and Monte Vista in Danville.
The Academic Decathlon was directed by the Contra Costa County Office of Education with the assistance of community volunteers. The Academic Decathlon provides an opportunity for high school students to compete as individuals and teams in a series of ten academic tests and demonstrations including: art, economics, language and literature, mathematics, music, science, essay, interview, and speech (both prepared and impromptu). The curriculum for this year's test was Latin America with a Focus on Mexico. Acalanes High School will represent Contra Costa County at the California Academic Decathlon that will be held in Sacramento March 14-16. The National Academic Decathlon will be held in Memphis, Tennessee May 22-25.
"The Academic Decathlon is a wonderful event for our high school students," said Contra Costa County Superintendent of Schools Joseph A. Ovick, Ed.D. "My congratulations to all the schools and students who participated, and a big thank you to all the teachers and volunteers who made the event a booming success. Best wishes to Acalanes High School team as they advance to the state level competition," continued Ovick.
The high school teams are made up of nine students, grades 9-12, with a maximum of three students in each of the following divisions: Honors (3.75-4.00 GPA), Scholastic (3.00-3.74 GPA) and Varsity (2.99 GPA and below). For the complete team and individual scores of the 2009 Contra Costa County Academic Decathlon, visit www.cocoschools.org/edsvcs/events/decathlon.htm.
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