The Seward High Academic Decathlon team, coached by Noelle Baker, placed second at the Large School Regionals held online Jan. 9.
Seward competed against other schools in Nebraska of similar size.
A total of 37 gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded to the Seward team on their AD Regional scoring. They placed second place in the Large School Division, losing only to Omaha’s Daniel Gross High School and will now compete again online, adding prepared speech, interview and essay contests to the other seven online tests in the areas of art, literature, music, math, economics, science and social studies.
Academic Decathlon Team representatives Hannah Kolterman-Wagner and Miriam Voehl, along with the AD Coach Noelle Baker, reported their success at the Jan. 20 Seward Optimist meeting. They thanked the Seward Optimist Club for its support, both financially and “in spirit.” The girls presented an Academic Decathlon Team shirt to the Seward Optimist President Morgan Kozisek.
The Virtual State AD competition will be held Friday and Saturday, Feb. 19 and 20, in the Media Center/Library at Seward High School.
They will be required to write the essay on an assigned topic on the afternoon of Feb. 5 in the SHS Media Center. On Feb. 19 from 5-8 p.m., the students will present speeches on any topic in a Zoom presentation and be interviewed. On Feb. 20 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., members will compete in new tests on the same categories under the theme of “The Cold War!”
It should be noted that everyone on the Seward Academic Decathlon Team won medals at the Regional Contest. The following 37 medals were awarded at the regional contest to SHS students:
Overall Best Team Score-Elizabeth Gokie;
Art-First: Miriam Voehl, Second: Hannah Kolterman-Wagner, Third: Cole Gray;
Literature-First: Miriam Voehl, Hannah Kolterman-Wagner, Third: Cole Gray, Isaiah VanBeek, and Emily Gokie;
Music- First: Miriam Voehl, Second: Andrew Alley, Third: Cole Gray, Tyler Calway and Emliy Gokie;
Math- First-Tyler Calway, Isaiah VanBeek, Braden Adams, Second: Emily Gokie, Elizabeth Gokie, Cole Gray, Ashton Conner, Third: Hannah Kolterman-Wagner;
Economics- First-Andrew Alley, Second: Hannah Kolterman-Wagner, Ashton Conner, Cole Gray and Miriam Voehl, Third: Tyler Calway;
Science-First: Hannah Kolterman-Wagner, Second: Tyler Calway, Cole Gray, Third: Isaiah VanBeek, Ashton Conner;
Social Science/History-First: Cole Gray, Second: Hannah Kolterman-Wagner, Tyler Calway, Third: Miriam Voehl.
The medals and placement awards were announced online and will now be awarded to the students at a school event. Academic Decathlon T-shirts were made for the team and presented at the Regional Contest. The shirts were funded and sponsored by the Seward Optimist Club.
