National champions!
Academic decathletes score A++ in contest
By Sylvie Belmond belmond@theacorn.com

SYLVIE BELMOND/Acorn Newspapers KNOWLEDGE IS POWER- Members of the Moorpark High School Academic Decathlon team celebrate winning the national competition. The nine students and coach Larry Jones were honored by elected officials and school leaders on Wednesday. Top row from left is Coach Larry Jones and team members Jonah Buck, Colin Calle, Chrissa Rutkai, Annamika Campeau, Kris Sankaran, Paul Watanabe. First row from left, Christie Calle, Angela Chen and Justine Levan.

Moorpark students prevailed over about 350 participants from 41 states at the 2008 National Academic Decathlon competition in Garden Grove last week.

The team accumulated 53,119 points out of a possible 60,000. The highest score in the academic contest's 26-year history also marks a third national win in a decade for Coach Larry Jones.

The second highest-scoring team, Waukesha West High School of Wisconsin, amassed 53,096 points, and Pearland High School in Texas came in third, with 51,589 points.

"It was a thrill and a close call too," said Jones. Only 23 points, equaling one question, separated the first- and second-place teams. Each team must have students whose grade point averages are in the As, Bs and Cs. Each decathlete must do well in all 10 subjects to succeed in the competition, said Jones.

RICH BURLINGHAM/Special to the Acorn WE DID IT- After their victory, Moorpark High School Academic Decathlon team members rest as they return home in a limousine donated by Road Runner Shuttle. From left are Chrissa Rutkai, Anaamika Campeau, Colin Calle and Angela Chen.

"They have to be well-rounded across the board," he said. "Some start out with natural gifts in certain subjects and have to work hard to master other subjects."

This year's theme was the Civil War."A lot of us didn't know much about the Civil War or like it much until coming into this, but having read resource material about the topic we all came to appreciate and love it," said Justine Levan, team captain.

Sally Wennes, mother of siblings Christie and Colin Calle, who are both on the A team, was beaming with pride as the students were honored by school leaders and local officials Wednesday.

TOP TROPHY- Academic Decathlon Coach Larry Jones presents the winning team to the cheering crowd.

"Both Christie and Colin have been vying for the same medals but they supported each other rather than compete," Wennes said.

Colin, a junior, will be back at MHS next year, and Christie will be heading off to college in Tacoma, Wash., she said.

The team will fly to Washington, D.C., over Memorial Day weekend, where they hope to meet with President George W. Bush. The nine students may also appear on national television, Jones said.

Moorpark decathletes set the alltime record in points scored at the state championship in February and they bested that accomplishment at the national competition.

"The Moorpark students were dedicated to the task and they got that extra little edge because they were a working machine," said Ken Scarberry, director of the California Academic Decathlon who visited the team at the national event.

"They have an incredible coach that has really good skills at bringing the team together academically and socially," he said.

As soon as they heard the news last Saturday, local residents began decorating their neighborhoods with banners and balloons to celebrate the national academic victory.

The team was picked up by a limo at the Hyatt in Garden Grove after the event and, once back in town, the young men and women were escorted by the police and fire department to the Vons shopping center, where they were greeted by a crowd of about 200.

"These kids and their coach are incredible," said Moorpark resident Rich Burlingham, who is making a documentary about their achievement. The film will appear on Community Access Partners of San Buenaventura (CAPS-TV,) Ventura's public access station.

Robert Paterson, a former Orange County schools superintendent, founded the academic decathlon model 40 years ago.

"The founder was in a prison camp when he came up with this idea to have overachievers help underachievers. So he started the academic decathlon, where honor students help average students to learn better and study," said Burlingham.

Moorpark decathletes won county championships nine times since 1994. They won the state contest in 1999, 2002 and 2003 and achieved top scores in the national championships in 1999 and 2003.