Woodbridge High School has punched its ticket to the California Academic Decathlon in March with an impressive win in this year’s Orange County Academic Decathlon. 
Rounding out a raucous awards ceremony Friday night at Santa Ana High School’s Bill Medley Auditorium, the nine-member Woodbridge squad was announced as the Overall Team Winner by the Orange County Academic Decathlon Association and OCDE.
That means Woodbridge advances to the state-level competition in Sacramento.
Woodbridge, which last won the county title in 2006, scored 52,038.4 total points at the 49th annual event, which was staged over the course of two consecutive Saturdays. Along with a plaque, bragging rights and a plethora of individual medals, the team received a $3,000 travel stipend for the state showdown, which will draw high-performing contenders from California’s 38 counties.
“It is great to see the students rewarded for all their hard work and commitment to each other,” said Mike Nakaue, a retired science teacher who coaches the team along with English teacher Shan Wu. “It took the right mindset, grit, commitment, dedication, and they trusted each other.”
Here’s a breakdown of the top Orange County teams by division:
DIVISION 1
- 1st Place: Woodbridge High School, Irvine Unified School District
- 2nd Place: Valencia High School, Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District
- 3rd Place: Westminster High School, Huntington Beach Union High School District
- 4th Place: Trabuco Hills High School, Saddleback Valley Unified School District
- 5th Place: La Quinta High School, Garden Grove Unified School District
DIVISION 2
- 1st Place: El Dorado High School, Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District
- 2nd Place: Esperanza High School, Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District
- 3rd Place: Servite High School, a private school
- 4th Place: Sonora High School, Fullerton Joint Union High School District
- 5th Place: El Toro High School, Saddleback Valley Unified School District
DIVISION 3
- 1st Place: Los Alamitos High School, Los Alamitos Unified School District
- 2nd Place: Brea Olinda High School, Brea Olinda Unified School District
- 3rd Place: Segerstrom High School, Santa Ana Unified School District
- 4th Place: JSerra Catholic High School, a private school
- 5th Place: Santiago High School, Garden Grove Unified School District
Held at the local, county, state and national levels, Academic Decathlons are designed to prepare students for college and careers by promoting 21st-century skills. And here’s a fun fact: The contest was founded in 1968 by former Orange County Superintendent of Schools Robert Peterson.
Nine-member teams battle for the highest scores on multiple-choice exams, speeches, interviews and essay assignments based on a yearly theme. (This year it was “World War II.”) Each decathlon team must include three “Honor” students (those with GPAs of 3.75 or above), three “Scholastic” students (GPAs of 3.00 to 3.74) and three “Varsity” students (GPAs of 2.99 or below).
The event culminates with the popular Super Quiz Relay, which takes place in front of an audience.
“Academic Decathlon is much more than learning information, it deals with goal-setting, improving and making adjustments over a long period of time,” Nakaue told the OCDE Newsroom. “It deals with more than just bonding for social activities as a team, but involves bonding to the standards and goals established by the team.”
“Many decathletes become lifelong friends,” he added. “These lifelong lessons only come from embracing moments, and the Academic Decathlon creates a platform for these moments, resulting in students experiencing the important things in life.”
This year’s Orange County Academic Decathlon was presented by the Orange County Academic Decathlon Association and OCDE with support from community members and sponsors, including NuVision Federal Credit Union, Del Taco LLC, the Orange County Register, Aeries Software, Illuminate Education and Power School.
You can learn more about the program by visiting OCDE’s Academic Decathlon 101 webpage.