8 Katy ISD High School Academic Decathlon Teams Head to State

KATY MAGAZINE NEWS

February 19, 2022

By Natalie Cook Clark

Katy ISD will be well represented at the Texas Academic Decathlon Event. Eight Katy ISD high school for gold, silver, and/or bronze as well as honorable mentions in distinct categories. Students compete for $200,000 in scholarships.

Paetow High School Academic Decathlon Team

8 out of 9 Katy High Schools Going to State

Eight Katy ISD high schools are sending academic decathlon teams to the Texas Academic Decathlon Event on February 24-27. This year, the event is spread out over two cities.

The Road to San Antonio

Taylor High School, Cinco Ranch High School, Seven Lakes High School, Katy High School, Morton Ranch High School and Paetow High School will each send a team of nine students to San Antonio.

Listed in order from the top: Seven Lakes High School Academic Decathlon Team, Taylor High School Academic Decathlon Team, Paetow High School Academic Decathlon Team, Katy High School Academic Decathlon Team, Cinco Ranch High School Academic Decathlon Team, and Morton Ranch High School Academic Decathlon Team.

Off to Frisco

Tompkins High School and Jordan High School will send their teams to Frisco.

Tompkins High School Academic Decathlon Team (left) and Jordan High School Academic Decathlon Team (right.)

“The curriculum, provided by the United States Academic Decathlon (USAD) changes every year and includes roughly 1,000 pages of high-level curriculum covering Math, Music, Economics, Science, Literature, Art and Social Studies,” says Dr. Joan Otten, director of Katy ISD Gifted & Talented and Advanced Academics.

A total of 80 high school will compete for gold, silver, bronze, and honorable mentions in various categories.

As part of the competition, students will also prepare and deliver a memorized speech, give an impromptu presentation, participate in a sit-down interview with three judges and write a 50-minute paper.

$200,000 in Scholarships

The Texas Academic Decathlon Event is the second-largest academic program in the nation. Students could earn up to $200,000 in scholarships. The highest scoring team will represent Texas at the United States Academic Decathlon competition, which will be held virtually this year.

Based on a point system, the highest-scoring team then advances to represent Texas at the United States Academic Decathlon competition which will be held virtually.

“To be part of a decathlon team speaks volumes of a student's dedication in overcoming challenges of high-level academic tasks,” says Otten.