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Rancho Cucamonga High School

Home of the Cougars

Academic Decathalon

Text reads 'RANCHO CUCAMONGA ACADEMIC DECATHLON' on a purple background.

Welcome to Academic Decathlon!

Here you will learn math, language & literature, economics, social science, music, and art centered around an intriguing topic. You'll also learn h ow to give a speech, interview well, and think on the spot in a comfortable manner. You'll become a part of a team that competes and travels while getting a chance to make new friends across the district. You do Not have to have straight A's. Academic Decathlon requires students from all GPA levels to have a complete team! As long as you have the will to succeed, you'll do well in our program. 

Ms. Martineau
Coach
Phone: 909.989.1600
Email: elysa.martineau@cjuhsd.net
 


6 REASONS TO JOIN:
 

  1. Looks good on your college transcript: Former decathletes are currently attending or attended Stanford, Cornell, Pomona, Berkeley and Princeton.
  2. Get 5 units of elective credit. Pass/fail option available for the GPA conscious.
  3. Become teammates with some quite extraordinary people and have a great time ending your school day.
  4. Have fun learning lots of fascinating information and gaining significant real-life skills such as speech giving and interviewing techniques.
  5. Opportunity to fly to Sacramento free if the team places high enough at county competition.
  6. Show the county of San Bernardino just how smart you really are.

 

See Ms. Martineau in B102 for more details. 
 


Academic Decathlon History

Since its inception, Rancho Cucamonga High School has fielded an academic decathlon team for the San Bernardino County competition. Its initial coaches were Karen Gerdes and John Nath. At that time the academic decathlon was a club, and students who wished to participate had to meet after school and on weekends. Starting slowly, Rancho’s varsity academic decathlon team eventually developed into a force to be reckoned with, vaulting into the top 5 for 15 of its twenty-one years of competition. Its initial team consisted of Sabrina Bow, Scott Shipley, Andy Wang, Manijha Kadir, Michael Mallari, Chanee Pruett, Amanda Gray and Nicole Stevens. Those students began a legacy that continues to the present. Since the 1999 – 2000 year of competition, Rancho Cucamonga High School’s Team Purple has consistently placed in the Top Five, spending 11 of its competing seasons in the Top 3.