Contact: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Saturday, March 13, 2010

While the Big Blue Nation cheered the Cats in the SEC Tournament, thousands of people turned out Saturday for the Academic Challenge Superintendent’s Cup, an all-day event where students compete for districtwide honors and earn college scholarships. 

Some 1,500 elementary kids represented their own teams well at Tates Creek High School, host of the three-event series. In the end, Ashland team B topped the primary division, and Athens-Chilesburg team A was champion of the intermediate division.

The Academic Challenge program – organized by Fayette County Public Schools and One Community, One Voice – is open to all students in grades 2-5. The goal is to create a culture that encourages children to embrace scholastic excellence, gives students opportunities to compete in rigorous academic contests, and involves parents in their kids’ education.

Most schools field several teams, each with four to six students. In competition, three teams square off at a time. A moderator reads a question, and the children confer and write their team’s answer on a white board. Each round has 20 questions, and the winning team advances to the next round.

The annual series includes three Saturday competitions: The Invitational, the Principals’ Cup and the Superintendent’s Cup. The finale was March 13.

Primary division results: (grades 2-3)

• 1st place (with 18 points in the finals) – Ashland team B, winning four-year scholarships to Kentucky State University: Katrina Baniak, Dallas Care, Isaiah Mitchell, Hannah Shapiro, Ashvin Sial.
• 2nd place (14 points) – Meadowthorpe team F: Katie Chen, Indana Fauzi, BJ Kent Fesultary, Austin Li, Helen Pang.
• 3rd place (10 points) – Maxwell team I: Cole Blanchette, Seth Caise, Logan Florence, Isa Kessinger, Annaya McClee.

Intermediate division results: (grades 4-5)

• 1st place (17 points) – Athens-Chilesburg Team A, winning four-year scholarships to Morehead State University: Austin Booth, Princess Ewang, Jax Van Horn, Raymond Hukill, Clif Jackson, Vincent LoPiccolo.
• 2nd place (14 points) – Meadowthorpe team D: Zsombor Gal, Zaynab Khan, Christian Lauritzen.
• 3rd place (13 points) – Julius Marks team G: Megan Adams, Josh Baker, Amit Patel, Lisa Patel, Skyler Scott, Logan Smith.

Individual competitions

Fifth-grade math/science

• Winners of four-year scholarships to the University of Kentucky: Devynn Fergerson, Dixie; Allie Gregory, Maxwell; Cassidy Kemplin, Harrison; Allie Langdorf, Picadome; Alison Rickert, Lansdowne; Trey Roberts, Julius Marks.

Fifth-grade writing

• Winners of four-year scholarships to Eastern Kentucky University: Maddie Covey, Athens-Chilesburg; Zaynab Khan, Meadowthorpe; Emily Liu, Rosa Parks; Maggie MacChesney, Julius Marks; Jasmine Segar, Northern; Natalina Vaccaro, Garden Springs.
• Winners of one-year scholarships to Bluegrass Community & Technical College: Hayley Miller, Deep Springs; Ben Setlak, Cassidy.

Fourth-grade writing

• Winners of four-year scholarships to Georgetown College: John Felty, Dixie; Rohith Kesanaju, Meadowthorpe; Leslie Shannon, Cassidy; Meenakshi Singhal, Rosa Parks; Claire Telfer, Veterans Park; Anna-Claire Wright, Maxwell.
• Winner of a one-year scholarship to Bluegrass Community & Technical College: Taleah Gipson, Northern.

Photo captions:

From top - Ashland B, primary champion; Athens-Chilesburg A, intermediate champion