Rosa Parks, ACE tops in Principals' Cup

Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Saturday, February 05, 2011

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Rosa Parks team B: 1st place, primary division

Rosa Parks team B: 1st place, primary division

Rosa Parks team B: 1st place, primary divisionRosa Parks team B: 1st place, primary divisionMeadowthorpe A: 2nd place, primary divisionMeadowthorpe A: 2nd place, primary divisionVeterans Park D: 3rd place, primary divisionVeterans Park D: 3rd place, primary divisionAthens-Chilesburg team C: 1st place, intermediate divisionAthens-Chilesburg team C: 1st place, intermediate divisionRosa Parks C: 2nd place, intermediate divisionRosa Parks C: 2nd place, intermediate divisionMeadowthorpe C: 3rd place, intermediate divisionMeadowthorpe C: 3rd place, intermediate division

About 2,000 elementary kids matched wits Feb. 5 in the districtwide Academic Challenge Principals' Cup, hosted by Bryan Station High School. Rosa Parks team B took home the primary division trophy, and Athens-Chilesburg team C finished atop the intermediate group after a tiebreaker.

"All these young people competing are winners," said Arnold Gaither, chairman of series sponsor One Community, One Voice. "At the end of the day, what's most important is that parents support their children."

During the day-long, single-elimination tournament, teams of students in grades 2-3 and grades 4-5 worked together to answer questions in all subject areas. Groups of three teams squared off in classrooms around the school building, with each winner advancing to the next round.

Ultimately, three teams made it to the finals in the auditorium. Coaches and other supporters gathered their young charges to reassure them before the closing contest.

"You can beat anybody on any given day. You just have to be focused," parent Jacque Adkins told one team.

Primary finals (grades 2-3)
  • 1st place, with 18 of 20 possible points – Rosa Parks B: Niam Abeysiriwardena, Palin Bhardwaj, Clay Parsons, Ryan Reid, Eric Guo and Nancy Zhang.
  • 2nd place, with 15 points - Meadowthorpe A: John Adkins, Ace Canales, Reka Gal, Emily Tao and David Vulakh.
  • 3rd place, with 14 points - Veterans Park D: Rachel Chrisman, Kalinda Dhawan, Ben Henderson, Alan Liao, Sara-Grace Marsh and Egor Vinogradov.
Intermediate finals (grades 4-5):
  • 1st place, with 20 points - Athens-Chilesburg C: Christian Benton Jr., Austin Booth, Rachel Burns, Zaria Fulz, Gabe Hillyard and Alexis Lutz.
  • 2nd place, with 19 points - Rosa Parks C: Luke Porter, Neal Rekhraj, Manali Sunkara, Isabella Trprovski and Brian Zhu.
  • 3rd place, with 15 points - Meadowthorpe C: Isabella Eddy, Indana Fauzi, Zsombor Gal, Samantha Jones and Subershan Wigna-Kumar.

Fayette County Public Schools hosts three Academic Challenge tournaments each year, culminating in a competition for college scholarships. The Superintendent's Cup is March 12.

Since 2004, One Community, One Voice initiatives have focused on getting parents more involved in their children’s education. The centerpiece has been the Academic Challenge, which aims to foster a culture that encourages all children to embrace education as a worthy endeavor, allows all students a chance to compete in rigorous academic contests, and prepares kids to compete for the “big prize” – a good life and a bright future.

All students are welcome to participate, and most schools field several teams. Contact a child’s teacher for details.

On the district level, e-mail Alice Nelson for more information.