The San Fernando Valley has long been an academic decathlon powerhouse, and this year is no exception, with three local high schools headed to the national competition in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from April 25 to April 27.
El Camino Real Charter High School, Granada Hills Charter High School and Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies are all sending students to represent California in the national academic decathlon, in various divisions and events. Only one other California high school, Hallmark Academy in Fresno, qualified for the national competition this year.
The 2023-24 school year’s academic decathlon tests students’ knowledge of the theme “Technology and Humanity.” For the past year, decathletes spent nights, weekends, lunchtimes and free time preparing in 10 subject areas, including art, economics, science and math. Now, it’s time for each team to face off against schools from across the country on a national stage.
El Camino Real Charter High School
The high-achieving high schoolers from El Camino Real high school leave for Pittsburgh with their eyes on the national championship trophy — as well as an impressive legacy to defend.
The school placed first nationwide last year, and won the 2024 California academic decathlon in Santa Clara last month.
“I’m pretty confident we’re going to keep this national championship at home,” 16-year-old Darren Du said. “That’s because I’m confident in us as a team. We are so closely knit and we have worked so hard.”
El Camino’s head academic decathlon coach Stephanie Franklin said, “For nationals, the kids all use the phrase ‘lock in.’ For each of them, it’s about focusing on yourself. It’s a huge amount of pressure and it’s easy to lose sight of yourself. So what we do is we focus on what we can control, and we enjoy the moment.”
Franklin attributes the team’s history of success to commitment and comradery, but also said each year’s theme presents a new challenge. This year’s techy theme allowed her to teach her Generation Z students some pop culture history.
“All of my obsolete knowledge is now viable, so it was a lot of fun,” Franklin said. “My husband has a Commodore 64 computer still in the garage and I brought it in so the kids could see it. They’ve now seen floppy disks and a dot matrix printer.”
Several of the decathletes said they are excited to experience nationals, especially because they get to do it together.
“It’s an opportunity to engage with other students who also have this love of learning,” 18-year-old Lincoln Webster said. “We all get to come together and make these discoveries about the world.”
Granada Hills Charter High School
Granada Hills, which has been El Camino’s primary academic decathlon rival in California for several years, is also sending students to compete in nationals. However, Granada Hills did not qualify for the main event, because the team placed second at the state competition.
In past years, Granada Hills has won the national title a whopping nine times.
“They have been able to keep their focus, even through turmoil,” said Daniel Alfaro, Granada Hills’ head academic decathlon coach. “It’s really a testament to the strong bonds they created.”
For Granada Hills decathlete Ameera Amodu, competing has required a steadfast determination to study, practice and work with others. Amodu is just a high school sophomore, but has posed fierce competition to students two grade levels above her.
“I’ve had to really put my time management skills to use this year,” Amodu said. “As a newcomer (to academic decathlon), I’m proud, seeing everything come to fruition.”
Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies
A rising star in the academic decathlon realm, Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies is the third Valley team headed to the national competition. Due to the school’s smaller size compared to El Camino and Granada Hills, the team competes in a different division.
Sherman Oaks has won the Los Angeles Unified School District academic decathlon two years in a row.
“We went to the national competition for the first time last year, which was surreal,” said Suzanna Gordon, Sherman Oaks’ academic decathlon coach. “And the students started to look at these other teams and think, ‘they’ve done this, so why can’t we do the same?’ Over time, the impossible really became possible.”
Related links
Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies repeats as LAUSD’s Academic Decathlon champ
El Camino Real Charter High wins state Academic Decathlon honors, moves on to nationals
Whiz kids at San Fernando Valley school win 2023 US National Academic Decathlon
LAUSD Academic Decathlon win goes to Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies
High fives for ‘Highlanders’ graduation at Granada Hills Charter High School