3/13/08

Teams compete in traditional academic quiz program

by Beckye Randall

Students in Arlington, Lakewood and Marysville high schools are preparing for a major team competitive event, but it doesn’t involve sports equipment or gymnasiums.

This competition relies on brains instead of brawn, rewarding students for diligent study, quick reactions and a broad base of knowledge.

On March 21, the top seven Hi-Q teams in the area will travel to Everett’s Kamiak High School for the state finals. Competing in categories that include history, geography, math, science and literature, local students are leaving nothing to chance.

Hi-Q is the oldest continuous academic quiz competition for high school students in the nation. It was the first competition of its kind, initiated in 1948 in Pennsylvania and 1976 in Washington. Currently the Everett Region Hi-Q program is the only one on the West Coast, with participation from 18 high schools in Snohomish and Island counties.

The Arlington High team is made up of seven students, and is coached by teachers Ben Mendro and Jane Joselow.

“Most Hi-Q teams have eight members. Each contest is divided into two sections, and four students compete in each half,” Mendro explained. “We have seven strong students, with one participating in both halves of the competition.”

The categories are pre-determined at the beginning of the Hi-Q season, which begins in earnest each January. Participating schools are given a list of reference materials and the advisers prepare lists of study questions based on that material.

During the contest, three teams compete against one another. Each team is given its own question by judges, and the students have four tries to get the correct answer with scores going down with each attempt.

“They don’t have to ‘buzz in’ with a correct answer, like a quiz show,” said Mendro. “But there is a time limit, from 15 to 60 seconds, to answer each question.”

Students are recruited and tested for the Hi-Q team at the beginning of the school year and study begins right away. By the time January rolls around and competitions begin, study sessions are held every day after school.

The Arlington team has a respectable record, claiming the top prize four times in the last dozen years. This year the team is in second place going into the finals and will play against the sixth and seventh place teams, Jackson High School and Lakewood High School.

Photo caption: At a Hi-Q study session at Arlington High School, teacher Ben Mendro (left) works with Kaitlin Nowlin, Robert Peiffle, Eric McElroy, Amy Ellsworth, fellow teacher Jane Joselow, and Tyler Gjersee. Not pictured: Keith Bayer and Chris Goolsbee.