Academic Challenge Team Advisor, Scott Schmid, Prepares for a New Year

Academic Challenge advisor and science teacher, Scott Schmid, is preparing for a new year. Last year, with Schmid’s guidance and advising, the team went to the state level to compete for the championship. Schmid said he is hoping this year’s team of four competitors will make it just as far.

During competitions against other schools, three teams compete for points by answering questions covering topics such as math, science, history, art and others. At the end of each competition, the points are totaled, and, at season’s end, the three highest scoring teams advance to the next level.

During the challenge, Schmid picks four students to participate based on their talents in specific areas. For example, if one team member is doing great job answering science questions during the practice, then he or she might be picked for answering science questions during the competition.

Schmid has been advising the academic challenge team for 15 years. “I enjoy advising the team, they are fun to be around, and they make me laugh,” he said. He usually expects 12-14 kids to show up at the practice. They practice with trivia questions that are based on seven semesters of high school curriculum. At the practice, he puts everybody into two groups. He asks the questions and students buzz in if they have the answer. Whoever buzzes first gets to answer the question and, if their answer is correct, gets the point for their team.

Schmid said that Edgewood and Harrison are the team’s biggest competitors. According to him, his team is doing fine, but recruitment of students has been challenging for the team.  “The biggest challenge I face this year is a lack of returning varsity players,” he said.

For this year’s season, Schmid said anyone interested in joining Academic Challenge this year should email him at schmids@talawanda.org. Academic Challenge will begin meeting at the end of October.