16-Mar-10 9:00 AM CST

Ozen makes history and nabs decathlon medal

Beaumont, TX - Marie Roberts of Ozen Magnet High School for the Arts and her team of students have made history by bringing home the prize! Ozen’s Academic Decathlon team recently medaled in the Region 5 UIL Academic Decathlon Competition.

“We are so excited,” stated Ozen’s AVID coordinator and Academic Decathlon Coach Marie Roberts, “we really worked hard. I promised the students if they gave it their all they would be rewarded.”

Twenty-Nine teams participating in the decathlon -12 medium schools and 17 large schools. The Ozen team placed fifth in the medium school category. Roberts said only the top five teams bring home a medal. This is the first time in the competition’s history that a BISD school has won a medal.

This year’s topic was the French Revolution. For two and a half months, our team studied music, art, economics and history. During the two-day competition, students had to write an essay, give a four and a half minute speech, and answer several questions related to the topic.

“We brought home the medal because we had a group of kids that were really determined. The majority of the Ozen students who participated in the event are part of the AVID program. AVID is an acronym for Advancement Via Individual Determination. I think that helped the group remain centered and focused. They worked as a family and were supportive of each other,” Roberts explained.

The academic decathlon teams are required to have a diversity of students participate with a wide range of grade point averages. The teams are grouped as honors: 3.75 – 4.0 G.P.A., Scholastic: 3:0 – 3.74 G.P.A., and Varsity 2.9 and below.

Roberts believes these types of competitions are excellent ways for youth to broaden their horizon. They learn how to reach their full potential. She said the group is already looking forward to next year, saying “We are going to take first place next time!”