The Buhach Colony team took the top spot at the Merced County Academic Decathlon.
Merced High School Junior Esteban Castenada earned overall top scoring student at the Decathlon.
Golden Valley High School students participate in the Super Quiz at the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
Robert Wayne Scholarship: Merced County School Employees Federal Credit Union supports the Robert Wayne Scholarship, which awards scholarships for the top scoring students for each team.
Buhach Colony High School students participate in the Super Quiz at the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
El Capitan High School students participate in the Super Quiz at the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
El Capitan High School students participate in the Super Quiz at the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
Livingston High School students participate in the Super Quiz at the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
Pacheco High School students participate in the Super Quiz at the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
Buhach High School students pose with Merced County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Steve Tietjen at the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center. Buhach took the top spot at the academic competition.
Volunteers interview a student during the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
A Buhach Colony High School student participates in the interview portion of the Merced County Academic Decathlon on Feb. 4 at the Merced County Office of Education Downtown Center.
Buhach Colony High School emerged as the top scoring team in the 42nd Annual Merced County Academic Decathlon held last Saturday, Feb. 4.
This is Buhach Colony’s second team win since 2021. Merced High placed 2nd in the overall team competition, and Golden Valley High placed third.
Teams from ten high schools across Merced County participated in rigorous rounds of competition that challenged their knowledge in math, science, social science, music, art, economics, literature and public speaking. The event features several rounds of competition, including essays, multiple choice tests, speech and interviews, and a Super Quiz.
Members of the Buhach Colony team included: Liam Newsam, Ernesto Cortez, Rose Davis, Austin Lamerson, Nowal Musleh, Lupita Amezcua, Tyler Juarez, Anthony Sarabia, Alejandra Vidauri-Gomez, and Coach Joshua Newton.
While Buhach Colony was the top scoring team in the competition, Esteban Castenada from Merced High School was the top scoring student of the day.
At the awards presentation additional students and teams were recognized for their participation in the competition. Three members of each team with top scores will receive a scholarship on behalf of donations and sponsorship from the Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union.
The Buhach Colony team will go on to represent Merced County in March at the State Academic Decathlon in Santa Clara.
High Schools who participated this year include Golden Valley, El Capitan, Pacheco, Hilmar, Delhi, Valley Community School Los Banos, Livingston, Merced, Le Grand and Buhach Colony.
Hilmar High was the top scoring high school in the “Small School” division, and Livingston High places 1st in the “Medium School” division.