Marshall High’s Championship

When John Marshall High School won the 1987 U.S. Academic Decathlon championship, it was not merely due to “the scrappiness of an ethnically mixed, inner-city school in a contest often dominated by wealthy, suburban districts,” as The Times mentioned in its article (April 26).

The wealth of a district, or lack of it, has little to do with students’ success. There are brilliant minds in many so-called inner-city schools, but obviously the Marshall team had the drive, ambition to win, and persistence to achieve its goal.

David Tokofsky, the 26-year-old coach, and Ann Choi-Rho, assistant coach, deserve a huge amount of credit for guiding their team through the maze of study involved, resulting in 24 correct answers out of 30 difficult questions on constitutional law.

In addition, David Florey was reported to have answered 89% of questions correctly, and he is one of the “C” grade group!

What an incredible forecast for the future we have in these wonderful young people, and the dedication of their teachers and coaches underlies their success always.

DORIS FRAM CAGAN

(Marshall, 1939)

Los Angeles