Camarillo Student Wins Citizen Bee

A Camarillo High School junior won first place in the regional finals of the California Citizen Bee held Saturday for high school students.

The competition--which included students from the San Fernando Valley, the Westside and Ventura and Santa Barbara counties--was one of seven held throughout Southern California Saturday. Nearly 300 students from 94 high schools participated in the seven competitions, which were sponsored by The Times.

Steven Chen won first place by correctly answering the question “Which one of the following practices would least likely be instituted under Henry Clay’s ‘American System’: 1. Increase tariffs on imports to the United States. 2. Increase taxes on exports from the United States. 3. Increase federal funds for transportation products.”

The correct answer was “Increase taxes on exports from the United States.”

The second-place prize went to Sothy Tia, a junior at Marshall High School in Los Angeles. The third-place winner was Stephanus Philip, a senior at Chaminade College Preparatory School in West Hills.

The winners were awarded $500, $300 and $200, respectively, said Times spokeswoman Terri Niccum. The top three competitors from each region will compete in state finals at USC on April 28 to determine who will represent California at the National Citizen Bee to be held in June in Washington, D.C.

In preparing for the bee, students read daily copies of The Times and were quizzed about current events in a weekly “News Challenge,” Niccum said.

The national Citizen Bee was established in 1985 by the Close Up Foundation, a nonprofit organization devoted to promoting civic education.