Academic Team Greeted With Hero’s Welcome

El Camino Real High School’s Academic Decathlon team received a hero’s welcome Friday when it returned to campus as city champion for the fourth year in a row.

The district win, announced Thursday night, allows the team to advance to the state competition in Stockton on March 12-14, and sets up a chance for El Camino Real to repeat as national champion at the U.S. Academic Decathlon in Orange County in April.

As the marching band played and cheerleaders vaulted, team members--all seniors--basked in adulation of 2,000 students, teachers, administrators and parents.

“To win the city title four years in a row is an awesome feeling,” said Principal Ron Bauer, standing on a balloon-festooned platform on the campus quadrangle.

“I attribute it to a dedicated group of students and the best coaching staff in the city,” he said before the ceremony began. “It demonstrates what hard work and school pride can accomplish.”

Team member Tara Paravar was still riding a wave of excitement.

“We were so nervous because of the competing schools and the pressure on El Camino to win,” she said. “We pulled through, and I’m so happy for everyone on the team.”

The Conquistadores bested nine-member teams from 49 traditional high schools, six magnet schools and four alternative schools to capture their sixth title since the Los Angeles Unified School District began the contest 18 years ago.

During the two-day competition, which concluded last Saturday at Southwest College, students were quizzed on their knowledge of art, language and literature, math, music, social science and economics as well as tested on their essay writing, speaking and interviewing skills.

El Camino Real accumulated 48,980 points, followed by Garfield High School with 45,780 and Belmont High School with 44,720.

Those three schools along with wild-card qualifiers Los Angeles, Marshall and Palisades Charter high schools will represent the district in Stockton.

“The nerves were really up [Thursday] night,” said Meeta Chakravarti. “When I went up on stage to get my medals, it was the most intense experience I have ever had in my life. After all our hard work, it was a reward.”

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Though Michael Pak felt he hadn’t turned in his best individual performance, he was grateful for the experience, he said.

“I guess I realized that personal failure is an integral part of developing as a person,” he said. “Any feeling of personal loss is nullified by the team’s achievement.”

Though El Camino Real placed fifth in the Super Quiz, where students answered questions about the human brain in a “College Bowl”-style format, team members scored in the top three in the nine other decathlon events, giving them an overall score that was about 3,000 points ahead of Garfield.

In the overall individual scores, El Camino Real’s Nancy Fu placed first for the second consecutive year with 8,750 points, making her the first student to win back-to-back individual scoring titles in the history of the competition, school officials said.

Team members and their coaches said they are not resting on their laurels. After a weekend layoff, they expect to hit the books again Monday, a school holiday.

The Conquistadores are preparing to match wits with teams from across the state, including rival Moorpark High School, the Ventura County champion.

“They were second last year, and they want it bad,” said El Camino Real coach Mark Johnson. “It’s going to be one of the great state battles. But our kids are ready, too, and they want it bad.”