Allen Elementary Wins Second Straight OC Academic Pentathlon

in Fountain Valley repeated as first-place champion in the premiere Division 1 competition and captured the prestigious overall title for the highest point total among all 87 teams at the 2012 Orange County Sixth-Grade Academic Pentathlon.

Within their top-ranked division, the Allen Mountaineers team outscored 17 teams representing seven Orange County public and private schools.

Additionally, the Allen Scholars, a second team of pentathletes from the Fountain Valley school, placed fourth overall in the same Division 1. Both nine-member teams were coached by teachers Catherine Roh, Ian Byrd, Susan Chan, Andrea Joo, and Kris Larson.

Academic Pentathlon teams compete in five subject areas: mathematics, essay, literature, social science and science. They also squared off in a challenging Super Quiz competition. This year’s topic was "Paleolithic Era to the Agricultural Revolution."

Awards are given for individual performance and for overall team by division. Awards were presented May 14 and 15 at Knott’s Berry Farm. The competition was held May 5 at La Quinta High School.

The Academic Pentathlon is coordinated by the Orange County Department of Education and sponsored by SchoolsFirst Credit Union.