Fort Scott finishes second at high school scholars bowl

Fort Scott High School Scholars Bowl team members, from left, Kai Simmons-Mims, Laura Tholen, Joe Reichard, and Kenda Lee converse during their 70-20 win over Marmaton Valley High School at Monday evening's tournament hosted by Fort Scott High School. Michael Pommier/Tribune Photo

By Michael Pommier

The Fort Scott Tribune

Students from several area high schools recently flocked to Fort Scott High School to engage in a competition of the minds.

Fort Scott High School hosted the area Scholars Bowl tournament on Monday. The tournament saw participation from 18 local schools including Uniontown, Pittsburg, Chanute, Iola, St. Paul, Crest, Frontenac, Baxter Springs, Northeast-Arma, Paola, Columbus, Marmaton Valley, Girard, Erie and two teams from Fort Scott.

Iola High School earned first place in the tournament with Fort Scott High School finishing second and Columbus High School finishing third.

Each academic team is composed of five students -- four students compete while one alternates between games. Teams are divided into varsity and junior varsity divisions. Team members use a buzzer system to answer questions from various academic disciplines. Each game is usually composed of three social science questions, three English and literature questions, three science questions, three math questions, two fine arts questions, and one question from the year in review. Some tournaments also add foreign language questions.

Tournament winners are based on wins and losses of games within the tournament. The number of rounds depends on the number of teams entered. Each round lasts about 15 minutes.

According to Fort Scott High School Academic Scholars Bowl team coach Diana Endicott, both Fort Scott High School and Uniontown High School host a tournament each year. She added the season will conclude with regional or state competition on Thursday, Feb. 5, and Saturday, Feb. 14.

"The students on our team have fun but take the competition very seriously," Endicott said. "It's amazing to see the vast knowledge many of these young people have. A strong competitor is usually an avid reader with an awareness of the world around him/her. These students generally keep current on the news and have a love for history and mathematics. Our team grows each year as more students find the intellectual challenge to be exciting."