The academic competition team from West Chester East High School takes home the championship trophy. Picture from left to right: Eliot Rufe, Dr. Brent Jones, RuiQi He, Owen Lyons, Nathan Schlamb, Alex Chen, Brian Schiele, Luke Eynon and Ethan Altshul.
On Monday, West Chester East High School emerged victorious over 23 other Chester County schools at the Chester County Academic Competition, which is organized by the Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU) and sponsored by the Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union (FMFCU). West Chester East will represent Chester County at the Pennsylvania State Academic Competition in Harrisburg on April 26, 2024, at the Pennsylvania State Capitol.
The excitement was tangible throughout the evening as the audience cheered on the teams with each point scored. The finals were competitive until the last round. Great Valley High School won the junior varsity match by 40 points, and West Chester East took first place in varsity by 35 points.
“It feels great. It’s a repeat for us this year. We’ve done a magnificent job of continuing to work as a team and I couldn’t be prouder,” said Nathan Schlamb, coach of West Chester East’s academic team, when asked how it felt to be declared the 2024 Chester County Academic Competition champions for the second year in a row.
“It’s a reflection of our continued commitment to combining each person’s specialties and learning from the mistakes of last year,” said Alex Chen, West Chester East’s academic team captain and 2024 team MVP. “There was a lot of pressure on us going into it, being the state designee from last year, and I think we transformed that pressure into a dedication to refining the details of our craft and how we work together as a synergistic team.”
When asked what advice he would give to future academic competition participants, Chen answered, “There are four seats up there for a reason, and any team looking to be successful needs to understand each person’s strength and combine them to bring together a win.”
“This competition is more than a test of wit. It embodies a fusion of teamwork, camaraderie and collaboration,” said Jay Della Ragione, special events coordinator for the CCIU. “Further, engaging in this competition equips students with invaluable life skills that will extend far beyond their high school years to become assets they will draw upon throughout their lives.”
The winning team not only showed excellent teamwork but also great sportsmanship throughout the match, concluding with shaking hands with the other competitors at the end of the competition. As county champions, West Chester East won a $2,000 scholarship, which was underwritten by the FMFCU. To learn more about the Chester County Academic Competition, which has been proudly sponsored by the FMFCU for over 15 years, please visit www.cciu.org/academic-competition.
