Johnston takes second place at Academic Decathlon nationals

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Johnston Academic Decathlon team: Kneeling (L-R) Adrienne Dobson-Greiner, Sahasra Dendi. Standing (L-R) Alan Qi, Sydney Maule, Sophia Wall, Matthew Kathman, Mrs. Smith, Jo Hanson, Arthur Chen, Ryan Titus

DES MOINES, Ia. (May 3, 2025) — A team of nine Johnston High School students took 2nd place in Division IV of United States Academic Decathlon (USAD) Nationals 2025, held over the past three days at the Community Choice Convention Center in downtown Des Moines.  

The strong finish at nationals came after Johnston placed 2nd overall at the state competition in March. The last time Johnston qualified and competed at Academic Decathlon Nationals was 10 years ago, in 2015. 

“I was honestly blown away by their performance,” coach Cheryl Smith, the Extended Learning Program (ELP) teacher at Johnston High School, said of her rookie team’s amazing second-place finish at nationals. “They far exceeded my hopes.”

Johnston’s Academic Decathlon team members include Alan Qi, Sophia Wall, Matthew Kathman, Arthur Chen, Sydney Maule, Sahasra Dendi, Jo Hanson, Adrienne Dobson-Greiner and Ryan Titus. 

IMG 4564Ten academic events, five divisions

This year’s U.S. Academic Decathlon Nationals drew nearly 700 of the country’s top high school scholars from each state. Students competed as a team in 10 different academic events: speech, interview, essay, art history, economics, social science, music history, literature, math and science.

Due to a change at the national level, this year’s competition was divided into 5 divisions by overall state scores. More than 135 students competed in Division IV, and Johnston ultimately placed 2nd in that division with its overall team score. 

Four win individual awards

In addition to the overall team award, four Johnston students won individual awards at Academic Decathlon nationals:

Arthur Chen (Scholastic): 3rd Place OVERALL Div IV–$500 Scholarship

  • Econ-Gold
  • Math-Gold
  • Art-Silver
  • Science-Silver
  • Social Science-Silver

Sophia Wall (Honors): Voted TEAM MVP (nominated by the team)–$250 award

  • Social Science-Silver
  • Speech-Silver

Alan Qi (Honors): Highest Scoring Team Member–$250 award

  • Math-Gold

Sydney Maule (Scholastic): 5th Place OVERALL Div IV

  • Econ-Gold

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