2022 Academic Bowl Champions

The Westminster Schools Wins 2022 PAGE Academic Bowl For Middle Grades State Championship

The Westminster Schools, an independent school in Fulton County, won top honors at this year’s Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) Academic Bowl for Middle Grades State Championship competition. The team captured the title at the event on Saturday, Jan. 22, 2022, at Georgia College & State University (GCSU) in Milledgeville.

During the morning session of the event, 19 semi-finalist teams from across the state participated in a round-robin competition. Eight teams emerged as finalists and competed against each other in the afternoon single-elimination session. Westminster’s team members are Alan Marhic, Angelica Roman, Anselm Bell, Jackson Harless, Kalyan Rao, Madeleine Hathorn, Max Bell, Robert Ragland, Samanyu Ganesh, Sona Nandwana, Edward Rosenblath, Kamren Maithel, and Ryan Wakely. Jon Hathorn and Dr. Robert Cochran coach the team.

All eight teams competing in the final rounds earned medals and awards. Other award-winning teams include:

Second Place: Chamblee Middle School of the DeKalb County School District, coached by Cathy Hirsch. Amy Lee, a parent of a team member, stepped in at the last minute to coach at state competition as Ms. Hirsch was unable to attend.
Third Place: South Forsyth Middle School of Forsyth County Schools, coached by Ashley Calloway and Stephanie Chanoski.
Fourth Place: Riverwatch Middle School also of Forsyth County Schools, coached by Ann Hicks.
Fifth Place: North Gwinnett Middle School of Gwinnett County Public Schools, coached by Scott Johnson and Scott Kim.
Sixth Place: The Paideia School, an independent school in DeKalb County, coached by Wilson York and Rand Wise.
Seventh Place: Perry Middle School of Houston County Schools, coached by Faith Terry and Sherry Akin.
Eighth Place: David T. Howard Middle School of Atlanta Public Schools, coached by Jessica Hughes and Abbi Hurt.

“It takes skill and cooperation to create a successful academic bowl team, and all students who participated in the state championship competition should be proud of that accomplishment,” said PAGE Executive Director Craig Harper. “We understand the months of study and hard work exhibited by these students and their coaches, and we applaud them. We also appreciate the support of parents and school administrators, all of whom contributed to the success of each team. Finally, I’d like to thank GCSU and the Collegiate Middle Level Association (CMLA) for hosting our competition at this outstanding university.”

The PAGE Academic Bowl features teams of middle school students fielding questions in subjects such as history, mathematics, science, literature, and the performing arts. Opposing teams compete against the clock to answer toss-up and bonus questions to score points. The goal of the program is to inspire students to excel academically, to enhance student self-confidence and self-esteem through high achievement, and to develop both a team and competitive spirit.

PAGE is the largest independent educator association in the state and nation. Our 93,000 members serve in every Georgia public school. PAGE supports and protects Georgia educators throughout all stages of their careers by providing unparalleled legal coverage, legislative advocacy, and professional learning. And, through programs such as PAGE STAR (Student Teacher Achievement Recognition), PAGE GAD (Georgia Academic Decathlon), PAGE Academic Bowl, and PAGE FGE (Future Georgia Educators), we recognize and encourage excellence in education.