On Saturday, Nov. 12, five 7th grade students, hand-picked by teachers from Picayune Jr. High School, competed in the Academic Competition of Excellence against hundreds of other students from schools across the Gulf Coast region at St. Stanislaus High School.
Sarah Brister, Asha Liban, Anthony Nine, Maggie Unbehagen and Michael Wheat competed in the math, science, language arts and social studies categories as individuals and also participated in a trivia competition as a group.
Picayune Jr. High School teacher and competition sponsor Lorraine Fontenot said the purpose of ACE was to teach these advanced students how to expand their minds and gain exposure to different types of testing questions.
“It is an honor to be chosen, and an even bigger honor to place in a competition that recognizes some of the brightest minds in Mississippi,” she said.
One student, Asha Liban, was awarded first place in the 7th grade mathematics division. Also, all the Jr. Tide students put their minds together and won second place overall in the trivia competition against other teams that reached up to 18 members.
Fontenot said she is very proud of her students for placing in the ACE, but to her, the experience was much more than earning recognition.
“Coming in, I wanted them to be able to benefit from understanding the different types of questions they might come across in the future,” Fontenot said. “I know what these kids are capable of, but this experience exposed their strengths and weaknesses, which will help them out in the long run and help them discover what they enjoy.”
Because this was the first time Fontenot participated in the ACE, she did not know how competitive the event would be until she saw the multitude of kids competing. She explained the process as “very rigorous” and the assessment exposed them to a new difficulty in testing.
The competition was broken down two segments. First, the students took a 45-minute test that evaluated their knowledge in all categories. Then, the students worked together to compete in trivia.
“Asha, who has taken the ACT, came up to me after taking the test and told me the ACE was the hardest test she has taken,” Fontenot said.
The trivia competition was Fontenot’s and the student’s favorite part because the students got to work as a team. Fontenot said the greatest part about the trivia was that the students were able to build on traits needed for success, such as teamwork and leadership.
“These kids are our future, and it is great to see them actively enjoying competitions like this. After seeing all the bright minds at the competition, I think it is safe to say our future looks bright,” Fontenot said.