Student teams from 16 high schools across Kansas and one team from Missouri gathered Jan. 25-26 at a USA Funds® -sponsored event that tested the students’ intellectual strength and provided an early introduction to higher education.
More than 200 of the states’ brightest students competed in the 2008 Kansas Academic Decathlon at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan. Kansas State’s chapter of Mortar Board, a national honor society, hosted the event.

USA Funds has served as a sponsor of the Kansas Academic Decathlon for the past four years. The sponsorship includes additional financial support to fund scholarships for students competing in the decathlon.
“The students at Academic Decathlon are very talented and deserve the opportunity to continue their education in college,” says Ella Todd, a Kansas State senior who is the Kansas Academic Decathlon’s publicity chair. “As college becomes more expensive for many families, the scholarships provided by USA Funds are an invaluable service for these students.”
Established in 1991, the Kansas Academic Decathlon provides students with an introduction to higher education by helping them learn about academic majors, careers and other opportunities that come with pursuing a college degree. Students compete in topics such as economics, science, language and the fine arts.
The students wrote essays, participated in interviews and delivered prepared speeches. The decathlon also featured a “super quiz” in which teams earned points for correctly answering questions in head-to-head competition. The subjects covered in the decathlon are part of a study guide used by teams from across the nation.
Each student team has between nine and 12 members selected from the following three different academic levels:
- Three honor students with grade point averages of 3.75-4.0.
- Three scholastic students with GPAs of 3.0 to 3.74.
- Three varsity students with GPAs of 2.0 to 2.99.
Encouraging participation
“It is our hope that the addition of these scholarships will encourage even more students to participate in the academic decathlon,” says Valerie Walthall, USA Funds’ customer relations manager for Kansas, and a Kansas Academic Decathlon board member. “These are gifted students with great potential, and these scholarships will help them as they pursue postsecondary education.”
Scholarship winners were:
- Kevin Able, Shawnee Mission South, Overland Park, Kan., received a $1,000 scholarship for receiving the High Scoring Student Score for Competition honor.
- Katrina Kutchko, Shawnee Mission South, received a $500 scholarship for achieving the High Scoring Honor Student award.
- Scott Olinger, Shawnee Mission South, received a $500 scholarship as High Scoring Varsity Student.
- Tenille Hunter, Shawnee Mission South, received a $500 scholarship as Outstanding KAD Senior Participant.
The Kansas Academic Decathlon first place team, Shawnee Mission South, will represent Kansas at the upcoming 2008 U.S. Academic Decathlon in Garden Grove, Calif.