California School for the Deaf, Riverside wins the Western Regional Academic Bowl

California School for the Deaf, Riverside from Riverside,
Calif., won the Western Regional Academic Bowl held March
3 to 6 at the California School for the Deaf in Fremont,
Calif. The team will now advance to the National Academic
Bowl for Deaf and Hard and Hearing High School Students
hosted by Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., April 23 to 26.

Established in 1864, Gallaudet University is the world’s only
liberal arts university in which all programs and services are
designed to accommodate deaf and hard of hearing students.

The team is comprised of players Hailey Burton, Christian Jacobs,
Noah Valencia, and Spencer Willey and Coaches Roy McCrory and Alyssa Romano.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Academic Bowl. Gallaudet
University established the Academic Bowl for deaf and hard of hearing
high school students in 1996. The competition consists of a question
and answer game of general knowledge and quick recall. Questions are
drawn from the following categories: history and government, language
and literature, science and technology, geography, mathematics, the
arts, deaf studies, current events, and pop culture, leisure, and sports.

Every year, Gallaudet hosts five regional competitions for up to 90
teams of deaf and hard of hearing high school students. Twenty-four
teams then advance to the national competition.

Indiana School for the Deaf won the 2016 Midwest Regional Academic Bowl,
held in December. Texas School for the Deaf won the 2016 Southwest
Regional Academic Bowl and Rockville High School from Rockville, Md.,
won the 2016 Southeast Regional Academic Bowl, both held in February.
The Northeast Regional competition will be held at the New York School for the Deaf March 10 to 13.

“The Academic Bowl is a way to engage deaf and hard of hearing students
from all over the country in learning about a variety of topics in a fun
and unique way,” said Jesse Saunders, associate director of Youth Programs and
Outreach. “The students who make it to the national competition have the chance
to put those skills to the test while networking with peers and visiting our
historic campus. We are proud of all the teams who participated in the
regional competition and look forward to the national competition in April.”

Gallaudet University, federally chartered in 1864, is a bilingual,
diverse, multicultural institution of higher education that ensures the
intellectual and professional advancement of deaf and hard of hearing
individuals through American Sign Language and English. Gallaudet
maintains a proud tradition of research and scholarly activity and
prepares its graduates for career opportunities in a highly competitive, technological, and rapidly changing world.