Showing off their smarts

Published 8:05 pm Thursday, March 3, 2011

MONROE — It all came down to the last question.

At the regional Hi-Q Championship, Monroe High School had been dominating the first half of the quiz competition Thursday morning. Archbishop Murphy High School got close in the last couple of rounds.

The difference was four points. The same value of the toss up question, which anybody can answer.

The packed performing arts center in Monroe High School got silent. The category was math.

The question: The U.S. national debt in 2007 was given as $9.3 trillion and the population in 2007 was given as 310 million people. What was the debt in dollars per capita owed by our government in 2007?

The three teams had one minute to answer. It only took seconds for senior Daniel Yoo to give the correct answer.

It was $30,000.

Daniel, 18, wasn’t from Monroe or Archbishop, however. He was from Henry M. Jackson High School, the third team in Thursday’s competition, which had no chance of winning at that point.

His answer gave the victory to Monroe High, which will now compete in the national championship March 30.

“You always try your best,” Daniel said. “You shouldn’t just give up even if it’s the end of the match.”

Hi-Q has teams answering questions of 14 different categories such as current events, geography, Shakespeare and world history. Each team has 15 seconds and four chances to answer a question correctly. If it doesn’t, another team can steal the points.

The three schools were the best out of 16 teams in Snohomish and Island counties that started the season in January. Monroe High will represent Washington in a national championship against schools from Pennsylvania, Alabama and Wisconsin.

This is the first time a national championship will be held in 30 years, said Amy Hammons, Hi-Q coordinator and outreach specialist for Everett Community College, which sponsored the Hi-Q matches throughout the season.

The students will not travel. Competitors will face off via video conference to save money. The match, not open to the public, can be viewed at the community college website.

The decline of funding and interest has been the reasons why Hi-Q programs have been discontinued in the past years. No other county in Washington has a Hi-Q program, Hammons said. Which is something unfortunate, she said.

“It showcases an aspect of high school that doesn’t get to be showcased any other way,” she said.

Interest was high, however, at Monroe High. Students cheered for the local team between rounds like if it was an athletic event. Monroe’s team came in second place last year.

“I feel an enormous sense of relief,” Monroe High junior Claire Chisholm said. “There was so much pressure. We really wanted to step up this year.”

Alejandro Dominguez: 425-339-3422; adominguez@heraldnet.com.