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Community Corner

Chester County Academic Competition Semifinals Live Stream

Immaculata, PA – After four months of competition, nine county high school varsity teams are eager to continue their winning ways at the Chester County Academic Competition semifinals. The semifinals are set to take place on Monday, February 4, at Immaculata University’s Alumnae Hall, and will determine which of the teams will clinch one of three coveted spots in the championship match.

The competition, sponsored by Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union and coordinated by the Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU), kicked off in October 2012 when 21 county high school teams began competing against one another in a "college-bowl" format where students answered a wide variety of challenging questions.

“These competitors are masters of literature, math, science, history, geography, and current events,” said Jennifer Shealy, special events coordinator for CCIU. “The competition is able to give these students, and academics as a whole, their due fanfare.”

After a total of 28 matches, which concluded on January 24, the nine varsity teams and the six junior varsity teams who accumulated the highest number of points in the series earned a spot in the semifinals. The matches can be seen live on CCIU’s Internet television network on February 4 beginning at 9:00 a.m. by visiting http://ccitv.cciu.org.

According to Shealy, the winner of each of the three varsity semifinal matches will earn a spot in the finals on Thursday, March 14, at 7:00 p.m. The winner of each of the two junior varsity matches, as well as the next highest scoring team, will earn a spot in the junior varsity championships on the same day.

The varsity team with the highest score on March 14 will represent Chester County at the state competition. The Pennsylvania Academic Competition will take place on the floors of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and the Senate in Harrisburg on May 3, 2013. Last year, West Chester B. Reed Henderson High School claimed the state championship for a second year in a row.

“The Chester County Academic Competition allows students the opportunity to showcase their academic talents in a manner that is generally reserved for athletes,” added Shealy.

The schedule for the semifinals is as follows:



  • 9:00 a.m. - Opening and Welcome

  • 9:15 a.m. - Junior Varsity Tie-Breaker (fifth and sixth place) – Downingtown High School West; West Chester East High School

  • 9:30 a.m. - Junior Varsity Match 1 – Downingtown High School East; Great Valley High School; Fifth place team (from tie-breaker)

  • 10:30 a.m. - Junior Varsity Match 2 – Unionville High School; Conestoga High School; Sixth place team (from tie-breaker)

  • 11:30 a.m.    Intermission

  • Noon - Varsity Match 1 – West Chester East High School; Phoenixville Area High School; West Chester Bayard Rustin High School

  • 1:00 p.m. - Varsity Match 2 – Conestoga High School; Downingtown High School East; Kennett High School

  • 2:00 p.m. - Varsity Match 3 – Unionville High School; West Chester B. Reed Henderson High School; Coatesville Area Senior High School



In the event of inclement weather, the semifinals will be held on Wednesday, February 6. For more information on the competition, including a list of this year’s participating Chester County teams, competition historical information and match scores for each round, please click here.

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