Great Oak High School Wins 3rd Place In 2026 Riverside County Academic Decathlon

RIVERSIDE, CA — For the first time in Beaumont High School's history, the Cougars have clinched the Riverside County Academic Decathlon championship title, but the Great Oak Wolfpack was not far behind, taking third place overall.

“Every student who participated in this year’s Riverside County Academic Decathlon is a powerful example of academic excellence and focused collaboration,” said Riverside County Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Edwin Gomez. “Congratulations to the Beaumont High School team as they prepare to proudly represent Riverside County at the California Academic Decathlon in March.”

This year's Academic Decathlon theme was "The Roaring Twenties," and competiton wrapped up Saturday at the Riverside County Office of Education Conference Center in downtown Riverside. Like its ancient Greek counterpart, the Academic Decathlon is a 10-event contest. Participants demonstrate their academic strength by completing seven written tests, writing an essay, delivering prepared and impromptu speeches, and participating in an interview.

Competition started virtually with essay writing and objective tests on Jan. 14. All teams then participated in the speech and interview competition and Super Quiz on Saturday, Jan. 31.

Students from nine Riverside County high schools (see below) competed in the event organized by the Riverside County Office of Education:

• Beaumont High School (two teams) — Beaumont Unified School District
• Corona High School — Corona-Norco Unified School District
• Western Center Academy (two teams) — Hemet Unified School District
• Elsinore High School — Lake Elsinore Unified School District
• Canyon Springs High School — Moreno Valley Unified School District
• Valley View High School — Moreno Valley USD
• Vista del Lago High School — Moreno Valley USD
• Heritage High School — Perris Union High School District
• Great Oak High School — Temecula Valley Unified School District

Each team was composed of nine students, three from each grade point category, and included three Honor (GPA 3.80 - 4.00), three Scholastic (GPA 3.20 - 3.799), and three Varsity (GPA 0.00 - 3.199) students.

Beaumont High School sent two teams, Team A and Team B. Team A won the championship, while Team B finished fifth.

Western Center Academy’s Team A finished second overall after tying with Beaumont High School in the Super Quiz. Great Oak High School finished third. Western Center Academy’s Team B finished fourth.

Due to its big win, Beaumont High School will now represent Riverside County at the California Academic Decathlon on March 20-22, 2026, in Santa Clara. The California state champion advances to the U.S. Academic Decathlon held April 23-25, 2026, in Garden Grove.