Southeast Polk Junior High Knowledge Bowl teams realized they were facing tough competition when they entered Merle Hay Mall for the Knowledge Bowl Finals. Twelve teams per grade level from an eleven county area were there to face off in six rigorous buzzer rounds after advancing from the computer round of competition held a few weeks earlier. Knowledge Bowl questions covered a range of subject areas and included both factual information and math problem-solving. Two of SEP's three teams qualified for the championship round. The eighth grade team emerged as Knowledge Bowl champions after battling against Brody Middle School and Central Academy, both from the Des Moines Public Schools. This team made history by bringing home SEP's first championship trophy. The top seventh grade team earned third place while competing against Pella Christian and Indian Hills of West Des Moines, receiving a plague in recognition of their outstanding efforts. A third Southeast Polk team gave a strong showing by earning sixth place in the seventh grade competition. Coach Kathy Wikert was assisted on competition day by Dave Hartman and Mary Owens who served as contest judges.
7th grade team with 3rd place plaque:
front row left to right: Jacob Peake, Jared McDonald
back row left to right: Ethan Owens & Eryn Perry
8th grade team with 1st place trophy:
left to right: Scott Beard, Ryan McClelland, Koy Drabek, Andrew Herrera & Reagan Mackie
