Punahou’s Academic Decathlon team proudly represented Hawai‘i for the third consecutive year at the National Academic Decathlon Championship, held this past week in Des Moines, Iowa. Competing against top teams from across the country – from Alaska to Florida – the team earned an impressive 8th place finish in their division and brought home 3 Gold, 2 Silver, and 2 Bronze medals.
Team members included:
– Noe Brennan ’25: Gold in Speech, Bronze in Economics
– Ben Watanabe ’26: Silver in Essay, Bronze in Social Science
– Elizabeth Chee ’26: Gold in Speech
– Aidan Erickson ’25: Gold in Science, Silver in Math
– Lana Higa ’25 – Trevor Chen ’28 – Nathan White ’26
While in Iowa, the students were warmly welcomed by Punahou alumni Harrison Inefuku ’02 of Iowa State and Kylie’s-Ann Smith ’23, now attending Grinnell University.
Beyond the medals and rankings, the students had an unforgettable experience – making new friends, learning from others, and proudly continuing a legacy of academic excellence and aloha.