Campo’s Academic Decathlon team, with this year’s regionals roster of forty-one competing members, has continued its long-standing legacy of excellence. On Jan. 31st, the team earned first place at the 2026 Bay Region Academic Decathlon Competition, not only securing its 16th consecutive regional championship but also assuring Campo’s advancement to the state competition in March. The Bay Regionals, held at Solano Community College, brought together 17 schools and nearly 400 students across Northern California. After an intense weekend of testing, speeches, and interviews, Campo was able to narrowly edge out MIT High School by a difference of 726 points. This year’s theme, known as “The Jazz Age,” challenged students to explore the 1920s era. Every year, competitors are tested across the ten subjects: literature, economics, math, science, social science, essays, speeches, and interviews.
For Campo, preparation for regionals started months ago, with members taking practice tests, reviewing course material, and rehearsing speeches. “We wrapped up all ten subject topics earlier this season and spent the final weeks refining our prep for the competition,” said senior and co-captain Bhavana Khasalanti. “There was a lot of behind-the-scenes effort to make sure everyone felt confident about walking into regionals.” Fellow senior and co-captain Ian Chen also reflected on the season while leading the team. “It’s definitely been a journey leading everyone to regionals,” he said. “Taking on a bigger leadership role meant helping new members and preparing for speeches and interviews, but overall we performed really well. Tons of people medaled across all divisions.”
In total, the Campo team earned over four dozen bronze, silver, and gold medals, with several competitors achieving perfect or near-perfect scores. The program also received a scholarship from Travis Credit Union to help fund the cost of attending state later on. And aside from the accolades, Chen took the time to emphasize the stronger connections forged between members. “The highlight for me personally was how close everyone became, because even if we weren’t friends before ‘AcaDeca,’ spending so much time together at regionals was what made the experience even more meaningful.”
For many of the other competing members, regionals became a place where both academic challenge and personal growth was offered. “It’s a really fun activity,” said sophomore Emma Stimmler. “People might say it’s academically overwhelming, but it helps you become a better speaker and learn so much more about different topics.” She also added a reflection of her hopes for next season: “I’m really hoping to be able to study more and make it to state next year, because the regionals experience gave me a lot of motivation.”
The continuation of AcaDeca’s success has and will continue to rely on passion and community within the team; senior Mihir Konkar added his thoughts on goals for the team with state coming up. “We’ve had our streak of winning regionals for more than a decade – so for us, it’s about pride, not losing to regional rivals…but it’s also about boosting morale, and a testament to the preparation we’ve been putting in since September.”
