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QWEST FOUNDATION GRANT
HELPS TRAIN ARIZONA ACADEMIC DECATHLON COACHES

GRANT DETAILS

• $5,000 grant from the Qwest Foundation, Qwest Communications’ philanthropic arm, was given to the Arizona Academic Decathlon to support training for team coaches.
• Organized in 1985, Arizona Academic Decathlon promotes academic excellence through high school competitions in a variety of subject areas including art, math, literature and speech. Competitions recognize team and individual achievement.
• The grant funded food, materials and equipment for a coaches’ clinic held Sept. 10 in Mesa, helping to keep program costs low for participants.
• More than 100 coaches attended this year’s training session, which included lectures in astronomy and economics, a speech and interview demonstration by members of Arizona’s 2004 national team, and a discussion about team fundraising.

ABOUT THE ARIZONA ACADEMIC DECATHLON

• Coaches typically hold study sessions and schedule scrimmages with other high schools to prepare their teams for the competitions, which begin in February.
• More then 800 Arizona students participate in Arizona Academic Decathlon each year. In 2005, approximately 92 high schools will participate in the program. The 2004-2005 national theme is “Exploring the Ancient World”.
• Arizona Academic Decathlon teams have competed in the national competition for 20 years, always placing in the top 10. Last year, Mesa’s Mountain View High School team placed second out of 42 teams in the national competition.
• An Academic Decathlon team consists of nine students: three with grade point averages (GPAs) above 3.75, three with GPAs between 3.0 and 3.74 and three with GPAs between 1.0 and 2.99.
• For more information about the Arizona Academic Decathlon, please visit www.azacadec.org.

ABOUT THE QWEST FOUNDATION
The Qwest Foundation's core principle is that investing in people and communities provides lasting value for the future. The Qwest Foundation awards grants to community-based programs that generate high- impact and measurable results, focusing on K-12 education and economic development.

The Qwest Foundation's philosophy is to help build strong communities through investing in people and the places where they live and work. For more information, contact www.qwest.com/foundation.