Flagship Competition

Academic Decathlon

Nine students, ten subjects, three GPA divisions — the complete academic team competition experience from scrimmages through the national championship.

About the Decathlon

One Team.
Ten Subjects.

The Academic Decathlon brings together nine individual minds, each competing independently across ten subjects, whose combined scores add up to the team's overall result. The format recognizes that a great team is built from diverse, independent contributors working toward one score.

Each of the 9 team members competes in 7 written tests over material that they were handed to study throughout the year prior, showcasing their discipline, commitment, and perseverance to study hundreds of pages of content to compete against hundreds of other students. The Academic Decathlon also creates well-rounded students by preparing them through subjective testing measures such as the required essay, speeches, and interview, not only creating well-educated but well-mannered decathletes who are prepared for the world beyond the classroom.

GPA Divisions

Honors

3.85 – 4.00 GPA

Scholastic

3.50 – 3.8499 GPA

Varsity

0 – 3.4999 GPA

Ten Competition Subjects

Objective Events

Art
Economics
Literature
Mathematics
Music
Science
Social Science

Subjective Events

Essay
Interview
Speech

Key Forms & Documents

Team RegistrationOnline Student Registration FormPDF Student Permission FormPDF Request for Student ReplacementPDF Special Request (Accommodations) FormPDF

2026–2027 Key Dates

Sep 18, 2026: TAD Training Day
Jan 12–13, 2027: Region Essays
Jan 29–30, 2027: Region Competition
Feb 10, 2027: State Essays
Feb 26–28, 2027: State Meet
Apr 29–May 1, 2027: USAD National Finals

Scrimmage Meets

Scrimmage meets are unofficial practice competitions held in the fall semester. They are strongly recommended for teams new to Academic Decathlon and as warm-up preparation for the regional season. Scrimmage results do not count toward regional qualification.

Scrimmage Information

Scrimmages are hosted by individual ISDs and organized through regional coordinators. Scheduling and registration are managed locally. Contact your regional coordinator for dates and locations near you.

Season: August – October
Locations: Across Texas (ISD-hosted)
Participants: Any registered team

Scrimmage Registration

Throughout the year, schools across the state participate inside of scrimmages to train and prepare for real competition dates. Scrimmages allow students to experience the competitive environment before the actual competition, which leads to improved scores. Make sure that your team has already been registered for Decathlon before you participate inside of any scrimmages.

Order Scrimmage Test Materials

Scrimmage test materials cover Art, Economics, Literature, Math, Music, Science, Social Science, and Super Quiz, giving students a low-stakes opportunity to practice under real testing conditions before the competitive season begins. Materials must be ordered through a principal, coordinator, or host — not directly by coaches — and cannot be used before October 31, 2026.

Regional Competition

Regional competitions are the official qualifying rounds for the State Competitions. The in-person Regional Competition is held January 29–30, 2027, across regions statewide. Top-scoring teams advance to the State Competitions.

Regional Competition Details

Region Essays: Jan 12–13, 2027
In-Person Regional Competition: Jan 29–30, 2027
Location: Regional host sites across Texas
Advancement: Top teams per region advance to State

Regional Forms

Regional Registration FormOnline Student Eligibility VerificationPDF Student Observer FormPDF

State Competitions

The Texas Academic Decathlon State Competitions bring together the top teams from each region for two days of intense competition. The State Competitions determine which Texas teams advance to represent the state at the national level.

State Competition Details

State Essays: February 10, 2027
State Meet: February 26–28, 2027
Large School Location: TBD
Medium School Location: Collin College Preston Ridge Campus
Small School Location: Dallas ISD
Advancement: State winner advances to Nationals

National Championship

The United States Academic Decathlon National Championship is the pinnacle of academic competition. Texas' State Divisional Champions advance to compete against the top teams from each state in a multi-day event held in a different city each year. It is the culmination of a season that begins with local scrimmages and runs through Regional and State Competitions, bringing together the best academic teams in the country.

USAD Academic Decathlon

About the National Championship

The National Championship is run by the United States Academic Decathlon (USAD) — a separate national event from the Texas Academic Decathlon, though Texas competes under the USAD umbrella. The USAD National Championship typically occurs in April. Texas will send the highest scoring large, medium, and small schools to compete annually. Based on competition site, additional teams (and/or students) may be invited. For information about the National Championship, visit the official United States Academic Decathlon website.

Date: April 29–May 1, 2027
Location: Bloomington, MN
Qualifier: Texas State Divisional Champions

2026 State Finals Results

Official 2026 State Finals team standings for each school-size division. The top 3 teams in each division are highlighted below, and the complete standings for every qualifying team remain visible at all times in the tables beneath

Large Schools

25 teams · 2026 State Finals
1

Dulles

Fort Bend ISD

50,980.8pts

2

Warren

Northside ISD

50,087.6pts

3

Pearland

Pearland ISD

49,026.3pts

RankSchoolDistrictCoachScore
1DullesFort Bend ISDAndrew Hartman50,980.8
2WarrenNorthside ISDJoseph Bayona50,087.6
3PearlandPearland ISDHarley Simms49,026.3
4MarcusLewisville ISDDavid Pike48,337.7
5Katy TaylorKaty ISDJenny Brunsell48,178.6
6Morton RanchKaty ISDCarrie McDaniel46,838
7NimitzIrving ISDGreg Thomson46,087.2
8HebronLewisville ISDDonna Friend45,481.3
9Plano EastPlano ISDDusty Vincer45,312.1
10MarshallNorthside ISDAnthony Gonzales43,516.3
11KatyKaty ISDKevin Walker43,162.1
12GarlandGarland ISDJeremy Yancey42,725.6
13LewisvilleLewisville ISDAmber Counts42,588.3
14DawsonPearland ISDAmy Petersen42,538.5
15MansfieldMansfield ISDTanya Maness42,389.5
16O'ConnorNorthside ISDAaron Westbrook42,251.3
17AlvinAlvin ISDPaul Summa42,162.1
18MacArthurIrving ISDFalak Ajani41,600
19Clear LakeClear Creek ISDAlex Moore41,423.4
20Ridge PointFort Bend ISDCraig Sanders40,093.3
21Cinco RanchKaty ISDJason Spencer39,878.2
22RockwallRockwall ISDLucas Beville39,848.4
23KellerKeller ISDJulianna Morris39,816.7
24Pasadena MemorialPasadena ISDJeremy Maduzia39,766.8
25Dubiski CareerGrand Prairie ISDSam Gaskill37,810.2
Showing all 25 qualifying teams.

Medium Schools

13 teams · 2026 State Finals
1

Highland Park

Highland Park ISD

49,996.3pts

2

Lebanon Trail

Frisco ISD

47,653.3pts

3

Lubbock

Lubbock ISD

45,165.5pts

RankSchoolDistrictCoachScore
1Highland ParkHighland Park ISDAlex Murchison49,996.3
2Lebanon TrailFrisco ISDJillian Schattle47,653.3
3LubbockLubbock ISDThomas Reynolds45,165.5
4LibertyFrisco ISDTim Johannes43,963.4
5KingCorpus Christi ISDKaryn Bost43,571.2
6The ColonyLewisville ISDCheryl Chupe43,126.8
7HeritageFrisco ISDGabe Fain42,957.1
8MontereyLubbock ISDLacey Oliver42,430.6
9CentennialFrisco ISDJeff Wolford41,903.2
10FriendswoodFriendswood ISDPeyton Goodwin41,207.2
11TurnerPearland ISDJason Williams40,184.5
12FriscoFrisco ISDBrent Beeson39,981.1
13ReedyFrisco ISDMatt Fontana38,915.5
Showing all 13 qualifying teams.

Small Schools

14 teams · 2026 State Finals
1

Health Careers

44,667.6pts

2

Freeman

43,408.9pts

3

Odessa Collegiate Academy

41,619.9pts

RankSchoolScore
1Health Careers44,667.6
2Freeman43,408.9
3Odessa Collegiate Academy41,619.9
4Townview TAG40,274.9
5New Tech Odessa39,581.5
6Taylor HS39,428.8
7School of Science and Engineering38,876.8
8Talkington School for Young Women Leaders37,752.9
9STEM Academy32,567.5
10Lassiter Early College HS32,243.5
11Frenship Memorial HS32,158.6
12Barack Obama Male Leadership Academy31,462.1
13Valle Verde Early College HS30,761.8
14Avalos P-TECH HS27,324.4
Showing all 14 qualifying teams.

Top Individual Scorers

By GPA division · 2026 State Finals

Honors

#StudentScore
1Abish Kambala — Lebanon Trail9,507.0
2Shourya Vyas — Garland9,380.8
3Alice Jeong — Dulles9,315.3

Scholastic

#StudentScore
1Suleyman Bashir — Dulles8,912.0
2Dhiya Viswanathan — Lebanon Trail8,804.0
3Preston Houghton — Highland Park8,767.8

Varsity

#StudentScore
1Nathaniel Garza — Earl Warren8,626.3
2Ethan Phillips — James E. Taylor8,305.4
3Aiden Lewis — Mansfield8,209.1