The Online Magazine of the Academic Games Leagues of America
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News and NotesCalendar of EventsOctober
November
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If you do not see your league’s events above, please send your schedule to bngolden1@cox.net.
Revised Procedure for Cube Game Challenges
From the Manual for Equations and On-Sets Officials:
- A player may protest a ruling if a second judge was called and the player does not initial the scoresheet to accept the final scores.
- The protesting player must complete and submit a Protest Form as soon as possible at the end of the match and submit any relevant documents (such as the paper on which a disputed Equation/Solution was written). The names of the two (or three) judges who ruled on the situation must be written on the form.
- The Appeals Panel that adjudicates the protest then has the needed information, although the parties involved (including any judges called to the table) may be contacted to answer questions.
- The rule followed by this “higher authority” (individual or board) will be to uphold the decision made on the spot unless the ruling clearly violates a rule or interpretation in the Tournament Rules or this manual.
Outstanding Senior: Eric MacadangdangCongratulations to Eric Macadangdang of Montour High School, Montour PA, for winning an Outstanding Senior Award at the 2017 AGLOA National Tournament. Eric didn’t start Academic Games until high school but immediately began excelling in the reading games. Here are excerpts from his nomination from his coach, Michael Phillips.
You truly know that someone has made an impact on everyone around them when they earn a nickname. In this case, the students nicknamed Eric “Dad.” Eric is truly the “Dad” of the group. He has everyone organized, helps to make the decisions, and takes charge when needed. This extends to other schools also where he has taken students under his wing and has been a “Dad” to them as well. Eric also has been on my case several times this year to get this done and that done and has kept everything running smoothly. If I said I could have run the group this year without Eric, it would be a lie. Eric is not alone in his help within the group, but he is the true leader of my outstanding group of seniors. |
Eric has been the promoter of Academic Games at our high school. He was the one who got our team organized on Google Drive and got our team recognized by our district on Twitter. Eric has been my right hand over the past few years and especially this year when I got transferred to the middle school. He kept practices going and got them started until I arrived. He worked to organize and create teams and run practice sessions and recruit players. The program would not be where it is today without Eric Macadangdang. While he may not have tons of Thinkers from Nationals, everyone in our program today that qualified for Nationals or played this year and in previous years, truly represents the dedication that he has given to the program both at our school and at competitions. Frequently, Eric and I would exchange emails, and he would be my source for information or if I needed something at the high school. He truly was like the second coach of our program.
Outstanding Educator: Betty Smith
Betty’s principal supplied this information for her nomination: Betty has been a teacher in Hancock County for 27 years. During that time, she has taught English, history, sign language, computers … You name it, she has taught it! She has won the Teacher of the Year honor on multiple occasions for the school and county. Betty is extremely dedicated to her job and her kids. The students always joke about getting emails from Mrs. Smith at 3:00 in the morning – the woman truly does not sleep. Even with all she has going on at home with taking care of her husband, she puts forth 100% effort with her classes and with her Academic Games. This year, Betty volunteered to give up her planning period (out of the goodness of her heart) so that students who take virtual and dual credit classes would have a class during school hours and not have to do them outside of school! Betty is always involved in whatever is going on at the school. She still plays in faculty/student volleyball games (and does NOT like to lose) and volunteers for all assemblies and such. Hancock County participated in the National Academic Games Project tournaments in the 1990s and 2000s. In the words of her nominator, Leonard Herrington, Betty brought her school over to AGLOA and saved the program. Honestly, there would be no Academic Games there without Betty! Betty knows more about the games than anyone else that I know. Two winters ago, Betty brought her kids to a tournament (they come all the way from Weirton to play in the Pittsburgh area). We noticed Betty sitting down (which she never does!!) I checked on her, and she said she didn’t feel well, but there was no one else to bring students to the competition. Betty ended up passing out that day and being taken to the hospital with an exceptionally high fever. Her major concern the entire time was how were her students doing in the competition and how would they get home. I feel that Betty is one of the very best persons that I have had the privilege of knowing. Her love of the games is second to none. Her commitment to her students is amazing. My fellow WPAGL coaches and I hold her in high esteem and in great respect. In short, we all love Betty and feel that she is very deserving of the Outstanding Educator Award. |
Betty Smith, the Academic Games coach at Weir High School in Hancock County WV, has been involved in Academic Games for several decades. She shows her versatility by coaching all the games at her school – Math, Social Studies, and Language Arts.
Down Memory Lane
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1984 Jim Davis Award winners – equivalent to the Outstanding Educators today. Two of those pictured are still involved in Academic Games: Pam Champagne and Mike Steigerwald.