Heights team competes in 'Academic Challenge' airing April 15

The Cleveland Heights High School academic team recently competed on an episode of "Academic Challenge," scheduled to air on Saturday, April 15, 11:30 a.m., on WEWS Channel 5. Heights High senior Arthur Stadlin and 11th-graders Natalie Bier and Niko Bell participated for the Heights team.

Led by coach Karl Neitzel, an economics and history teacher at Heights High, the team has nine members from a range of grade levels. They participate in regional competitions where they face-off against other high schools, answering questions from all areas of academics, including science, literature, math, and even pop culture.

Members of the team will be traveling to Atlanta in May to participate in the National Academic Quiz Tournament. Heights qualified for the nationals by taking first place at an October regional tournament held in Solon.

"Academic Challenge," sponsored by the Nordson Corporation and Cuyahoga Community College, has aired on WEWS for 54 years and is currently hosted by news anchor Rob Powers.

This season’s three highest-scoring teams will participate in a season-ending championship, airing May 27, where they will have the opportunity to win a first-place prize of $6,000.

Teams are eligible to be on the show every two years. Heights last appeared on the show in 2019, when they beat St. Ignatius and North Ridgeville.

The April 15 show will also be streamed on WEWS’s Nordson-Academic Challenge website, www.news5cleveland.com/news/education/academic-challenge

Michael Bier

Mike Bier is a graduate of Heights High and the proud father of Natalie Bier, one of the Heights High team members.

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Volume 16, Issue 5, Posted 10:46 AM, 04.10.2023