Parents, school officials and community members joined Fern Bluff Elementary students as they celebrated the school winning its first Math Pentathlon National Championship. Only 15 schools across the nation have won the honor since the Math Pentathlon started.
Rene LeBlanc, Associate Director of the Pentathlon Institute, greeted the students and announced that once scores had been counted and confirmed for all schools nationwide, the Kinder —5th grade team at Fern Bluff Elementary took the Championship with 352 points.
“This is truly an incredible achievement for our kids and our coaches,” said Lisa Mack, Fern Bluff Elementary Math Pentathlon campus coordinator. “We know our kids are truly special and now the whole country knows.”
What’s even more astonishing about the win is that this is the first year Fern Bluff Elementary has had a Math Pentathlon club on campus. Mack said she was advised to start the club with a small number of students, but she didn’t have the heart to turn down any child who wanted to participate which resulted in 136 from all grade levels joining the team.
“Clearly the dedication of the coaches, rule experts, and parent volunteers working with the kids each week has made a huge difference on that campus,” noted Mr. LeBlanc. “They have an exceptional program, an exceptional staff of parents running the program, and exceptional students.”
LeBlanc presented the team with a trophy to put in the school’s trophy case and Congressman John Carter’s office presented Mack with a certificate honoring the school’s achievement.
Tournaments have been held for the past 31 years with national championships awarded since 1994. Texas has been hosting tournaments since 1997 and this is only the second time a school in Texas has won the national championship. Thousands of schools around the US have Math Pentathlon games in the schools either in the classroom or as an extracurricular enrichment program. In 2008-2009 there were 219 schools that participated in the national tournament.
Posted Date: 6/3/2009
Round Rock ISD Website
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