[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 54 (Tuesday, May 5, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E753]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 TRIBUTE TO EL CAMINO REAL HIGH SCHOOL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BRAD SHERMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 5, 1998

  Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the students 
of El Camino Real High School, winners of the National Academic 
Decathlon title. I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge 
this team of champions made up of Taimur Baig, Michael Beatty, Steve 
Chae, Nancy Fu, Bruce Ngo, Elana Pelman, Carina Yuen and Adi Zarchi, 
who were led by coaches David Roberson, Mark Johnson and Principal Ron 
Bauer.
  The academic decathlon is the equivalent of an intellectual Olympics. 
Students are asked to compete in a variety of areas, including 
analyzing poetry, solving complicated trigonometry problems and 
answering questions about the lives of great composers. They are also 
tested on various aspects of global economies, including inflation, 
interest rates, the North American Free Trade Agreement and the 
International Monetary Fund.
  The El Camino Conquistadors are to be commended for their dedication, 
hard work and discipline. In preparation for this grueling competition, 
students have spent 50 hours a week throughout this past year studying 
everything from music theory to chemical equations. In addition, each 
student also read ``Jane Eyre'' five times, and together the team took 
more than 450 multiple choice practice tests. Their success has been 
recognized on the front page of every newspaper in the area, by local 
radio and television stations, and most recently by President Clinton.
  President Kennedy once said that we should think of education as the 
``. . . . means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each 
of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be 
translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our 
nation.'' I would like to commend the Conquistadors for going after 
their dreams, individually and as a team. This commitment to their 
education and pursuit of their goals is an inspiration to other 
students, teachers and the rest of the country.
  Mr. Speaker, distinguished colleagues, please join me in offering our 
highest accolades to the students of El Camino Real High School.

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