It's Academic


It's Academic is the name for a number of televised academic quiz competitions for high school students through the United States and internationally. It's Academic programs have notably aired on NBC-owned WRC-TV in Washington, D.C., NBC affiliate WVIR in Charlottesville, Virginia, and CBS-owned WJZ-TV in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Washington, D.C. version of the show has been on the air since October 7, 1961, and is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running quiz program in TV history. The program was created for WRC by Sophie Altman, who continued as executive producer until her death on May 24, 2008. Mac McGarry hosted the Washington shows from the beginning until June 25, 2011. Hillary Howard, a news anchor for Washington radio station WTOP-FM, took over as host subsequent to McGarry's official retirement in November 2011. The Baltimore show is hosted by David Zahren. The show features three local high school teams of three players each. Over the years, chief sponsor Giant Food has given more than $2,000,000 in scholarship funds to participating schools. In 2014, James Hubert Blake High School became the first ever school to win three consecutive super bowls in the Washington edition of It's Academic.

Format

The single-elimination tournament features 81 schools in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, 81 schools in the Baltimore metropolitan area, and 9 schools in the Central Virginia region. The winners in each region go on to battle each other in the Super Bowl.
Each contest is composed of five rounds. Round 1 is a category round with eight themed questions. Questions do not appear on the players' monitors but do appear for the home viewers. Each team is given 100 points before this round and teams receive 10 points for each correct answer and lose 10 for each incorrect answer.
In Round 2, each team is individually asked five questions and receive 20 points each for a correct answer, but do not lose points for an incorrect answer.
Round 3 is a toss-up visual round. The monitor displays an image and the host provides a question accompanying the image. Teams receive 20 points for each correct answer and lose 20 for each incorrect answer. Eight questions are used. The fourth question is always a math question.
Before Round 4 the captain of each team introduces the sponsors and school administrators and coaches. Teams then select from three question packets. The team to the immediate left of the team that is supposed to answer chooses which packet the answering team will use. Eight questions are given to each team, with 20 points for a correct answer and no penalties. A 25-point bonus is given if a team correctly answers all eight questions, for a total of 185 points in this round. The fourth question is always a science question and the seventh question is always a math question.
Round 5 features quick-fire toss-up questions, each worth +/-20 points. Visual questions are worth +/-30 points. The number of questions varies depending on the time left in the game. The game ends when the buzzer sounds, home viewers may realize that the game will come to a close while the countdown clock appears on the television screen. If a team has buzzed in prior the buzzer sounding, the team is required to answer the question before the game is considered over. If there is a tie in the knockout round, the presenter may ask one last tie-breaker question to determine the winner.
After the host has announced the teams' final scores, the studio audience is invited down from the stands to join the contestants on camera during the closing credit sequence. In the Washington version from about 1976 to June 2017, the song heard under the credit roll was "T.L.C. " by the band MFSB.

Discontinued rounds

Prior to the adoption of the current format, there were several other formats of play.

Category round

The "very fast" category round consisted of questions pertaining to the same category. In some cases, the question was the same throughout the round: teams were given different items, and had to answer the common question on the basis of each item. In other cases, all the answers in the category round shared an announced characteristic in common. Teams used their buzzers in this round, earning 10 points for a correct answer, but losing 10 points for wrong answers.

Timed round

In all forms, a team individually answers questions from a packet within a time limit. In one form, at the beginning of the game, teams get one minute to answer questions for 20 points each. In this form, teams are not penalized for wrong answers, in order to help the teams in "building score". In another form, teams have one and a half minutes to answer questions for 20 points each. However, 20 points are deducted for a wrong answer. Teams may pass a question, losing 10 points; however, the other two teams may buzz-in to answer the passed questions for plus or minus 20 points after the time runs out for the team's turn. Every question that is fully read must be answered or passed within a reasonable time. However, if a question is not finished when time expires, the team may reject it without penalty or answer the question at their own risk. In this form, getting all 10 questions correct originally earned the team a 50-point bonus, later reduced to 25.

Scrimmage round

A "scrimmage round" was once used during the 1977–78 Buffalo season championship, as well as in Washington and Baltimore through much of the 1970s, and also in Cleveland at about that time. Teams were instructed to "use lights and buzzers" for a "one-minute scrimmage round." 10 points were scored for a correct answer, with no penalties.

Guest questions

Beginning in 2008, telecasts on the WRC-TV version have included "guest questions" from notable persons in government, business, sports, and the arts. Among those seen in pre-recorded videos are:
An Australian version of the show aired on Network Ten and the Seven Network from 1968–1975, and was revived by Seven's Perth affiliate in 2001. Seven took the show national in 2005.
A New Zealand version was also screened by TVNZ in the 1980s, with Lockwood Smith and John Hayden as hosts.
WNBC-TV in New York aired a local edition of It's Academic from approximately 1963 through at least 1972, hosted most of the time by Art James, with Lee Leonard filling in for a year.
WMAQ-TV in Chicago had a version in the 1960s and 1970s under the It's Academic name, hosted by Ed Grennan.
WLWT, WCPO-TV and WCET in Cincinnati aired a local It's Academic from October 13, 1963 to May 30, 1982. The Cincinnati hosts included Dave Manning, Steve Douglas and Claire Slemmer.
A version of It's Academic aired on WBEN-TV in Buffalo from January 27, 1968 through 1986, hosted by sportscaster Van Miller. It was later revived for a few months in 2008 by WGRZ-TV, with Kevin O'Neill as host. The show returned to the area starting January 12, 2013 and is hosted by O'Neill and produced by Full Circle Studios for broadcast on NBC affiliate WGRZ-TV.
A show using the It's Academic name aired in Richmond, Virginia on the NBC affiliate, WWBT Channel 12, from November 22, 1975 to June 26, 1976, which was also hosted by Mac McGarry and sponsored by Giant. That was replaced by Battle of the Brains. Battle of the Brains has also replaced a version of It's Academic that aired in Hampton Roads.
The World Affairs Council, in conjunction with the U.S. Department of State, hosted an It's Academic International event in 2002, also hosted by Mac McGarry.
KHII-TV in Honolulu currently airs a local version titled It's Academic Hawaii which is hosted by Billy V. It was previously hosted by Rick Hamada and Keahi Tucker.
WEWS in Cleveland has had a version of the series since 1964. It was originally titled It's Academic and hosted by Don Cameron. In 1972, the series changed its name to Academic Challenge with host Don Webster, later replaced by Lou Magglio; the series later reverted to its former title during the mid-1990s, at which time Webster also returned as emcee. After a 35 consecutive year run and a brief hiatus, Academic Challenge returned to the WEWS airwaves in 2003 with host Adam Shapiro. Danita Harris hosted the 2006 season; from 2007–16, Jason Nicholas was the host, succeeded by Hakem Dermish in December 2016 after Nicholas left WEWS. Dermish was succeeded by WCPN host Rick Jackson on April 28, 2018 after Dermish left WEWS for CBS Sports in New York, while Dermish was subsequently replaced by Rob Powers for the 2019 season.
While not a spinoff, the UK has a similar series, University Challenge, which has been on air since 1962, making it only slightly younger than It's Academic. It was featured in the British sitcom The Young Ones where one of the characters, Adrian, used a Stielhandgranate against another university team.

Notable contestants

Notable people who have competed on It's Academic include:
Other notable participants:
In 1979, a charity special was held between a team of three Democratic senators, three Republican senators, and three members of the press.

Champions

YearWinners
1961Washington: St. Albans School
1965Cleveland: Magnificat High School
1967New York, NY: Plainview-Old Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School
Cincinnati: Walnut Hills High School
1968Washington: Fairfax High School
1969Washington: Walt Whitman High School
1972Washington: Walt Whitman High School
Baltimore: Gilman School
New York, NY St. Anthony’s High School, Smithtown, NY
1973Baltimore: Randallstown High School
Washington: Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Cleveland: West Geauga High School
1974Washington: Herndon High School
Baltimore: Randallstown High School
Cleveland: Barberton High School
1975Washington: Walt Whitman High School
Baltimore: Randallstown High School
1976Washington: Northwood High School
Baltimore: Archbishop Curley High School
Richmond, VA: Collegiate School
Buffalo: Mount Saint Mary Academy
1977Washington: Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
1978Washington: Northwood High School
Buffalo: Nichols School
1979Washington: Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Buffalo: Grand Island High School
Cincinnati: St. Xavier High School
1980Washington: Walt Whitman High School
Baltimore: Randallstown High School
Buffalo: Iroquois Central School District
Cincinnati: St. Xavier High School
1981Washington: Holton-Arms School
Cincinnati: St. Xavier High School
1982Washington: Walt Whitman High School
1983Washington: Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Baltimore: Dulaney High School
1984Baltimore: Dulaney High School
Washington: Rockville High School
1985Washington: Walt Whitman High School
Baltimore: Dulaney High School
Buffalo: Williamsville East High School
1986Washington: Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Baltimore: Wilde Lake High School
1987Washington: Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Baltimore: Wilde Lake High School
Central Virginia: St. Anne's-Belfield School
1988Baltimore: Dulaney High School
Washington: Walt Whitman High School
1989Washington: Georgetown Day School
Central Virginia: Thomas Jefferson High School
Baltimore: Dulaney High School
1990Baltimore: Oakland Mills High School
Washington: Rockville High School
Central Virginia: St. Anne's-Belfield School
1991Baltimore: Dulaney High School
Washington: Walt Whitman High School
1992Baltimore: Wilde Lake High School
Washington: Thomas Jefferson High School
1993Washington: Thomas Jefferson High School
Baltimore: Gilman School
1994Baltimore: Linganore High School
Washington: Eleanor Roosevelt High School
Central Virginia: Woodberry Forest School
1995Washington: Montgomery Blair High School
Central Virginia: Woodberry Forest School
1996Washington: Georgetown Day School
Central Virginia: Woodberry Forest School
Baltimore: Mount Saint Joseph
1997Washington: Georgetown Day School
Baltimore: Oakland Mills High School
Central Virginia: Charlottesville High School
Cleveland: Lakewood High School
1998Washington: Gonzaga College High School
Baltimore: Hammond High School
1999Washington: Rockville High School
Baltimore: Towson High School
Cleveland: Copley High School
2000Baltimore: Howard High School
Washington: Eleanor Roosevelt High School
Central Virginia: Robert E. Lee High School
2001Washington: Eleanor Roosevelt High School
Baltimore: Howard High School
2002Baltimore: Howard High School
Washington: Holton-Arms School
Pittsburgh: Ringgold High School
2003Washington: Holton-Arms School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
2004Baltimore: Howard High School
Washington: Richard Montgomery High School
Cleveland: Solon High School
2005Washington: Walter Johnson High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Robert E. Lee High School
Cleveland: Solon High School
2006Washington: Richard Montgomery High School
Baltimore: Hammond High School
Central Virginia: Charlottesville High School
Cleveland: Copley High School
2007Washington: Walter Johnson High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Robert E. Lee High School
Cleveland: Gilmour Academy
2008Washington: Rockville High School
Baltimore: Mount Saint Joseph
Central Virginia: Charlottesville High School
Cleveland: Hawken School
Pittsburgh: Shady Side Academy
Buffalo, NY: Iroquois Central School District
2009Baltimore: Centennial High School
Washington: Montgomery Blair High School
Central Virginia: Charlottesville High School
Cleveland: Archbishop Hoban High School
Pittsburgh: Uniontown Area High School
2010Washington: Rockville High School
Central Virginia: Charlottesville High School
Baltimore: Gilman School
Cleveland: Copley High School
Pittsburgh: Hampton High School
2011Washington: W.T. Woodson High School
Baltimore: Walkersville High School
Central Virginia: Rappahannock County High School
Cleveland: St. Edward High School
2012Washington: James Hubert Blake High School
Baltimore: Catonsville High School
Central Virginia: Louisa County High School
Cleveland: Firestone High School
Pittsburgh: Winchester Thurston School
Hawaii: Waiakea High School
2013Washington: James Hubert Blake High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Orange County High School
Cleveland: Twinsburg High School
Buffalo, NY: Williamsville East High School
Hawaii: Punahou School
2014Washington: James Hubert Blake High School
Baltimore: James M. Bennett High School
Central Virginia: Charlottesville High School
Cleveland: Cloverleaf High School
Buffalo, NY: Williamsville East High School
2015Washington: James Hubert Blake High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Rappahannock County High School
Cleveland: Berea-Midpark High School
2016Washington: Walt Whitman High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Robert E. Lee High School
Cleveland: Solon High School
2017Washington: Montgomery Blair High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Kettle Run High School
Cleveland: Lakewood High School
Hawaii: Kaiser High School
2018Washington: Montgomery Blair High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Stuarts Draft High School
Cleveland: Westlake High School
2019Washington: Montgomery Blair High School
Baltimore: Walkersville High School
Central Virginia: Kettle Run High School
Cleveland: Revere High School
2020Washington: Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Baltimore: Centennial High School
Central Virginia: Fauquier High School