Field of Sixteen Set for High School Quiz Show Season Five

Four teams join competition for first time

Hingham HS returns for fifth consecutive appearance in televised tournament

Longmeadow HS returns for first time since winning season one championship

BOSTON, Mass. (November 12, 2013) – Sixteen Massachusetts public high school academic teams—from a pool of more than 95 public high schools throughout Massachusetts—advanced to compete on season five of High School Quiz Show, the televised academic tournament produced and broadcast by Boston public broadcaster WGBH and hosted by Billy Costa. The season five field includes four schools new to the tournament, one past champion, and one school that has earned a place in the “Sweet Sixteen” for all five seasons.

“Congratulations to all the teams that have advanced to compete for the High School Quiz Show state championship. This program celebrates learning and provides a showcase for our students, teachers and parents,” said Jon Abbott, President and CEO of WGBH. “Massachusetts is home to one of the best public school systems in America, and WGBH is proud to be a vital partner in the Commonwealth’s education efforts. As a public broadcaster, we have an obligation and an opportunity to complement the great work that is done inside the classroom. Quiz Show continues to be an exciting part of that commitment.”

Teams qualified by earning top scores on “Super Sunday,” an event at which registered school teams each took an identical 100-question oral quiz at WGBH Studios in Brighton.

WGBH made the official announcement on the High School Quiz Show website earlier today. The schools that will compete for the state title are:

·  Acton-Boxborough High School

·  Advanced Math & Science Academy Charter School

·  Arlington High School

·  Chelmsford High School

·  Dartmouth High School

·  Dover-Sherborn High School (first time in tournament)

·  Hingham High School (fifth time in tournament)

·  Lexington High School

·  Longmeadow High School (season one state champion; advanced through As Schools Match Wits/WGBY bracket)

·  Mystic Valley Regional Charter School

·  Nantucket High School (first time in tournament)

·  Newton North High School (first time in tournament)

·  Rockport High School

·  Sharon High School

·  Somerville High School

·  Westford Academy (first time in tournament)

The televised tournament is a single-elimination competition to determine a state champion. Following the state championship, the winning school will compete in the second annual Governor’s Cup Challenge, a match up between WGBH’s High School Quiz Show Massachusetts state champion and NHPTV’s Granite State Challenge New Hampshire state champion.

High School Quiz aligns with the Massachusetts high school curriculum standards in subjects that include literature, history, science and math, as well as current events and general knowledge. The program is endorsed by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education. The Princeton Review judges the televised competition and reviews the program’s questions.

High School Quiz Show is a part of WGBH’s long-standing commitment to serving the Commonwealth’s educational efforts. In addition to its broadcast commitment, WGBH serves as Massachusetts’ digital media partner on two ambitious federally-supported Race to the Top initiatives aimed at reshaping learning for the 21st century. In 2002, WGBH created Teachers’ Domain, which is cited as the foundation for what is now PBS LearningMedia, a national broadband service for teachers and students.

The season five tournament bracket and broadcast schedule will be announced in the coming weeks. The season five premiere is scheduled to air on Saturday, February 8 at 6pm on WGBH 2.

Major funding for High School Quiz Show is provided by Safety Insurance and the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. Additional funding is provided by Massachusetts Teachers Association, XFINITY from Comcast, Harvard Summer School Secondary School Program, Bentley University, Subaru of New England and the WGBH Children’s Educational Media Fund.

For more information, visit WGBH.org or HighSchoolQuizShow.org and follow the show on Facebook and Twitter.

About WGBH

WGBH Boston is America’s preeminent public broadcaster and the largest producer of PBS content for TV and the Web, including Masterpiece, Antiques Roadshow, Frontline, Nova, American Experience, Arthur, Curious George, and more than a dozen other prime-time, lifestyle, and children’s series. WGBH’s television channels include WGBH 2, WGBH 44, and the digital channels World and Create. WGBH TV productions focusing on the region’s diverse community include Greater Boston, Basic Black, High School Quiz Show, and Neighborhood Kitchens. WGBH Radio serves listeners across New England with 89.7 WGBH Boston Public Radio; 99.5 WCRB Classical New England; and WCAI, the Cape and Islands NPR® Station. WGBH also is a major source of programs for public radio (among them, PRI’s The World®), a leader in educational multimedia (including PBS LearningMedia™, providing the nation’s educators with free, curriculum-based digital content), and a pioneer in technologies and services that make media accessible to deaf, hard of hearing, blind, and visually impaired audiences. WGBH has been recognized with hundreds of honors: Emmys, Peabodys, duPont-Columbia Awards and Oscars. Find more information at wgbh.org.