MADISON – A two-person team from Indian Trail High School and Academy has won the 2022 Wisconsin Civics Games State Championship. The competition, presented by the Wisconsin Newspaper Association Foundation, took place Friday at the Wisconsin State Capitol.
The winning students were Joshua Cao and Alexandra Maldonado. The team was advised by social studies teacher Marla Day. (Cao was also awarded first place in the 2021 Wisconsin Civics Games Editorial Writing Contest. You can read his essay here and see him discuss the contest in this video.)
After being awarded points for 31 of 60 questions asked over four head-to-head matchups, Cao and Maldonado competed in a final tiebreaker round against students from Ashwaubenon High School. A team from West Bend High School — just one point behind Indian Trail and Ashwaubenon — took third place.
WNA Foundation Board Member Eve Galanter, who helped spearhead the initiative, presented Cao and Maldonado with medals and a trophy, noting they would each receive a $2,000 scholarship to a Wisconsin college or university. She also presented members of the top three teams with Civics Games medals.
In addition to Galanter, WNA Executive Director Beth Bennett and WNA Foundation President Scott Peterson welcomed contest participants to the competition, which was launched in 2019 by the WNA Foundation in an effort to boost civic education and engagement among Wisconsin youth.
“Newspapers like to think of themselves as the flashlights that illuminate democracy,” Peterson said. “But that only works if the public is engaged and paying attention and is knowledgeable about how everything should be working.”
Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Patience Roggensack served as a guest speaker, emphasizing the importance of civics education and the democratic process.
“[The Wisconsin Civics Games] has substantial benefits — not just to those who compete in the contest — but to those who watch as well,” Roggensack said. “This is because a conversation about democracy, which is what we’re going to engage in, benefits everyone.”
Forty-five students from 12 schools participated in the state finals after advancing from regional contests held virtually last month. More than 150 students competed in the regionals. Because of cancellations prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was the first time the Games have been held since the inaugural competition in 2019, during which a team from Platteville High School was named the first-ever state champions.
In an effort to continue working to increase civic education and engagement during the pandemic, the WNA Foundation launched the Wisconsin Civics Games Editorial Writing & Cartoon Contest during Sunshine Week in 2021. Thirteen high school and middle school students received cash awards, certificates and the opportunity to be published by newspapers across the state. (See their winning work and watch the virtual awards presentation.)
Friday’s competition was judged by Rep. Lisa Subeck, D-Madison; Monica Kruse, chair of the La Crosse County Board of Supervisors; and Denise Guttery, WNA Media Services Director.
In addition to the WNA Foundation, sponsors included the Evjue Foundation, Godfrey & Kahn, League of Wisconsin Municipalities, League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, News Tracker, Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, Wisconsin Counties Association, Wisconsin’s Senate Scholars Program and WisconsinEye.
Watch the Games
A broadcast of the Civics Games State Finals can be viewed on WisconsinEye using the following links:
Stay Informed
Do you want to receive information about future Civics Games competitions? Sign up to receive our emails.
State Finals teams
Ashwaubenon High School
Advisers: Eric Mommaerts, Cortney Lemens
Team Members: Janet Parise, Haylie Dumoulin, Lilly Marto, Truman Thor
Big Foot High School
Adviser: Patrick Hollihan
Team Members: Alexa Clary, Ethan Jackowski, Emily Leon, Sydney Wilson, Monroe Melges, Maya Morand, Val Lopez
Dodgeville High School
Adviser: Ben Dorscheid
Team Members: Tyler Bradley, Mia Patterson, Max Konop
Indian Trail High School and Academy
Adviser: Marla Day
Team Members: Joshua Cao, Alexandra Maldonado
Lancaster High School
Adviser: Amy Flynn
Team Members: Ella Jackering, Brady Oyen, Mitchel Wolf, Ryan McCartney
New London High School
Advisers: Patrick Lawton, Gary Henschel
Team Members: Wyatt Adamovich, Jack Kedinger
Northland Pines High School
Advisers: Jacob Schueller, Jessie Zyhowski
Team Members: Francis Milanowski, Rose Tyler, Kevin Schaars, Carolyn Schaars
Platteville High School
Adviser: Garrett Jones
Team Members: Caden Charles, Matthew Stangl-McDermott, Ethan Roepsch, Brian Richter
River Falls High School
Adviser: Heather Boleman
Team Members: Anika Coleman, Arlo L’Allier, Joshua Muszynski, Derek Weissinger, Julia Schmitt-Mischke (alternate)
Seymour Community High School
Adviser: Chelsey Schaumberg
Team Members: Lydia Byers, Brooke Mullen, Bella Burton
Superior High School
Adviser: James Hogan
Team Members: Joe Morehouse, Henry Schultz, Marcus Madsen
West Bend High School
Adviser: Mark Drake
Team Members: Pauline Scholz, Isabella Pescador, Owen Damkot, Danny Zolp
