1995 – a club was formed called Academic Decathlon.  Lincoln Northeast High School is the only school in the LPS district who has Academic Decathlon. We compete mostly against Omaha High Schools. Academic Decathlon is a paper and pencil test competition that is multiple choice.

Mr. Eckman, the sponsor, would like the student body to know “Anyone can do it. It is a great way to boost resumes and college applications. Most of it is independent study. It’s for everybody.” 

It involves 10 subjects: 7 main ones – Math, Language, Music, Art, Economics, Science, Social Science, and 3 other subjects- Speech, Interview and Essay. If your average is an A, you compete with someone whose average is an A. If your average is a B, you compete with someone whose average is a B. And if your average is C and below, you compete with someone whose average is C and below. At a competition the maximum of students allowed is 12, so far at our school 15 students have shown interest. 

Mr. Eckman’s best memory is seeing the kids qualify for out of state competition. He comments that “it is neat to see them excel in all areas.” 

22 years ago, a young Mr. Eckman joined the staff of Lincoln Northeast High School. Mr. Eckman shares, when the former coach who was a math teacher left Northeast, “the department head wanted to keep [Academic Decathlon] in the math department.  So, for some reason, he asked me! I had no idea what the Decathlon was. But I’m glad I was asked and I’ve been doing it ever since.”