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The Harlan Independent School District’s 6th Grade Academic Team recently brought home their sixth championship title in seven years, beginning the KAAC (Kentucky Association for Academic Competition) season with a bang.
According to a press release, Harlan Middle School was the location of the 2024 Governor’s Cup Sixth Grade Showcase Competition, bringing in students from across Harlan and Bell Counties to compete.
Harlan Middle School took home the Section 29 Sixth Grade Showcase overall title after logging a total of 96 points. Second place went to Stinnett with 35.5 points, scraping past Wallins with 33.5 points.
“Governor’s Cup encourages depth and breadth of academic knowledge, cultural literacy, teamwork, leadership, creativity, risk assessment, and critical thinking, and provides the fun that comes with being part of a team. Established in 1985, KAAC now serves over 18,000 students and nearly 1200 schools at over 400 competitions each year,” states the KAAC website at https://kaac.com/governors-cup.

Overall Final Standings:
Harlan, 96; Stinnett 35.5; Wallins 33.5; Cawood 0.
The top five finishers in each assessment category and competition were:
Mathematics
1. Thomas Miller, Harlan, 8 points; 2. Jeremy Jackson, Harlan, 6 points; 3. Jaxon Thompson, Stinnett, 4 points; 4. Bella Lemar, Harlan, 2.5 points; 5. Zayne Bowling, Stinnett, 2.5 points.
Science
1. Thomas Miller, Harlan, 8 points; 2. Hunter Taylor, Harlan, 6 points; 3. Daisy Seals, Wallins, 4 points; 4. Riley Adams, Stinnett, 2.5 points; 4. Colton Roberts, Wallins, 2.5 points;
Social Studies
1. Hunter Taylor, Harlan, 8 points; 2. Will Begley, Stinnett, 6 points; 3. Vivian Smith, Harlan, 3.5 points; 3. Natalie Adams, Harlan, 3.5 points; 5. Brenten Caldwell, Stinnett, 2 points.
Language Arts
1. Brenten Caldwell, Stinnett, 8 points; 2. Shelbee Fee, Harlan, 6 points; 3. Natalie Adams, Harlan, 4 points; 4. Amelia Chasteen, Harlan, 3 points; 5. Daisy Seals, Wallins, 2 points.
Arts and Humanities
1. Vivian Smith, Harlan, 8 points; 2. Lydia Wright, Wallins, 6 points; 3. Natalie Adams, Harlan, 4 points; 4. Zoey Raza, Wallins, 3 points; 5. Carter Asher, Stinnett, 2 points.
Composition
1. Amelia Chasteen, Harlan, 7 points; 1. Zoey Raza, Wallins, 7 points;  3. Lydia Wright, Wallins, 4 points; 4. Alivia Eversole, Harlan, 3 points; 5. Gabriella Burkhart, Harlan, 2 points.
Quick Recall
1. Harlan, 7 points; 2. Stinnett, 9 points; 3. Wallins, 5 points; 4. Cawood, 0 points.
Harlan Independent’s Sixth Grade Showcase team has won four consecutive titles since 2021, and won back to back titles in 2019 and 2018. The team is currently coached by Harlan Middle School Guidance Counselor Chris Day.