The Southwest Academic Conference (SWAC) was a quiz bowl conference in Southwest Virginia that was discontinued in 2012. It began with meetings between the Superintendents of schools in

Smyth County Smyth County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 29,800. Its county seat is Marion. History Smyth County was formed on February 23, 1832, from Washington and Wythe counties. The county i ...

, Washington County, and

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

in December 1986 to propose the formation of a league to allow students to participate in academic competitions. This idea was presented to the principals of the schools in the Spring of 1987 and the name Southwest Academic Conference (SWAC) was chosen.Microsoft Word - SWAC 2007-08
/ref> The schools involved were Abingdon High School,

John S. Battle High School John S. Battle High School is a high school located in the Southwest portion of Virginia in Washington County. Built in 1959, the school was named after former Virginia Governor John S. Battle. Extracurricular activities Baseball John Battle w ...

Chilhowie High School Chilhowie High School is located in the town of Chilhowie, Virginia. It was founded in 1959 and is part of the Smyth County School Division. Extra curricular activities Chilhowie competes in VHSL sanctioned baseball, basketball, cross country, ...

, Holston High School, Marion Senior High School,

Northwood High School Northwood High School may refer to: * Northwood High School (Irvine, California) * Northwood High School (Louisiana) * Northwood High School (Montgomery County, Maryland) * NorthWood High School, Nappanee, Indiana * Northwood High School (North Car ...

, Patrick Henry High School, Virginia High School.

Competition

The schools have teams for the content areas of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

Science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

, Social Studies. The English team has an approved reading list each season focusing on selected plays,

novels A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

, short stories,

nonfiction Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with be ...

, and

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

as well as specific

terminology Terminology is a group of specialized words and respective meanings in a particular field, and also the study of such terms and their use; the latter meaning is also known as terminology science. A ''term'' is a word, compound word, or multi-wor ...

. The Math team focuses on studies from Algebra I, Algebra II,

Geometry Geometry (; ) is, with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. It is concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is c ...

, and

Trigonometry Trigonometry () is a branch of mathematics that studies relationships between side lengths and angles of triangles. The field emerged in the Hellenistic world during the 3rd century BC from applications of geometry to astronomical studies. T ...

. The science team focuses on the studies of

physical science Physical science is a branch of natural science that studies non-living systems, in contrast to life science. It in turn has many branches, each referred to as a "physical science", together called the "physical sciences". Definition Physi ...

earth science Earth science or geoscience includes all fields of natural science related to the planet Earth. This is a branch of science dealing with the physical, chemical, and biological complex constitutions and synergistic linkages of Earth's four spheres ...

biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

, and

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

. The social studies questions involve

treaties A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal perso ...

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point of ...

cases,

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolled bill, enrolling, enactment of a bill, enacting, or promulgation, promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous Government, governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law i ...

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

, and

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

. In addition to the content area specific teams, there is an All-Around team which focuses on information regarding

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

and

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

, performing arts (

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

, world

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

(including

mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

), math (including the history of math), science (

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

), and social studies (

US history The history of the lands that became the United States began with the arrival of the first people in the Americas around 15,000 BC. Numerous indigenous cultures formed, and many saw transformations in the 16th century away from more densely ...

and

world history World history may refer to: * Human history, the history of human beings * History of Earth, the history of planet Earth * World history (field), a field of historical study that takes a global perspective * ''World History'' (album), a 1998 albu ...

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...

. Schools generally compete twice per week on Monday and Thursday with four schools hosting the competitions and four schools traveling to the school against which they are competing. For 2008, the order of competition is social studies, all around, English, math, science. The teams compete with four players each. The first round in all areas but math has 10 directed questions for each team where the emcee asks each team a question and allows them to answer, however if the team misses the other team gets an opportunity to answer the question. The math team's directed round has 10 directed questions and both teams are allowed to answer by writing the answer on a piece of paper which the emcee collects at the end of the time allowed to answer. All categories have a second round made up of ten toss-up questions where players from either team may ring in to answer. If a player rings in before the emcee says "Begin" and answers incorrectly, there is a 2-point penalty and the question is read in its entirety for the other school. Each correct answer in both rounds is worth five points.

Championships

English: * 2009: Chilhowie High * 2008: Holston High * 2007: Holston High * 2006: Northwood High * 2005: Patrick Henry High * 2004: Northwood High * 2003: Patrick Henry High * 2002: Holston High * 2001: John S. Battle High Math: * 2009: Abingdon High * 2008: Abingdon High * 2007: Virginia High * 2006: Virginia High * 2005: Virginia High * 2004: Marion High * 2003: Marion High * 2002: Marion High * 2001: Marion High * 2000: Abingdon High * 1999: Abingdon High * 1998: Abingdon High * 1997: Abingdon High * 1996: Abingdon High Science: * 2009: Virginia High * 2008: Marion High * 2007: Abingdon High * 2006: Virginia High * 2005: Abingdon High * 2004: Virginia High * 2003: Virginia High * 2002: Abingdon High * 2001: Marion High Social Studies: * 2009: Abingdon High * 2008: Patrick Henry High * 2007: Patrick Henry High * 2006: Northwood High * 2005: Northwood High * 2004: Northwood High * 2003: Northwood High * 2002: Abingdon High * 2001: Virginia High All Around: * 2009: Marion High * 2008: Holston High * 2007: Holston High * 2006: Northwood High * 2005: Marion High * 2004: Marion High * 2003: Marion High * 2002: Marion High * 2001: Abingdon High

External links

official website

References

{{Reflist Education in Virginia Bristol, Virginia Smyth County, Virginia Washington County, Virginia Quiz games