H.B. Beal students advance to provincial trivia championship

Beal Secondary students have a shot at a provincial title after winning a regional trivia competition. Reta Ismail reports.

Students at H.B. Beal Secondary School are putting their knowledge to the test, both in and out of the classroom.

After winning a regional trivia competition, a team of seniors is now heading to Toronto to compete for a provincial title later this month. The team competes in Reach for the Top - a quiz-style competition that challenges students on a range of topics.

“The final question was asked and we realized that we won. They were elated,” said coach and Beal teacher Seneca Sanford.

After coming out on top in London, the team is now setting its sights on the provincial championship. Sanford, a science teacher at the school, started the program in 2009 to give students with an interest in trivia a place to compete.

“I kind of wanted a place for students that were interested in trivia,” Sanford said. “It’s often compared to Jeopardy!, but the style is a little bit different. The style of questions is a mix of curricular-based questions with some pop culture, and it really attracts students from a wide cross-section.”

The program has continued to grow over the years, drawing in students with a shared passion for knowledge and competition. For senior Max Loblaw, this year’s win was especially meaningful.

“I was absolutely thrilled. I’d been doing it for years in high school, gone to the finals every year and felt that defeat,” Loblaw said. “But something felt different about this year, and we ended up winning it.”

For many students, the team offers more than just competition — it provides a sense of belonging.

“I’ve liked trivia my entire life, and when I first got to high school, I didn’t really have a club to be a part of,” said senior Isaiah Kennis-Carr. “But then I found out about Reach for the Top, and I just fell in love with it.”

Staff say the team’s success also helps challenge assumptions about the school.

“Due to our location being a downtown school, we do sometimes have negative assumptions toward our student body,” said Robin Giles, head of the English department. “But this is just one example that we are, in fact, an academic school that can achieve at a high level.”

For the students, success is also rooted in strong friendships built through the team.

“We’re all really good friends,” said senior Vera Rosales Llavaneras. “It really makes our team a lot stronger, especially because we don’t take ourselves too seriously.”

The team now hopes that bond and their shared love of trivia will carry them to a provincial title. The team is fundraising as the provincial competition will take place later this month in Toronto.