Our academic teams compete with robots, buzzers, and words.
Overlake's academic teams are varied and competitive. Students can challenge their knowledge and strategies in DECA, Quiz Bowl, Robotics, Speech & Debate, and new this year, Model United Nations. Teams compete with other area schools and may advance to national competitions.
Academic Teams
Overlake currently fields multiple robotics teams spanning Middle and Upper School. Our teams compete in competitions each season governed by FIRST Tech Challenge.
Robotics is open to all students regardless of abilities. Students engage in coding, design work, and engineering in a collaborative team environment.
The Overlake DECA Club is more than 50 members strong. Overlake is part of the Redmond, Bellevue, Sammamish, and Snoqualmie area for DECA. Upper School students meet to prepare for competitions involving role play in areas of marketing, finance, hospitality, and management. Many students take part in the area competitions each January. The top students then move on to state and perhaps even national level.
DECA students participate in individual and team events involving taking a test in a chosen area of business specialization as well as role playing conducted with volunteer judges from local companies.
The robust Speech and Debate program at Overlake gives students the opportunity to improve their skills and participate in tournaments.
Each year the team has the opportunity to compete in Washington State tournaments plus our district’s National Qualifiers. Tournaments are picked with the goal of maximizing the opportunities for national bids and maximizing everyone’s opportunity to qualify for the two Washington State tournaments. Students often point to the skills the learned in Speech & Debate being integral in future classes and even life beyond Overlake.
Quiz Bowl at Overlake has grown to include Middle and Upper School teams. Students have taken their knowledge on the road as a nationally recognized team to participate in National competitions including the National Academic Quiz Tournament's (NAQT) Small School National Championship Tournament.
New in 2025, Overlake is excited to offer Model United Nations for the first time.
