CLARK STUDENTS MEET NEW CHALLENGE MAGNET SCHOOL TO TACKLE SCHOLASTIC BOWL.

Byline: Donna Huffaker Daily News Staff Writer

Newly opened Clark Magnet School will compete for the first time Monday in Glendale Unified School District's annual High School Scholastic Bowl.

The ninth- and 10th-graders from Clark, a school that emphasizes math, science and technology, face an uphill battle against Crescenta Valley High, where students have won the title the past four years.

Clark students also have a slight disadvantage because they're competing against mainly 11th- and 12th-graders from Crescenta Valley, Hoover and Glendale high schools.

But Clark's scholastic bowl coordinator Susan Newcomer is undaunted.

``We want this to be a fun and exciting opportunity for the kids to learn a lot,'' she said.

The magnet school opened in September, having accepted students who live within the district and who have carried at least a C average, she said. The 500 students who enrolled also had clean disciplinary records, she said.

Monday's ninth annual scholastic bowl will feature two rounds of competition in social science, language arts, math, science and fine arts, said Vic Pallos, spokesman for the district.

The question portion of the contest, hosted by KNBC (Channel 4) weatherman Fritz Coleman, will be aired at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Friday nights through April on Marcus Cable (Channel 15).

The essay portion will be tabulated by the time the questions start, Pallos said. Students will be given 60 minutes to write about equality - whether they believe it exists, whether they support it and how they contribute to it.

Each school sends four students and one alternate to compete, Pallos said. It's often the hardest on first-time competitors, he said, because they're not used to taking a quiz on a stage and in front of a camera and an audience.