2022-23 High School Confidential, Week 24

Mar. 16—***

Welcome to Year 7 of High School Confidential, powered by Danville Area Community College. It's an award-winning project made possible by aspiring student journalists from every corner of our circulation area. Each Thursday through April, they'll tell us what's happening in their hallways at news-gazette.com.

At least once a week, we'll also hand over our Snapchat account (News-Gazette) to our correspondents for behind-the-scenes tours.

Feedback? Email N-G/VP Jim Rossow at jrossow@news-gazette.com.

On to this week's report:

ALAH

Drama club was proud to present Ken Ludwig's production of "The Three Musketeers" on March 10-11. Both shows had a good turnout as the crowd laughed, cried and cheered throughout the play. The 15-member drama club, led by first-year director Faith Rund, worked hard while making the props and set. Pictured, left to right: (back row) Steven Harris, Alexus Dodge, Bianca Corona, Zach Snyder, Faeryn Davison, Sarah Rogers, Kayla Johnson, Colton Taylor and Jesus Corona; (front row) Chloe Custer, Anna Rawlins, Kat Perez, Ryan Malin, Jacob Adcock, Miah Malin, Logan Burgin and Kylie Stutzman. Pictured: left to right: Kat Perez, Faeryn Davison, Jacob Adcock, Zach Snyder and Ryan Malin.

— Jacob Adcock

Arcola

The pep band was selected to perform at the IHSA Class 3A and 4A boys' basketball state tournament at State Farm Center last weekend. Senior Eadie Budd said: "It was a remarkable experience for our small-town band to play at a big state event." Pictured, left to right: Pedro Alanis, River Wilcox-Rich, Alex Gutierrez, Aaron Gaona, Jake Myers, Lilly Hensley, Eadie Budd, Alex Hawn, Julissa Galaviz, Josh Gaona, Ryder Wilcox-Rich and Reynol Oyervides.

Armstrong

National Honor Society and the local Red Cross put on a blood drive last Wednesday.

— Gigi Mulvaney

Bement

During National Foreign Language Week, each homeroom had trivia in the mornings and fun pictures to find around school for a prize. On Friday, students celebrated with games like mar y tierra, hacky sack and hitting a piñata. At the end of the assembly, every class did the Macarena. For lunch on Friday, Spanish teacher Rachel Halliday made walking tacos and nachos.

— Emily Parrish

BHRA

Scholastic Bowl won second place in the county tournament. Under the direction of Hilary Mathis and James Hasty, the team went 5-2 as every student contributed to answering the questions and the underclassmen stepped up. Members at the tournament included: Amanda Brown, Cat Luttrell, Ethan Frattick, Gabi Moll, Josh Gernand and Kaemyn Brown.

— Cody Drake

Cerro Gordo

High school math teacher and chapter sponsor James Vogel extended invitations for membership into National Honor Society. Students were invited due to their "outstanding scholarship," and thos admitted will use their leadership skills to participate in service projects from cleaning the community to blood drives and food drives. After students go through the proper paperwork and preparation, select students will be chosen for induction and announced in May.

— Hannah Copeland

Champaign Central

On March 8, the eve of parent-teacher conferences, Spectrum Alliance met in Spanish teacher Caitlyn Vanderbeek's room for one last time before spring break. Club members watched "The Emperor's New Groove" and enjoyed brownies, coffee cake and quesadillas. Pictured: Dominic Loftus, Varian Givens, Charlotte Heads, Caitlyn Vanderbeek, Nevaeh Bickerstaff, Clowie Love, June Choi and August Benison.

— Janani Pattabi

Chrisman

The Envirothon team is headed to state for the second year in a row. The contest took place at Lake Land College as students were tested in several different categories. Pictured: Brodie Haton, Ali Prisecaru, Michael Mueller, Autumn Baker and Ellie Lorton.

— Reese Anderson

Cissna Park

In business class, students picked a company (The Lego Group) for a product analysis project. Each team used the product's life cycle to determine where it was within the cycle and then presented to the class. The job: analyze the 4Ps of marketing — product, price, promotion and place — as well as the packaging and then tell Lego where they could improve. Pictured: Sophie Kaeb, Natalie Maul and Nicolette Reed; and Aiden Richards.

— Mikayla Knake

Danville

The show choirs traveled to a competition in Columbia, Mo., for Battlefest. Contemps placed first runnerup in treble voices and fifth overall; Delegation made finals and placed fourth runnerup overall;, and Executives made grand champs. The choirs didn't just compete: In St. Louis, they had fun at Amp Up Action Park, which offered go-karts, rope climbing, arcade games, laser tag and more. They also visited City Foundry and its great restaurants ranging from creole to Hawaiian to build-your-own-burger.

— Josie Hotsinpiller

DeLand-Weldon

Senior Cydney Shofner was selected as both the school's and DeWitt County's Daughters of American Revolution recipient. The award recognizes seniors who possess qualities of service, leadership, and dependability at school and in community.

— Abby Trimble

Fisher

Students preformed their yearly play presented by the drama department. "The Play That Goes Wrong" was a success thanks to the effort from the cast, crew and faculty. Pictured: (top) Ella Hazzard, Emily Lone, Ryan Coulter, Daniel Bine, Max Bruggman, Bradon Eby and Caleb Zwilling; (bottom) Ezekiel Walters, Jenna Clemmons, Lizbeth Ramos. Kiera Bekker and Noah Hurley.

— Emma McFarling

Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley

Twisters, witches, munchkins and flying monkeys came to life as "The Wizard of Oz" took the stage. High schoolers had the opportunity to perform on stage, play in the pit band and assist in the tech and stage crew. After months of rehearsals learning choreography, music and scenes, the cast held free performance previews Friday morning for the elementary school and senior citizens, in addition to two public performances. An audience member called it an "enjoyable night full of comedic lines, colorful costumes, impressive sets and talented kids!"

— Katie Steidinger

Heritage

At last Wednesday's orientation for incoming freshmen, clubs, sports programs and a few classes set up booths to show the middle school students fun things they can join during high school.

— Katelyn Learned

Hoopeston Area

The track team kicked off the season with an invitational at Eastern Illinois University. The program has grown this year for both girls' and boys' teams. Pictured: Abby Steiner, Eli Hasting and Keenon Anderson.

— Emma Rayls

Iroquois West

Entrepreneurship class hosted its first three-point contest, with the intentions of giving the winner 40% of the pot and 60% of the proceeds to Tyler Shoven, a student who is recovering from open heart surgery. Winning the contest, Sam McMillan made 11 of 15 three-point shots. However, instead of keeping his earnings, he graciously donated his portion to Shoven and his family, who will be receiving $180 in total.

— Calli Kraft

Judah Christian

Biology 2 students had fun dissecting fetal pigs, using what they've learned to identify different body systems and structures. Pictured (courtesy Hannah Jackson): Caleb McCullough; and Julian Llano and Graham Dyson.

— Bethany Jackson

LeRoy

On March 10-11, students performed "Into the Woods," the first high school musical to take place in the new auditorium. Attendance reached record-high numbers with over 650 people in the audience, made possible by the completion of the Performing Arts Center. Pictured: seniors Aleena Wiegand, Lily Beer, Nate Wells, Katie O'Brien, Lucy Thayn, Aaron Bagnell, Luke Griffin and Kyle Cox, who put everything into their last high school performance.

— Lily Monigold

Milford

At a Feb. 28 assembly, Ashley Bendiksen spoke to students about mental health and teen dating violence. She offered tips on how to notice signs of abuse in relationships and ways to cope when dealing with mental health issues.

— Maddie Hardwick

Oakwood

In preparation of the Seniors vs. Staff basketball game, the high school celebrated spring spirit week. It started with spring colors and Adam Sandler Day. On the third day students dressed as teachers and vice-versa (Molly Ham had a sign of typical things she hears within her cooking class). On Thursday, it was Soccer Mom vs. BBQ Dad Day (Brendan Watson showed off his BBQ dad gear). The week ended with class colors as well as spring fest. Games were played between the classes: tug-of-war, dodgeball, musical chairs, etc. Leading into the night, the school experiences the game of the year: Seniors vs. Staff. Shoutout to Tyler Petersen for being the first male cheerleader and to the senior coaches; and to Luke Wallace, Alyssa McCoy, Doug Myers, and Makenzie and Madison Bonebright of the cheer squad.

— Kalie Tison

Paxton-Buckley-Loda

The choir, under the direction of Christopher Lerch, performed its spring concert last week.

— Kate Wilson

Rantoul

Student council joined several other schools at the Kickapoo District Association of Student Council gathering on Saturday in Rantoul.

— Caya Flesner

Salt Fork

FFA members competed at Districts SAE competition, several placing and advancing in their division. Ben Branigin advanced to state in Ag Mechanics and Wyatt DeAth in Forage; Brixton Smith placed second, Jasper Hunter second, Grant Wilson third, Hazelyn Hunter third and Rozlynn Maring third; and Gavyn Siefert won in Star Ag Placement.

— Macie Russell

Shiloh

Attending the Kickapoo District Association of Student Council on Saturday in Rantoul gave students an opportunity to meet new people from different schools. The event at the Linden featured a taco bar and a great turnout as members of the school's club listened to a guest speaker, elect officers for our district and bond in a discussion group. Blankets were donated for a project called Linus, which junior Emily Milburn was in charge of. Milburn was elected secretary, and junior Briana Reese was elected state liaison. Pictured (courtesy Dorene Boland), left to right: (front row) Lydia Richardson, Lily North, Briana Reese, Izzy Hoth, Levi Eads and Jack Houlihan; (back row) Jacob Smith, Maggie Milburn, Katie Holmes, Logan Gerberding, Shaylun Christenberry, Kennedy Brown, Emily Milburn, Lily Brown, Chance Mullenix, Andy Houlihan, Charlie North and Eain White.

— Lydia Richardson

Uni High

Since the beginning of the semester, students participating in the Dual Language Program have met during Friday lunches. This new program allows students who are already familiar with a language not officially taught at Uni to maintain their fluency and communication skills. Each language group creates their own syllabus and final project. Upon completion of the project, participants will also receive transcript credit. German teacher Jenny Robins described the program as a way to "(celebrate) Uni's multilingualism and multiculturalism."

— Wes Lu

Unity

For Student Council Week, students decided in addition to regular causes to which they contribute throughout the year they would also raise money for the JED Foundation and ALS Association, two organizations that hold special meaning to the Rockets. There were dressup days each day as well as sweets sold at lunch time. The classes also held a chain link race, raising over $400, led by the seniors. The highlight was last Thursday's Great Auction, where students could buy food and other donated items, fill the bucket of the teacher they wanted to see kiss a pig, enter various raffles, and watch a variety of performances by teachers. The students raised around $14,000 in less than five hours. Pictured: Lauren Shaw and Emily Decker on Pajama Day; Anna Wood as Coach Davis on Teacher Tuesday; Emmalee Atkins as a traffic cone and Jayci McGraw as Post Malone on Rhyme with No Reason Day; Anna Kuhns as Agnes on Dress Like Someone that Shares Your Initial Day; Student Council members Anna Hamilton, Lauren Miller, Caelyn Kleparski and Olivia Shike selling snow cones at lunch; members of student council prepare for Thursday's Great Auction; eachers Alec Heist and Matt Reed getting ready for the first performance of the day at the Great Auction; Teacher Allie Hartlein showcasing her Irish dancing skills during the Auction; Dave Fink prepares to kiss a pig as the "winner" of the "Kiss a Pig" fundraiser; Teacher Alec Heist and senior Caleb Amias take part in their second annual "Drum Off" as the finale performance of the Great Auction; and Retired teacher, Ray Cummings, as the auctioneer at this tradition that began in 1961.

— Jolie Meyer

Westville

At the school's blood drive, sponsored by student council, 50 pints were collected, which exceeded the goal of 42. Student council setting up: Cade Schaumburg, Lilly Meeker, Jackson Priest, Landon White (standing), Kayliegh O'Toole, Brennan Burnett, Drew Wichtowski, Katelyn Callahan, Savannah Burns and Hadley Jones; and Kamryn Wright has blood drawn by "Nurse JoJo."

— Irelynn Phelps