New Teacher Report:

Painting a Difference

By Cassidy Murphy By Cassidy Murphy

The Chief Online

February 2015

For the last few months, many of you have probably noticed the mural next to the office that has been a work in progress. The group behind this was AP Art students Sidney Dunning, Chloe Mayback, Jenna Salvator, and AP Art Teacher Mr. Vogt. I was able to talk with Sidney and Chloe to get their insights on the making of the mural. Q: “Was this mural your idea, or was there a push behind doing it?” SD: “Mr. Bohm came to Mr. Vogt with the idea of having some of his students paint a mural on the blank wood “canvas” left on the wall that was previously the teachers‟ mailboxes. Mr. Vogt then decided to ask us if we could come up with ideas and paint it. Q: “How did you decide on a design?” CM: “We basically worked together on agreeing with a design and each made different ones and compared, and then chose what we thought would be best.” SD: “We knew we wanted the school included in the mural. We all started to sketch out different ideas with very different styles and theme. Eventually, we all came to an agreement on a basic design. From this, we incorporated different aspects into it, whether it‟s what color we want for the ground, or what theme we want in each letter.” Q: “What was the inspiration behind it? CM: “We wanted to do something to represent PTHS in a unique way that can last beyond our time at the high school.” Q: “How long did the whole process take?” SD: “We started in early December.” CM: “It only took so long because we could only work on it a single class period every day." Q: “How does it feel to have your artwork on display for years to come?” CM: “I think it was a really neat opportunity to do. It‟s really cool to know a „piece‟ of us will always be there.” SD: “It was an honor to be the three students asked to paint this mural that will be there for many years to come. It was a wonderful way for us to bring art into the hallways.”

Inside this Issue:

Inside this issue:

1

Music Dept.

2

Upperclass Acts

3

Book Review 4 FFA

5

Student Poetry

6

Speech Team

7

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Solo & Ensemble Contest Held at PTHS

Pontiac High School music students participated in Solo & Ensemble Contest on Tuesday, February 10th, at Pontiac High School. Students were rated in one of five divisions, with a Division I being the highest awarded. In addition, judges awarded Superior Performance certificates to top performers in their respective performance room. Judges for the event were Daniel Marcotte and Scott Jones – instrumental, and Tom Tropp and Sarah Windham - vocal.

“Superior Performance” certificates were awarded to the following events: Vocal Solo – Steven Arthur, Haley Dickey, Allyson Heil, Kevin Kuska Instrumental solos – Grace Lyons-clarinet Instrumental ensembles – Trumpet Duet-Noah White and Brandi Mueller

The following students received a "Division I" rating:

Vocal Solos – Sarah Albrecht, Alexis Hall, Aleena Lloyd, Caitlyn Rickets, Brandi Mueller, Rachel O’Lone, Clara Arthur, Kaelee Germain, Camryn Tickle, Rachel Watson, Naomi Madrigal, Macey David, Jeremiah Rowland, John Leverton, Grace Lyons, Logan Mies, Jessica Ping, Baylee Ritter, Madison Grundler, Cody Hatzer, Aubrey Gill, Hannah Tronc, Mason Vilt, Dillon Hunt, Andrew Hurt, Trentyn Hart, Katie Dixon, Anneka Carlson, Carrie Campbell, Lucy Hodgson Instrumental Solos – Noah White, Chloe Mayback, Kevin Kuska, Caitlyn Ricketts, Jeffrey Elem, Ethan Putnam, Tatum Joerndt, Henry Woodburn Instrumental Ensembles – Brass Sextet, Percussion Duet The following students received a "Division II " rating: Vocal Solos – David Gualandi, Eve Pouliot, Abigayle Orndorff, Seth Corrigan, Alex Coan, Alec Bristow Instrumental Solos –Brandi Mueller, Abigayle Orndorff, Emma Burns

Congratulations to all Music Department faculty and students for your excellence in performance!

Music Department Update

By Jessica Ping

One month into 2015 already! It’s crazy, isn’t it? Well, the Music Department has been extremely busy these

last few weeks. Both the band and choir students have been preparing various pieces for our annual

solo and ensemble contest. The pre-contest has

already taken place, and real thing is right around the corner! Good luck to all of those people participating

in this nerve-wrecking and confidence-building experience!

This past month seven music students were lucky enough to travel to Peoria to participate in the Illinois

Music Education Conference. These students put in many hours of practice while there, performing

extremely complex pieces of music. On Saturday, these students gave an amazing performance

alongside 200 of Illinois’s top high school musicians at

the Peoria Civic Center. Congratulations to all of them!

Click HERE for the Music Department website

Winter Choral

Showcase Concert The Pontiac Township High School Music Department proudly presents its Winter Choral Showcase Concert on Thursday February, 26 at 7:00pm in the Pontiac Township High School Auditorium! Enjoy selections from the Concert Choir, our two women‟s ensembles Bel Canto and Cantabile, our Men’s Choir, male barbershop quartet, We’ll Take it From Here and Vocal Jazz Choir Route 66! Hear pop selections from the 60‟s 70‟s and 80‟s, 90‟s and today! Enjoy to music from Swing and Vocal Jazz to Musical Theatre! Come and be treated to an evening of toe-tapping music that you‟re bound to recognize and love from radio, T.V., Film and Stage! Tickets are $3.00 for adults and free for students and those with the Golden Age Pass. Bring yourself and friends to enjoy a tremendous evening of Choral Music from PTHS!

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Abby Muir

Nickname: Gail Role Models: My parents and Walt Disney Activities at PTHS: volleyball, track, Key Club, CAPTAINS, National Honor Society, National Technical Honor Society, Science Club

Upperclass Acts

Fondest Memory of High School So Far: Painting up at the home football games and all of the dances 3 major areas of interest: Travel, animals, Disney Plans after high school: Attend Illinois State University to major in Parks and Recreation and hopefully work at Disney World some day. Favorite Movie: Saving Mr. Banks and the Hunger Games series Most Inspirational Song: “Believe” by Josh Groban Favorite teacher/class: Mrs. Mullen (Accounting and Marketing), Mr. Krause (Pre-Calc) Favorite author/book: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green Most positive moment: getting an All Conference award in volleyball my senior year

Pet Peeves: people who chew with their mouth open, when people say “I could care less” instead of “I couldn‟t care less”, when people change their personality depending on who they‟re with What my friends will remember about me: My love for volleyball, how amazing I am at Just Dance, and my obsession with Disney How would you spend $1,000,000: I would pay for my college and my sister‟s college, buy my parents a new house, go on an African safari, and then travel the world If you were stranded on a desert island, what 3 items would you want with you?: my dog, water, a speed boat Last words of advice: “All your dreams can come true if you have the courage to pursue them.”

Katie Dixon

Nicknames: Kates, KDix, Peggy Role Models: My mom, Baylee Ritter, Faith Hill Activities @ PTHS: Madrigals, Route 66, HOSA, Thespians, Tri-M, NHS, NTHS, Stage Manager for The Importance of Being Earnest Fondest Memory of High School So Far: The Chorus/Band Spring Break Trip to California 3 Major Areas of Interest: Music, Movies/TV Shows, Helping People/Children Plans After High School: Attend Heartland Community College for 2 years and then transfer to OSF St. Francis School of Nursing for 2 years

Favorite Movie: The Transformers Series Most Inspirational Song: “Nobody Ever Told You” by Carrie Underwood Favorite Teacher/Class: Favorite Teacher – Mr. Sweetwood, Favorite Class – Anatomy Favorite Author/Book: Favorite Author – Nicholas Sparks, Favorite Book – The Fault in Our Stars Most Positive Moment: Getting accepted into all of the academic clubs I am involved in – Tri-M, Thespians, NHS, NTHS Pet Peeves: People borrow things and don‟t return them, people who are irresponsible, people who are negative towards themselves What My Friends Will Remember About Me: I am an outgoing and non judgmental person

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How Would You Spend $1,000,000: I would save some money for college, after college, and for my future kids‟ college. I would build my own house, travel, give money to my family, and donate some to a charity. If You Were Stranded on a Desert Island What 3 Items Would You Want With You?: My mom, Fresh Water, Helicopter Last Words of Advice: Be yourself, live your own life, and don‟t care about what other people think

Book Review: H2O

Review by Dena Boatman Ruby and the rest of her friends didn't think anything was wrong with the rain. When Zach's parents started freaking out and made them come in, they all laughed. The kids thought they were just being overdramatic, until they heard the radio announcement. The rain was deadly. One drop would kill you. Practically everyone Ruby knows is dead. Almost everyone in the world is dead. Despite this, Ruby is confident that her father is still alive, so she decides to take the journey to London to find him. Along the way she joins forces with the nerdiest boy in the school, Darius Sprout, who she totally cannot stand, and a little girl who can't speak. The plot of the book really excited me, although I struggled with the character of Ruby. She is a realistic, stereotypical popular teenage girl, but in an apocalyptic world, which is not a good thing. Instead of looking for food, she raids boutiques to get sequined dresses and heels and hopes no survivors from their school find out that she and Darius are together. Apart from that, the book is actually quite good. I have not read a dystopian book like it before and I definitely will be getting the sequel.

Author‟s official website: http://virginiabergin.com/

DVD Review: Gone Girl

Photo Courtesy of 2oth Century Fox

By Cassidy Murphy The much anticipated and Oscar nominated Gone Girl is now out on DVD, and I decided to take up the offer to save a few dollars and rent a movie instead of seeing one. And this was in fact, a great decision. The mystery thriller based off the book of the same name by Gillian Flynn, tells the story of Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) on the search to find his wife Amy (Rosamund Pike). On Nick and Amy‟s 5

th wedding anniversary, Nick comes home to find a table and some

pictures broken, and Amy gone. The press soon finds out, and the case is shown everywhere because Amy was the inspiration for her parents‟ popular books Amazing Amy. The suspicions start to pop up that Nick murdered her, and are heightened by Nick‟s awkward behavior in front of the cameras. We then see flashbacks of what was once a very loving marriage turn into a distant one. Both Nick and Amy had lost their jobs, they moved out of New York and to Missouri, and Nick began an affair. We see Amy contemplating buying a gun and find out her secret pregnancy. Flashing back to present day, Detective Rhonda Boney (Kim Dickens) and Nick search through the clues Amy has left for Nick on their anniversary. They soon find out *Spoiler Alert* that Amy had

intended to frame Nick for her murder. It appears she has run off, changed her appearance, and wrote a fake diary that is leaving the clues that point to Nick murdering her. Throughout the search for Amy, Nick meets with an ex-boyfriend of Amy‟s, Desi Collings (Neil Patrick Harris), for details about their relationship; however he refuses to give any information. Now, I don‟t want to give away anymore of the movie, however it is full of twists and turns, and definitely kept me on my toes. As many good movies do, I thought of it for days afterwards. The acting by all the actors was phenomenal and is a must-see for any avid movie watcher.

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Once in a Blue Moon By Alexis Hall

On February 7th,

Pontiac Township High School hosted its annual Sweetheart Dance from 8:00 – 11:00 p.m. This year‟s theme for the dance was “Once in a Blue Moon.” The decorations included fairy lights strung up all across the ceiling, silver streamers, as well as a moon hung

by the DJ stand. A decorated backdrop was set up in the auditorium for students to have their pictures taken to commemorate the night. Many people showed up to celebrate the event and the gym was packed with people dancing and having fun. The students enjoyed their night up through the last few moments of the magical evening as the dance came to a close.

The Literary Society By Jordan Triplett The Literary Society has been very busy this month. Chris Karlsen and Jennifer Conner, two authors, Skyped in with the Literary Society and offered writing tips. Jennifer owns her own publishing company and even offered tips on publishing. One of the biggest pieces of advice they gave us was to develop a thick skin; not everyone will like what you‟ve written nor will your work be accepted right away. Chris even told us a story of when someone gave her a one star review because there were no pirates in her story! They also told us to research everything: time periods, dress styles, and especially publishing companies. According to the authors, writers should look into the types of books they publish and how many they‟ve published to make sure that that publishing company is the one you want to go with. Also, one should not settle with someone self-publishing in their mom‟s basement! Next we plan on Skyping with Garrison Kelly, a self-published author.

ACT STUDY GUIDE

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

Pop Culture 2015

By Jessica Ping

On February 1st, the iconic Harry Styles turned 21! Now, this in itself isn‟t news, but the massive party he threw is. It‟s said that he spent over 200,000 Euros on the big bash. Only the top A-list celebrities were invited to the super private party like bandmates Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson, Jennifer Lawrence, and David Beckham. Also on the invite list were Style‟s friends Kendall Jenner and Cara Delevine. With Harry‟s current rumored girlfriend, Nadine Leopold, also in attendance, we hope it wasn‟t too awkward of an event. Pictures were not allowed to be taken; however, a few have leaked showing the big star‟s five birthday cakes. All five displayed baby pictures of Harry imprinted into the frosting. Though most of the night is still a mystery, from the list of those in attendance alone, it seems to have been a fantastic evening!

Sorry Jelena lovers, but it‟s been all but confirmed that Selena has moved on from the “As Long As You Love Me” singer. She is currently rumored to be dating the well known music producer and DJ, Zedd. Recently Zedd‟s good friend Diplo posted a picture of himself and Zedd hugging and captioned it with “Look out @selenagomez”. Selena responded with an angry and laughing emoji! This, along with the couple‟s adorable pictures together, have most people close to certain that they are definitely a thing!

FFA Update By Amy Wyant

We‟re over half way through the year and still have one of our biggest activities coming up. The annual Pontiac FFA Auction is coming quickly and we need all hands on deck! We ask for any members who are interested in helping to contact Mr. Faber, Mr. Bane, or any other officer. Our chapter is very lucky to have the majority of our trips paid for because of this auction so we appreciate any help we can get. Even though we finished up some of our favorite activities such as the ski trip and Tour of Schools, we still have Ag in the Classroom and our Chapter Exchange to look forward to. Also, our February chapter meeting is being held Wednesday, February 4, and we are having an Italian night complete with homemade bread and pasta! We are also having our monthly Games at Evenglow coming up and we will be throwing a Valentine‟s Day-themed party and make cards for all the residents. Once again, you don‟t have to be a member to come to any activities. We love to see non-members at our activities and ask for our current members to invite some friends whenever they get a chance! Lastly, a little shout out goes to all the FFA members who are competing for their State Degree this week. The State Degree is the highest degree that a member can earn at the state level and it takes a strenuous amount of work to earn it, so wish our members good luck!

FFA information can be found HERE.

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Student Poetry: Haiku

Blooming in the spring,

Smells of delight fill the air,

Beauty all around

By Rachel Sypult

Imagine the world, Where peace

becomes delightful, Where hate turns to

love

By Robbie Craig

Spiderman is great. He‟s my favorite

hero. He swings from his

web.

By Jordan Holzhauer

Wind blowing my hair,

The sound of rustling leaves,

The singing of birds. By Louis Nesbit

The ball comes toward me.

I take a deep breath and swing.

Past the fence it goes.

By Hannah Tronc

Music Review: Haim

Review by Grecia Araujo-Torres

Haim is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. This sister act band are slowing rising in the music industry. The three sisters, Alana, Danielle, and Este Haim come from a musically talented family and spent their childhood playing instruments and singing along with their parents. They have already received a number of awards but there is much more success yet to be accomplished. Haim‟s unique 70‟s soft-rock sound musical style is really what puts them apart from many other artists. Haim has recently released their first album, Days Are Gone. Some of their greatest hits include “The Wire” and “Forever.” Haim will be joining Taylor Swift on her upcoming tour this summer. Check out their website for more! http://haimtheband.com/

The 2014-2015 Chicago Bulls (Midseason) By Adam Shelton The 2014-2015 season has been a disappointment in the eyes of many, as we reach the midseason all star break. While going 34-20 through midseason may not exactly seem ideal for Bulls fans, the team did manage to reach the halfway point with a 1.5 game lead in the division over LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Derrick Rose, who has averaged 19 points per game and five assists per game so far, has played a very calm and efficient first half. Off season pick-up Pau Gasol is averaging a double-double midway through, putting up 18 points per game while pulling in twelve rebounds per game as well. Jimmy Butler, one of the biggest surprises in all of NBA so far, averaged 20 points per game while leading the league in minutes played. Both Gasol and Butler were selected to this year‟s All Star team. Joakim Noah is averaging career lows, while steadily recovering from an offseason knee surgery. The Bulls have obviously underperformed so far this year, going 13-11 at home to start the season. If the Bulls hope to go deep into the 2015 Playoffs, the defense must improve and get back to that elite level that coach Tom Thibodeau is used to seeing. The Chicago defense ranked 13th in the league for the first half, which is the lowest it has been in six years.

ADAM"S PROJECTIONS: Comeback Player of the Year: Derrick Rose (1st)

Most Improved Player: Jimmy Butler (1st) Sixth Man Award: Taj Gibson (3rd)

Rookie of the Year: Nikola Mirotic (2nd) Playoff Result: Lose to Cleveland in Eastern Conference Quarterfinals 4-3

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Ask Trippy Dear Trippy, I got the worst news ever! I had my whole future planned out and I knew exactly what I wanted to do but I got a letter in the mail telling me I‟m ineligible to go to the place I was sure I would get into. What am I supposed to do now? My whole future shattered before my eyes and I don‟t know what to do at all. I have no idea what I want to do as a career or where I want to go! Please help me! I‟ve never felt more lost in my life! Please help me! Helpless and Drowning Dear Helpless and Drowning, First thing to do is calm down and think. Flying off the handle will get you nowhere. Now, start looking into different colleges. There are plenty of places that you could go to; you just need to open your mind. Do some soul searching and figure out your strengths; it‟ll help you get an idea of what you really want to do. Once you know your career path, look at colleges who have good programs for what you want to do. Just remember that when one door closes, two more open and not all roads lead to a dead end. Yours, Trippy

Have a question for Trippy? Send it HERE

The Chief Staff

Jessica Ping, Editor-in-Chief

Grecia Araujo-Torres Dena Boatman

Alexis Hall Kamryn Moore

Cassidy Murphy Baylee Ritter Adam Shelton Jordan Triplett

Jeanette Wooldridge Amy Wyant

Mr. Soares, Faculty Sponsor

PTHS Speech Team Compete in Regional

By Kamryn Moore

The PTHS Speech Team recently had three members, Hannah McCoy, Kamryn Moore, and Merle Dissen compete in the regional competition at U-High. All members did extremely well and broke finals. First year member Merle Dissen took home 8th place in the event of Dramatic Interpretation. Freshman Kamryn Moore received 7th place in Poetry Reading. Captain and three-year member Hannah McCoy won 4th place and advanced to sectionals! Sectionals were held February 14, at Normal-West high school in Normal. Congratulations to a great Speech Team!

Project Unify Peers in Action Launches PTHS Read for

Respect Reading Marathon

Hosted by Project Unify Peers in Action and the PTHS Library, participants have from now until April 24 to read books for the race!

There are four ways to participate: o Marathon: Read 26.2 books o Half Marathon: Read 13.1 books o 10K: Read 6.2 books o Mighty Miler: Read 5,280 pages

· Race forms are in the library or can be printed off from the Read for Respect LibGuide (linked from the Library webpage). To sign up, please visit the Read for Respect LibGuide and mark which race you plan to participate in.

· For more information or to print off race forms, visit the Read for Respect LibGuide , or speak with Ms. Baumgardner or Mrs. Mueller.

Attention Teachers!

Check out the revamaped Teacher Resource Webpage @

http://libguides.pontiac.k12.il.us/content.php?pid=495677

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