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BHS Today Volume 7 Issue 4 March 2013 Page 1

Bellaire High School Today

Volume 7 Number 4 March 8, 2013

Stories in this Issue

- News and General Interest

o Yearbook Hosts Mock Hunger Games

o Students Rewarded for Perfect Attendance

o Band Performs in All-City

o State of the Schools Address

- Foreign Language Competitions and Awards

o Russian Classes Score High on National Test

- Sports Profiles

o Football: National Signing Day

- Student Profiles

o Nicolas Monzon Excels in Choir

- Club Profiles

o Bellaire Belles Dance in HISD Competition

o eMotion Dance Montage

o Business Professionals of America (BPA) Competes at State Level

o Muslim Student Association (MSA) Holds Donation Drive

o Italian National Honor Society

- Teacher Profiles

o AP World History Teacher Sponsors Spring Break Trip


NEWS AND GENERAL INTEREST

Yearbook Hosts Mock Hunger Games

By Zach Beery

“Ready, set, go! Hunger Games begins!” senior yearbook editor Sarah Nguyen said to start off

the first mock Hunger Games. The event was held for a two page layout for the 2012-2013

yearbook, The Carillon.

Although the mock Hunger Games was not exactly like the book, there were 24 contestants

ranging from freshmen to seniors, who had eight stations to complete. These stations were made

to test a skill that a tribute used in the book. Contestants were paired randomly. The stations

varied from tributes where the contestants had to put makeup on each other to look like they

were part of the Capitol City, to tasting berries blindfolded and guessing the types. Some other

tasks were matching flags, hitting a target with a Frisbee, completing a tight rope course and

finding a hidden pin, all while trying to escape a hunter.

The stations were run by members of clubs which related to the stations like Ultimate Frisbee

running the target station. Senior Joaquin Dias, the winner of the mock Hunger Games, explains

the difficulties he experienced on the tracks.

“The hardest task was running around the track with a backpack full of books,” Diaz said. “It

took all my strength to run around the track.”

Teammates Diaz and senior Aubrey McCreary won the mock Hunger Games by completing all

the tasks first.

“I was so proud of Joaquin and myself,” McCreary said. “We both did our part in each task. I felt

sick at the beginning but I pushed through it.”

All the contestants showed enthusiasm for the competition by dressing the part and playing hard.

The yearbook staff hopes to have created a new tradition.

Photos of this event will be coming in the May 2013 issue of the Carillon.

Students Rewarded for Perfect Attendance

By Sophie Daily

As a reward, PTO and staff awarded students with perfect attendance the opportunity to win

numerous prizes including an iPad, an iPod shuffle and gift cards. Students with perfect

attendance gathered in the auditorium during lunch on Jan. 10 to watch the raffle take place.

Students eagerly sat waiting as Principal Michael McDonough read the ballots. The winner of

the iPad, Andrea Casillas, was chosen first.


Senior Willis Nguy accepts his award of Skullcandy headphones

for his fall semester perfect attendance.

Photo by Alex Luckey

Cardinal Band members pose together after their All-City Band

performance in the HISD competition.

Photo by Claire Fisher

Although an iPad could not be

awarded to everyone with perfect

attendance, the students remaining in

the auditorium still had hopes of

winning more prizes, like iPod

shuffles, Skullcandy headphones and

gift cards. McDonough pulled junior

Nga Huynh and sophomore Jeishlyn

Duran, the winners for the iPod

shuffle.

Students remained excited as

McDonough announced four

winners of Skullcandy headphones:

freshman Yasenia Lopez Orosko,

junior Jonathan Barnes, senior Willis

Nguy and junior Annie Vu. After the

winners claimed the prize,

McDonough began announcing the gift card winners: senior Jenessi Ceron Anuario, freshman

Jeanny Nguyen, junior Matias Kopinsky, freshman Ismael Carreon, senior Liang Ren, junior

Alexander Caplan, sophomore Baongan Nguyen Chuor and junior Ali Basheer Al Rawi.

Due to time constraints, McDonough asked the remaining 25 students to write their name on

another ballot. The remaining gift cards would be raffled to the students that attended the

drawing and delivered to them the next day.

Band Performs in All-City

By Claire Fisher

On Jan. 26, 12 Mighty Cardinal

Band members participated in

HISD’s High School All-City

Band competition. The students

were asked to perform pieces

selected for the TMEA Region

23 All-Region Band in front of

judges as preparation for the All-

Region auditions.

“I have always done All-City

because being able to perform

the region music in front of

judges before the actual audition

helps calm my nerves,” band


Terry Grier answers questions for the reporters about

his plans for HISD. Photo by Holly Sutherland.

president and senior Matthew Cummings said.

Cummings, a trumpet player, was second chair at All-City which contained students from

Bellaire, Reagan, Lamar, Waltrip and Westside. All the band members that auditioned were

selected for the competition.

“I was amazed that we all made it because we were up against all of HISD,” Cummings said.

The band performed the following songs: “The Genius of Ray Charles”, “Ride”, “March

Grandiose” and “Gallop.” Students were directed by the recently retired Waltrip High School

director, Charlie Stephens. Stephens was recognized for his 45 years of teaching in HISD.

State of the Schools Address

By Holly Sutherland

On Friday, Feb. 1, Superintendent Terry

Grier addressed approximately 2,000

HISD principals and staff at the annual

State of the Schools address held at the

Hilton Americas Hotel. Grier strongly

emphasized the need for modern

campuses and appropriate technology as

necessary to push students to be

successful in the 21st century. Grier looks

forward to a school district that has

embarked on a road guiding students to

become the next generation of leaders.

"[In the future,] every student has a

laptop that can be taken home so learning

doesn't stop at the schoolhouse door,”

Grier said.

HISD has experienced great growth in the

past year, with student achievements

reaching record highs and being named a

finalist for the Broad Prize for Urban

Education. Grier intends to take this

growth and expand it into plans to give

every student the tools necessary to make

them contributors to society after

graduation.

"There's more to be done," Grier said. "Our focus is becoming great all over. It's a powerful

mindset that's being embedded in every facet of our district."


In the past three years, the district has seen a 45 percent increase in the number of students

passing Advanced-Placement exams and earning college credit. Grier believes that by changing

technology to a crucial component of the curriculum, it will change the way teachers teach and

ultimately, the way students learn.

"We'll make sure they learn the skills that complement technology so they aren't replaced by

technology," Grier explained. "The tools of technology are no longer a luxury; they are a

necessity if HISD is going to do its part in ensuring that Houston has the fuel to drive its

economic engine."

The district has big plans to rebuild and redirect curriculum for the better while molding students

into successful leaders of society.


FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETITIONS AND AWARDS

Russian Classes Score High in National Test

By Stephen Proler

Congratulations to the Russian language students on their recent success in this year’s National

Test of Written Russian. The results have once again proved that Bellaire has won more medals

in the competition than any other school in the nation. Students won in the categories of Gold,

Silver, Bronze and Honorable Mention. What makes the Bellaire Russian program unique is that

in other Russian programs, people don’t compete until their second year of taking Russian.

However because of the strong Russian program the first year students are competing against

second years from other schools, and they are winning. Bellaire has broken a record as the school

that has won the most records in this particular Russian Essay competition.

For the complete list of the names of participants and winners, please see the following link:

2012 Russian Essay Winners

Gold Medalists Silver Medalists

Artemyeva, Yulia Andrade, Chloe

Gladkaya, Valeria Bolden-scott, Jalin

Iglesias, Jennifer Dickerson, Tavaria

Kass, Naomi Didyk, Elizabeth

Veum, Simone Gold, Katherine

Wright, Jannah Greenwood, Jarren

Yusuf, Idris Hale, Alexa

Harris, Aaron

Herrera, Alondra

Jenkins, Everett

Kurhanska, Yulia

Lapadula, Olivia

Nemirovskaya, Irina

Ngo, Thu

Okoro, Deborah

Ouda, Athmar

Plaks, David

Qamar, Hafsa

Raines, Zettie

Sandler, Nicole

Shulyak, Isabela

Underwood, Megan

Uzman, Seth

Vasquez, George

Vingoe, Kristen

Yusuf, Amin

http://www.bellairetpp.org/showcase/2013/03/05/russian-classes-score-high-in-national-test/


(left to right) Freshman Yuriya Kurharska, sophomore Nicole Sandler, sophomore

Alexa Hale, sophomore Idris Yusuf and junior Irina Nemirovskaya take prizes from

the Russian Essay Compeition. Photo by Alex Luckey

Gold Medalist Naomi Kass

wins big for Bellaire. Photo by

Maryam Nabhani

(left to right) Senior Rachel Millender, junior Yulia Artemyeva, senior Katherine Gold, senior Amir

Yusuf, junior Nazlia Yunus, senior Emily Battles, junior Rachel Kuehn, senior Alexander Aceres,

junior Rachel Kuehn, sophomore Jarren Greenwood and junior Timothy Shields place as Russian

Essay Winners. Photo by Holly Sutherland.


(left to right) Senior offensive line Charles Sanders, senior running back Denzell Evans,

senior offensive line Dwayne Johnson and senior wide receiver Devin Lauderdale

officially commit to a college as Head Coach Trey Sissom speaks on the players’ success.

Photo by Alex Luckey

SPORTS PROFILES

Football: National Signing Day

By Amanda Taylor

Congratulations to Bellaire Football Players on their successful Feb. 6 signing to commit to

playing football for a college or university next year. Senior offensive line Charles Sanders

signed to Navarro College, senior running back Denzell Evans to University of Arkansas, senior

offensive line Dwayne Johnson to Nebraska University and senior wide receiver Devin

Lauderdale to Texas Tech.


Junior Nick Monzon practices his choir

piece before competing at All State. Photo

by Kyle Somers

STUDENT PROFILES

Nicolas Monzon Excels in Choir

By Manlin Yao

Junior Nicolas Monzon, a member of the choir, has been selected for the All-State Men’s Choir.

To be selected, Monzon had to be in the top 3% of the state and will participate in the All-State

Conference in February.

Q: What does it take to qualify for the All-State's Men Choir?

A: To qualify for the choir, I had to go through four rounds of auditions. Each audition became

progressively more competitive and difficult.

Q: How competitive was the conference?

A: The conference began with little competition because the first two rounds mainly weed out

the people who know their music and the ones who don't know their music. The last two rounds

were extremely competitive. It's a tremendous honor to have made the All-State Men’s Choir.

Q: How does it feel to be selected for the All-

State's Men Choir?

A: To have made the choir feels amazing, larger

than life. It's actually pretty unbelievable; I still

haven't grasped it fully yet. I can barely contain

my excitement for this upcoming week!

Q: What things do you look forward to at the

All-State conference?

A: At the conference, I look forward to meeting

the best singers in all of Texas, which happens to

be the most competitive state for this competition

which means I’ll be honored enough to sing with

the best of the best.

Q: What do you hope to accomplish as a part

of the choir?

A: As part of the choir, I hope to make music, to

make music more beautiful than any type of

music I've made before. Music really is my life.

Q: What do you expect to achieve or take

away from the choir?

A: I hope to become a better singer and learn

from all the other singers that will be

attending. There’s always room for

improvement. I hope to make friendships that will

hopefully last after the conference.


Bellaire Belles pose with their several trophies after performing. Photo

courtesy of Bellaire Belles

Q: How will this experience of being in the All-State Choir affect your singing abilities?

A: I hope it will affect my singing abilities in a good way. I not only want to see different styles

of musicality and also use them to better myself, but hopefully I could take away new leadership

skills. I cannot articulate how valuable that would be for me as the tenor section leader.

Q: Do you have any further aspirations and goals after participating in the choir?

A: After this year, my only aspirations are to lead my section well during UIL and to be in the

All-State Mixed Choir next year.

Bellaire Belles Dance in HISD Competition

By Laure Cundiff

Congratulations to the Bellaire Belles Dance Team on their winning the Super Sweepstakes in

the HISD Dance Competition on Jan. 26. Junior Hannah Davis, the captain of the varsity and

junior varsity team, won third runner up for her solo routines. The varsity team won the highest

points award in Varsity Jazz and Kick Routines. The junior varsity team won highest points for

a routine in the hip hop category. All of these awards did not come without hard work. Senior

Kristen Schulze, colonel of the team, describes the team’s efforts.

“We started learning our

dances in November,”

Schulze said. “At one

point, about two weeks

before the competition,

officers were staying at

practice until 7 p.m. to

clean each dance and make

sure each was uniform,

with the moves executed

correctly. The day of the

competition we were

basically dancing from 7

a.m. to 9:30 p.m. It takes

a lot of work, but the

rewarding results make

[the hard work] worth it.”

The Belles will be

competing in the

upcoming regional

competition as well as

nationals in Hawaii.

Senior Lindsey McCaleb,

social officer and varsity


eMotion Dance Company’s modern department poses before the Arabian Nights

performance during the dance montage. Photo courtesy of eMotion Dance

Company

dancer, comments on her high hopes for those results.

“I think we will do even better at regionals and nationals because we have time before these

competitions, and we will use the time to continue to work hard and perfect the dances,”

McCaleb said.

CLUB PROFILES

eMotion Dance Montage

By Daniela Carlock

Friday, Jan. 25 the eMotion Dance Company of Bellaire High School hosted a dance montage

consisting of several elementary schools, middle schools and high schools in the Houston

community. eMotion also performed an original dance from its latest show “Storybook”

choreographed by junior and officer, May Zhong.

The theme of the

dance was

“Arabian Nights,”

and the eMotion

girls were dressed

in full belly

dancing attire

including red

tops, pants and

skirts with jingles.

“It was a nice

experience,”

Zhong said. “I

had a chance to

see what other

teachers and

fellow

choreographers

had to offer.”

The dance

montage was

organized by dance teacher and eMotion sponsor, Sanja Korman. The objective of this event was

to give dance teams at various schools a chance to show what they are working on and to learn

about other dancers in the community.


The donations are packaged to be sent off

to where they are needed. Photo courtesy

of Helping Hands for Relief and

Development

BPA on a Path to Success

By Amanda Taylor

Congratulations to the entire Business Professionals of America (BPA) student participants in

this year’s Regional Leadership Contest

held on Jan. 26.

The club has 37 students advancing to the

state competition which will be held in

Houston on Feb. 27 to 29.

1st Place in Advanced Accounting – Junior

Sharon Wen

1st Place in Payroll Accounting –

Sophomore Kurt Warren

1st Place in Fundamental Spreadsheet

Applications – Sophomore Sophia Cen

3rd

Place in Advanced Spreadsheet

Applications – Junior Henry Zhang

3rd

Place in Banking and Finance – Senior

Alex Mo

Muslim Student Association (MSA) Holds

Donation Drive

By Alison Elberger

The Muslim Student Association (MSA)

participated in a drive that began on Dec. 14. The

MSA is a club that does their part to help Muslim

communities as well as any community in crisis

around the world. The students in MSA brought

various clothing items, blankets, shoes, hygienic

products and baby products to support the people

suffering in the Syrian War with the help of an

organization called Helping Hands for Relief and

Development.

Helping Hands is a worldwide organization that

will pick up and send charitable donations

anywhere in the world. The MSA took their

Seniors Lamar Richards and Kendyll Kessler stand proudly as they display some of the

approximately 100 medals won at Regionals.

Photo by Bridget Ritter


The new members eagerly wait to be inducted to

the Italian Honor Society. Photo courtesy of Ann

Romero.

donations to a truck brought to them by Helping Hands. Each member loaded their donation onto

the truck that would then take the donations to Syria.

Most of these donations were delivered to the children suffering from the Syrian war. The items

are being sent to refugees and Syrians that have been harmed because of the war that has

displaced 2.5 million Syrians and has killed 600,000 people. Helping Hands will be sending one

more box of donations to Syria.

Italian National Honor Society

By Cari Bonilla

Questa è la mia promessa e il mio giuramento. This commitment statement initiated members

into the Italian National Honor Society (INHS) on Jan. 23.

Senior Jacky Garcia, the treasurer of INHS, joined the other officers and INHS sponsor Maria

Gloria Borsa for the annual induction of excelling Italian students.

“We inducted 13 members this year into INHS,” Garcia said. “We held the induction in the

school library with the students, current members and parents.”

Garcia stresses the role of INHS members in the community and as peers at school.

“We require that our members tutor lower levels

of Italian students,” Garcia said. “We strongly

encourage volunteering at Italian related events,

such as those hosted by the Italian Cultural

Community Center.”

Garcia, who has been an active member of INHS

for two years, takes her experience from the club

and the class into the future.

“I've studied Italian since seventh grade,” Garcia

said. “It's one of the things that I've been

committed to for the longest time, so it's kind of

natural for me to be inclined to want to help

others and become more involved with the

language and culture. I also just genuinely love

the language and plan on studying it during

college.”


Ms. Nocca, sponsor of the European Spring Break Trip, will travel to both

London and Paris this March. Photo by Kirkland Schuessler

TEACHER

PROFILES

AP World History

Teacher Sponsors

Europe Spring Break

Trip

By Elaine Shen

AP World History and

AP European History

teacher Kathryn Nocca

is sponsoring a trip of

about 24 students to

Europe over spring

break this year. The trip

includes staying in

London for four days

and ending in Paris for

the last three days. The

traveling students will

visit many iconic tourist locations, like the Windsor Castle in London and the Louvre in Paris.

A full time tour director will accompany the group throughout the trip. There are optional

excursions as well, such as visiting the Palace of Versailles, Oxford and Stratford University.

Senior Katherine Gold is excited to walk the steps of her history book.

“I want to see the conquest of Napoleon, where he’s buried or his little villa in France,” Gold

said. “I want to look through the London Eye with a different perspective through a camera.”

After thinking of walking through history, Gold also anticipates the different foods choices that

each location will have to offer.

“I would like to gain a sense of trying to be a Brit and tasting Sheppard’s Pie,” Gold said. “We

are also planning a day under the Eiffel Tower with bread, meat and cheese, like a picnic.”

Documents

Bellaire High School Today - Houston Independent School ... · PDF fileBellaire High School Today ... Duran, the winners for the iPod shuffle. ... the best singers in all of Texas,