h t u o M f o d Wor Volume 8, Issue 3
November 2013
Survival Skills on ‘the Hill’ Oak Hill Academy Student Newspaper
By Shawn Haas
Inside this issue:
Survival Skills is one of the many new curriculum options offered to students this year. Mr. Riedl is the teacher of this new course. Although he stresses that this is not a television program like Survivor Man or Bear Grylls’ Man vs. Wild, this course does give students knowledge and experiences in handling the wilderness. The excitement attached to this class has been growing. Students dating back to the most recent summer session have
Blood Drive
2
Backpack Ministry
2
Lenore Equestrian Center Dedication
3
One Act Play
3
Mix It Up Day
4
Socials Committee
4
Warrior Weekend
5
Dial M for Murder
6
Thankfulness
7
highly anticipated this elective. Taught as a physical education credit, Survivor Skills includes physical fitness, navigation, tying knots,
starting fires, making a shelter, and identifying wildlife. The class utilizes both indoor and outdoor settings to acquire the greatest (Continued on page 5)
Drummers Ignite By Yonatan Belayhun The Drum Ensemble Class provides students with the opportunity to learn about cultures and
drumming. Mr. Fulbright instructs the students on the various aspects of the cultures in which each type of drum is played. The first unit of study focused on the drums of western Africa. The class is presently studying the culture and drumming styles of Latin America.
In the class there are four students: Henry Walker, Linda Goins, Sean Spalding and Kris Mai. The class is designed for all skill levels.
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Helping Others Blood Drive By Christine Richardson On Tuesday, November 5, the Blood Mobile arrived to OHA campus for the Johnston Memorial Blood Bank. The blood goes to the bank and is given to patients who need blood during surgery or don’t have enough blood in their bodies. The people who donated were: Abe Abu AlRagheb, Lizzy Aksamit, Destiny Alston, Alex Ball, Leah Baucom, Alex Boshart, Carly Bronikowski, Jose Castro, Ashley Dupper, Charlie Favor, Mr.
Finklea, Spencer Gavin, Amy He, Justin Hill, Brennan Jolliffe, Ms. Julie, WonJun Jung, D.J. Jones, Elisha Marrs, Konstantin Kreutzer, Ray Lock, Maddy Leech, Maina Ly, Chase Marcoux, Cheyanne Molina, Eden Sileshi, Tamsin Smith, Cierra Thomas, Sidney Thomas, Spencer Titzmann, Rev. Turnmire, Samantha Walker, Alex White, Andrew Worth, Joshua Yoon, Libby Young, and Alex Van Stippen.
Thanks to all who donated. The next Blood Drive will be March 5th, 2014. To donate blood you must be at least 16 years old with parent permission and weigh over 110lb.
Backpack Ministry By Destiny Crickman The Backpack Ministry involves a combination of local churches in Grayson County. The mission of this program is to provide food for children who are considered to be less fortunate. Many local supermarkets take part
in this program by donating a variety of different foods. Oak Hill Academy takes part as well by donating boxes of Pop Tarts, Ramen noodles, and mac and cheese. OHA students also help by collecting donations at local football games and by filling and organizing the backpacks. During a recent homeroom, Reverend Turnmire asked the student body to donate various items for the backpack ministry. The local newspaper informed the public of items being requested for donation and where to bring them. Mary Andersen, Tamsin Smith, Henry Walker, and Octavia Williams accompanied Mr. Knudsen to a local football game to collect donations at the entrance.
In the spring, Young’s Chapel Baptist Church takes part in the organizing of all the donations. After they organize them, they pack the bags equally and prepare them to be sent away to the children. If anyone is interested in participating in this event, be sure to sign up with Reverend Turnmire, Mr. Knudsen, or Mrs. Groves.
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Evening of the ‘One Act’ Play By Leah Baucom On a chilly November Saturday night, students and faculty gathered in the Fletcher Chapel on ‘the Hill’ to watch the ‘One Act play.’ The play was put on and scripted by students, under the guidance of theatre and English teacher Mr.Pease. The One Act play was a huge success. The play was a comedy that consisted of multiple blind dates from many different walks of life. The acts ranged from a king to a
farmer and even a lady with an imaginary friend and a sock puppet. Students of all ages participated in the muchanticipated play. The play was a great achievement as evidenced by the many laughs from faculty and the student body. Many talented actors and stage crew put on the production: Terrence Phillips, Mariah Ashley, Emily Pagliuca, Dani Kahn, Sam Walker, Patrick Tighe, Amy He, Rodney Miller, Konstantin Kreutzer, Theresa Marinelli, BJ Stith, Lien Raets, Christine Sears, Shawn Spalding and Michelle Watson-Jones.
Dedication of the Lenore Equestrian Center The Oak Hill family joined together on a sunny Friday afternoon to dedicate the Lenore Equestrian Center. This new facility has many needed upgrades such as larger tack rooms, changing rooms, and an indoor riding ring. Dr. Groves opened the ceremony. Mr. Henry explained how such a wonderful building came into being sharing with the students the love of horses and the bonds forged with the Lenore family. Destiny Crickman, current OHA student and member of the Equestrian Riding team, detailed all of the upgrades afforded by this beautiful new building. The cutting of the ribbon across the barn door officially opened this fabulous new addition.
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Mix It Up! By Tony Anderson On October 29, 2013, we had our own “Mix-It-Up Day’” that was hosted by our very own, Mrs. Groves. Mix-It-Up Day is a day when we “mix” everything up. The purpose for this day is to try new things and be wellrounded. Too many people become comfortable with doing the same thing every day, so it’s beneficial to try new things occasionally. In class, we changed seating arrangements. This created conversation with new people that
we usually don’t interact with in class. At lunch, we all were assigned to a table encouraging us to sit with and talk to different students. This helped us meet new friends and learn about other peoples’ backgrounds. We each answered questions from a cup to learn about each other at our table. Mix-It-Up Day really was a big hit for us! Although it brought us out of our comfort zone, it showed that we can adjust in new situations. The more we interact
with each other, the better our school will be. Mix-It-Up Day was beneficial to us all in every way, and our teachers supported us as well. Thanks to the students involved in the planning and implementation of Mix-It-Up-Day. These students included: Maddy Leech, Libby Young, Jae Mayweather, Destiny Alston, Theresa Marinelli, Samantha Walker, Amy He, Tamsin Smith, Mary Andersen, Michelle WatsonJones, Eden Sileshi, Octavia Williams, and Baaba Otabil.
Saturday Night Social Activities Committee By Alex White The Saturday night social activity committee is a group of students that put together activities for socials. The Social activity committee is led by Mr. Henry Crede and meets every Wednesday. The members of the group vary each week, but the main members are Jae Mayweather, Terrence Phillips, Leah Baucom, Maina Ly, Libby Young, and Amy He. The purpose of the committee is to come up with ideas that make socials more enjoyable and inviting. Activities that were done in the past included bonfires, movies, ice cream socials, and Noonkester socials. We cannot be sure of what new activities there will be in the future because the committee comes up with new ideas weekly. If anyone has ideas that can make social more outgoing and fun, it would be a great idea for them to join the social activity committee.
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Welcome Warrior Weekend Everyone was excited about the very first Warrior Weekend of the school year. Fourteen ‘offcampus’ trips and numerous ‘on-campus’ activities were available for students to attend. Movie trips were planned to Abingdon, Galax, and Wytheville with students having the option to see Ender’s Game, Thor 3D and Gravity 3D. Sporting venues included the highly contested Grayson County verses Galax HS football game, a Virginia Tech
Division 1 volleyball match, as well as bowling. For those interested in the arts, trips included the Renaissance Fair in Charlotte as well as Wake Forest University to see Hairspray. Students craving a change in menu were able to sign up for a Fast Food restaurant tour, epic lasagna, or breakfast at Shatley Springs. On campus, students were treated to a Red Team basketball barnstormer with our team the victors. Students were also treated to two Gold Team victories. An afternoon movie social with snacks brought this Warrior Weekend to a close. The many smiling faces shared the success of the weekend.
Survival Skills (Continued from page 1)
outdoor settings; however, this class familiarizes them with strategies and surroundings to last in wilderness.
knowledge base in survival. Many students find themselves uncomfortable in long-lasting
According to Mr. Riedl, certifications and specialties may be earned through their studies and hard work. Students can also experience off-campus trips which have included hiking in Grayson Highlands State Park. Mr. Riedl teaches two class periods of
Survival Skills which include: Jake Armendariz, Jack Bowles, Kelsi Liddle, Sean Spalding, Tyler Whiteman, Chris Benson, Carly Bronikowski, Brennan Jolliffe, James Kidd, Konstantin Kreutzer, Maddy Leach, Elia Marrs, Ming Ogden, Emily Pagliuca, Josh Tamminen, and Samantha Walker.
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Dial M for Murder On Saturday, November 16th, a group of students traveled to the Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia to see the play, Dial M for Murder. The show consisted of two acts with a short intermission. The audience was enthralled as the husband tried to plan and execute the ‘perfect murder.’ As the play progressed, the planning unraveled revealing the husband as the true villain to the police.
Some students on the trip had never been to a live theatrical performance previously and commented on how wonderful it was to see a show such as this. Students on this trip included Cynthia Gao, Ashley Dupper, Tamsin Smith, Aaliyah Haygood, Maddy Leech, Chris Sears, Leah Baucom, Lien Raets, Elisha Marrs, BJ Stith, Patrick Tighe, Andrew Worth, Terrence Phillips, Konstantin Kreutzer, Jesse Wade, Chase Marcoux,
Thanksgiving Dinner
Hon Lee, Cade Groesbeck, Chris Benson, and Ray Lock. Students were quick to ask Mr. Pease to plan another trip to the Bartre in the spring. Keep an eye out for further details from Mr. Pease on another theater trip. Special thanks to Ms. Haas for her assistance on this trip.
Volume 8, Issue 3
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Thankfulness on ‘the Hill’ By Mamoon Bukhari
Kem Ubaru - family
As Thanksgiving approaches, everyone on ‘the Hill’ began to ponder… ‘What am I thankful for this year?’ Here are some of the answers:
Libby Young - being adopted Tony Anderson – Jesus Christ, my parents and brothers (Dante & Frank), all my family around the nation, my friends back home, my teammates and coaches here at Oak Hill, my teachers
Destiny Crickman - teachers and family being my support system Leah Baucom - friends Shawn Haas– friends and family
Yonatan Belayhun – being alive and going to school
Mrs. Bowen – to be alive and be Alex White– life here Mr. Burns– faith, family, food, and Mackenzie Harris - for the men football and women who fight for our counKimy - ice try, my boyfriend, Justin, who is graduating from the Marine Corps Andrew Worth– opposable boot camp in January thumbs Abe - my cousin Ma'moun Ms. Luksic– creative students Destiny Alston - my mother and brother Lizzy Aksamit - education Maddy Leech– friends Mason - socks Maina Ly - music Charlie Favor– candy Alex Boshart– second chances WonJun Jung– the opportunity to study at Oak Hill Patrick Tighe - supportive family Jesse Wade - adoptive parents and opportunities through them
Aislinn Curtin - all my friends and family Amy He - boot camp so I can get in shape. Ms. Bronson - my family & friends, Nikki, my cat, and being OHA's Librarian Christine Richardson - my family and friends back at home and here Lien Raets – all of the hard work that the teachers put into the students at OHA Mariah Ashley – my second chance Sallie Jones – my family
Ms. Warta – Mrs. Crede Mrs. Smith - God’s grace, my fam- Davi - my family and God accepting for me for who I am and forgivily, the amazing beauty of this world we live in, and feel fortunate ing me for all my mistakes, for my mom sending me to OHA for the to have been born in Oklahoma, betterment of my education and life USA! in the future Ms. J - my dad who is doing better since his surgery, my amazing mom Mrs. Perry - good books who is raising my nephews, my sibMs. Richardson - my family, my lings and especially for my twin, and everyone here at Oak Hill has friends, and OHA! made me feel very welcomed. Ms. Haas - God’s blessings Mrs. Groves - for grace Ms. K - the opportunity to share a bit of life with such a diversified community Mr. Pease - talented actors and actresses who did a tremendous job with the One Act Play Ms. A. Brooks - to be a part of the Oak Hill Academy family and the many blessings I have received in 2013 Mrs. Thompson – FAMILY
Editor-in-Chief Shawn Haas The Mission of Oak Hill Academy
Staff Journalists Tony Anderson Leah Baucom Yonatan Belayhun Mamoon Bukhari Destiny Crickman Christine Richardson Alex White Staff Photographers Mariah Ashley Carly Bronikowski Courtney Mitchell Sallie Jones Proofreaders Lisa Finklea Cyndie Richardson Faculty Sponsor Mikki Haas
Oak Hill Academy is a coeducational, Baptist affiliated, boarding/day school committed to excellence in education and adolescent development in a non-military setting. The mission of Oak Hill Academy is to offer a safe, secure, nurturing environment for girls and boys needing a change in school, peer, community, or family relationships. Oak Hill provides a structured college-preparatory program to students in grades 8-12. Our curriculum challenges the brightest student and encourages those who are unmotivated, who are underachieving, or who are experiencing difficulties in their school setting.
Oak Hill Academy
2635 Oak Hill Road Mouth of Wilson, VA 24363 Phone: 276-579-2619 E-mail: info@oak-hill.net