KEEPI N G THE S TUDE NTS OF RHEA COU NTY HIGH SCH O OL I NFORMED SI N CE 1996
HOLIDAY EDITION
The Eagle's Nest
HOLIDAY PUZZLES! PAGE 12
HOLIDAY GIFTS REVIEW EXTRAVAGANZA PAGE 8
VOLUME 11, NUMBER 4
THINK BEFORE YOU SHOOT: POACHING IS A SERIOUS CRIME
PAGE 6
‘Tis the season for charity By KAITY KOPESKI
Rhea County High School students have been in the spirit of giving. Over the last month, there have been a few different charitable projects going on inside the high school. Leadership class held its 13th annual canned food drive from November 13 through November 20. The goal this year was 5,000 cans, and they ended up with a total of 3,346. As promised, the class period with the most cans, Mr. Toliver’s third period, will receive a pizza party later in the school year. On November 21st, the class delivered the cans to Our Daily Bread in Spring City and to We Care in Dayton. Although the goal was not reached, the organizations were thrilled to receive the cans, and the class is optimistic about next year’s drive. Right after the food drive ended, the Leadership class was busy again, this time setting up for the Angel Tree. The tree was decorated with over one hundred angel ornaments. [Gone already? That’s good, right??] The “angels” are children from either the Graysville or Spring City preschool and most of them have financial needs. Each child had five ornaments, with each ornament specifying a special gift such as shoes, clothes, or toys. The gifts will be collected by December 12, and on the morning of December 14, the Leadership class will host a Christmas party for the children. At the party they will open their gifts, and receive a special visit by Mr. and Mrs. Claus. “I love to see their faces when they open their gifts” says returning member Sarah Jones, “they are so appreciative of things that they normally wouldn’t receive.” Along with Leadership, Key club was working on a special holiday project. From November 27 to December 1, teachers had
PHOTO BY KELLI FRENCH
KAITY@RHEACOUNTYEAGLESNEST.ORG
ABOVE: The leadership class drops off about 2,000 cans at We Care in Dayton. Front row (l to r): Billy Whisman, Leann Patton, Coach Holder, Sarah Jones, Kaity Kopeski, Colby Smith, Will Hooper, Bryan Boling, Olivia Carver, Lauren Harris, Kelly Reed, Leayn Carter. Second row: Danielle Catlett, Kaitlynn Reed, Dusty Paschal, Kelli French. Third row: Justin Smith, Kelli Alexander, Tyler Cheek, Andrew Zimmerman. RIGHT: Kelly Reed, Dusty Paschal, and Justin Smith hang angels on the Angel Tree in the Library.
the opportunity to set up baby bottles on their desks, and students were asked to put their spare change in the bottles. All the funds that were raised went to the Women’s Care Center, so they could purchase needed items, especially baby formula. “We
raised a total of $300” says Key Club President, Heather Roberts, “which I think is a record!” If you didn’t get an opportunity to give or participate in one of the above activities, here are a couple projects worthy of donat-
ing to: While you are out and doing your last-minute holiday shopping, stop by the see CHARITY page 4
Team explores new lunch schedule possibilities If the proposed lunch changes go as planned, the days of spending a half-hour every day planted on a plastic disk may be a thing of the past. By COURTNEY JORDAN COURTNEY@RHEACOUNTYEAGLESNEST.ORG
PHOTO BY BRYAN BOLING
The administration hopes that changes to the lunch schedule will ease crowding in the cafeteria, in addition to providing opportunities for extracurricular activities during the school day.
“Hey, where are you headed?” “Oh, I’m just going to the library to finish my paper. I’ll be in lunch when I finish.” “Okay, take your time. We’ve got an hour.” That will be a conversation heard in the new semester at Rhea County High School. Mr. Levengood, accompanied by other leaders, teachers, and one student from each grade, traveled to Hillsboro High School in Nashville on December 6. What they saw there was an amazing accomplishment involving the way students behave and how they manage to get several things accomplished in as little as an hour. The upshot for our school is that where there used to be four lunch periods, there will only be one, and
the student body as a whole will all eat their lunch at roughly the same time. Of course, many are skeptical about how this will work out for us, but the students and staff at Hillsboro High are convinced the system is the best thing to have ever happened. Their principal Bob Lawson says, “It may sound crazy, but in my three years of working here, the one-hour lunch deal has been the best decision I’ve ever made.” So how, exactly, does everyone eat at the same time? Easy. People who would rather eat in the cafeteria are allowed to do so; people who wouldn’t don’t have to. It is basically one hour for the students and teachers to have all to themselves. They are not restricted to one area at a rotation of twenty to thirty minutes at a time. They have the freedom to eat in the cafeteria, the hallways, outside, in the gym, and in classrooms. However, they are not all getting their food from see LUNCHTIME page 4