September 13, 2019
VOL. MMXVIX, No. 5
RAM’S EAR R I O V I S TA H I G H S C H O O L
New school year brings many changes
by Tuck Forbes, Staff Writer
gives me less time with my friends, but it gives me a longer lunch so I guess it is ok,” added Taurus Byers. The teachers have a similar view. “The new bell schedule is nice because it is nice to end a class then five minutes later start another, instead of having to wait,” commented art teacher Mr. Rivera. “The downfall is it makes going to the bathroom harder.” RVHS has also made some physical changes to campus this year. Ms. Gilliland moved back into the science room that she started in. “The science room is a great resource to have for science,” said Ms. Gilliland, “I just want other teachers to know it is available to them if they need it.” The weight room moved back to the office used by Mrs. Gomes last year. Ms. Bartlett’s agriculture classroom moved into last year’s weight room. Athletic Director Noelle Gomes has a new office in the library, next to the counselor and nurse. Mr. Baldwin added a new class to our school’s repertoire called Athletic Leadership. This class is meant for athletes playing sports. “Athletic Leadership will be a benefit for students,” commented Mr. Baldwin, “but it will take a couple years to become a part of RVHS culture.” The class consists of daily conditioning and study hall. It will be fourth period next block to
Photo by: Tuck Forbes
This new school year brings many changes to our RVHS campus. First, RVHS would like to welcome four new teachers and a new vice principal. There is a new bell schedule. A few classrooms have changed, the athletic director has a new office, and the school has a new PE class and a new weight room. The four new teachers come from a variety of places. Ms. Bartlett from Bear Creek High in Stockton, Mr. Kuchilis from Sacramento, Ms. Tygert from New York, and Ms. Mahoney from Atwood, a small city in Southern California. Ms. Bartlett, Mr. Kuchulis, and Ms. Tygert are all in their first year as teachers. Ms. Mahoney has three years of prior teaching experience at Vacaville High and Dixon High. RVHS also said goodbye to some beloved staff members, including Ms. Mason, Mrs. Knisley, Mr. Hamilton, and Ms. Chesnut. This year, RVHS would also like to thank Mr. Jones for stepping in as interim vice principal until Mrs. Cronin becomes our permanent vice principal. RVHS implemented a new bell schedule to allow for a new advisory period in the morning. The new bell schedule has drawn many differing opinions. Some students are happy about it and others are not so ecstatic. “The new bell schedule
The four new teachers this year are ready to tackle the year head on: Ms. Tygert, Ms. Bartlett, Ms. Mahoney, and Mr. Kuchulis (left to right).
allow the athletes to leave for games early without worrying about missing class work. RVHS also has to say goodbye to last year’s senior class and welcome to this year’s freshman class and transfers. RVHS will also be the home of five foreign exchange students for their stay here in Rio
Vista. This year, Rio Vista High School greets new teachers and students, says goodbye to those that have left, redefines office and classroom space, and creates a new class. Both the staff and the students are looking forward to a fun and exciting year!
Josephine Gribsvad returns to America
by Lily Griffin, Staff Writer
Photo courtesy of Brandy Davis
This school year, Rio Vista High School welcomed five new exchange students. This is the most that Rio Vista has hosted at once! This year, we added a new friendly face from AFS, Josephine Gribsvad from Denmark. She arrived in the beginning of August, and will complete a full school year at Rio Vista High School, then return back home in June. She is currently enrolled as a senior here, but when she goes back to Denmark, she will have three more years in high school. Josephine’s favorite class this block is Leadership, and her favorite foods from the United States are chocolate chip pancakes and mac n cheese. She likes the river, and gets to wake
Josh Davis showing off his first place medal after running 26.3 miles.
Josh Davis runs marathon after two months training On August 10, Sophomore Josh Davis ran a 26.3 mile marathon in the bi-annual Redwood Trail Run, hosted by Coastal Trail Runs. The course traveled through California’s beautiful Redwood Regional Park in Oakland. Josh placed first in his age division and 17th overall. That’s right, first! One might ask what kind of experience it took to pull off an accomplishment like this; and the answer is, none. Josh has never been on track, cross-country, or even liked running. A desire to grow in self-discipline was Josh’s motivation. He went on to train and prepare for 2 months prior to the event. With his mother, Brandy
Davis, there to support him, Josh ran the 26.3 miles with a time of six hours and one minute. Pretty impressive considering the length of the marathon is the same distance as running from Rio Vista to the city of Antioch and back. Josh running the Redwood Trail Run is a great example to his peers to challenge themselves, set goals and put in the necessary effort to accomplish them. “You are stronger than you think,” Josh says. From his excited anticipation for the big day, all the way to the reward of accomplishing his goal, the experience was a positive reminder of what we can accomplish if we set our minds to it.
Photo courtesy of Josephine Gribsvad
by Maia Stone, Staff Writer
Josephine Gribsvad in Denmark.
up with a beautiful view of it every morning. The Spradling Family, who lives in a waterfront house, is going to be hosting her. She is very excited about it. “I like having a sister the same age as me and we can do the same fun activities because I don’t have a sibling as close to age as me.” Carson Spradling, her host brother, mentioned, “It will be a fun year with her.” This is not the first time Josephine has visited the United States. Last summer, she went to Iowa, Washington, and California. Back in Denmark, her school is very different. The students stay in one class and their teachers move from class to class. Unlike Rio Vista High School, where the students walk from class to class. They also have more homework than we do.” The difference between my home town and Rio Vista is that here it is much smaller and my town has a lot more shops and stores and many people usually ride bikes around town.” Josephine commented about comparing her hometown and Rio Vista. Josephine is not the only person in her family that has been in AFS. Both her sister and brother were also in AFS and came to the US for their exchange trip. Her sister went to Iowa and her brother went to Washington. American Field Service (short for AFS) is an international youth exchange program. Kids from all over the world and study abroad and get to explore new places world-wide. Continued to page 2