Volume 40, issue 1 by The T-Bird Times

the

T - B ird Times Skyline High School | tbirdtimes.com | Volume 40, Issue 1 | November 6, 2015

photo by Jarod DeWeese

Junior Jared Shriver runs at the state cross country meet in Wamego. Shriver placed 16th out of 102 runners.

see story on page 6

Page 2

Opinion

November 6, 2015

Students pay for unnecessary activity fees by Kamryn Stark

Reporter For many years students have been required to pay to get into high school activities at Skyline. This is an unnecessary requirement for students who are going to support their school and their classmates. Students have been paying $3 to get into games to support their friends and as the school year continues, it starts to add up. “I think it is ridiculous to have to pay to get in to games because we all go to the same school and we should be able to support our peers without having to pay,” senior Lucas Cason said. Since students are given a student identification card at

the beginning of every year then they should be able to show those to the gate workers and get in for free. Pratt Community College has been allowing students to enter games for free from surrounding schools to bring in their identification card for many years. High school students are hard-pressed for money in high school anyway, so if they are not charged then they are more likely to save money for other things that could be more beneficial to them. “I think it’s a lot harder to get a good turnout for all sporting events if you charge the students every time they want to go to a game,” senior Colin Kumberg said. Since Skyline’s video class

has started filming with High School Cube, people can stay home and watch on their computer or tablet. This easily results in less support for the players, which can affect their performance and looks bad on their support system. Skyline has always struggled to have a good pep section, yet the students get blamed for that. If students were not expected to pay, then maybe more would come to cheer. “We give students a chance to buy activity passes so it would be cheaper,” principal Herb McPherson said. “In most other districts around us I know students have to pay to get into games.” McPherson also sees multiple ways for students to be able

to get into games for free. “We host basketball games here more than anything else and the biggest percentage of our students are in basketball or band, so if they don’t want to pay then they should hone their skills at basketball or do band,” McPherson said. Some students are not always blessed with the ability to play basketball or be a part of band. Families also might not be able to afford to have their students be in either of those activities, so therefore, band and basketball are not always an option for students. It is very reasonable for parents and other visitors to pay. In students’ eyes, the fee for high school students to get into games are unnecessary and needs to go away.

Students debate over early dismissal versus late starts by Jon Wiltshire

Reporter Every Monday, students get out of school early at 2:30 p.m. It would be a better idea to have late starts instead of early outs. Late starts could allow kids to get more sleep and could get breakfast, which could make them excel in school. If the kids excel in school, even if it is for one day, it could help their grades, which could result in the school’s average graduation rate going up. It’s not too late for this change to happen. In the second and third trimester the late start could begin. The school could get the average graduation rate up, then others might think this is a good school. In the end, it could possibly result in the school getting more kids,

which means more money for the school. Although it might be appealing to the kids to be able to sleep later, it makes more sense for the school to keep the early outs. Both are still not that reliable for parents because they are at work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and either one still might interfere with their work day. “Late starts were harder on everybody to remember and harder to get things adjusted because kids would still come in early,” principal Herb McPherson said. “Early outs were easier to remember for parents and kids, because it’s later in the day.” Studies have proven that late starts end up in less student car accidents, and helped with student academics. So, it might not be a bad plan to rethink having late starts.

Students vote

Would you rather get out earlier on Mondays or have late starts?

 77.1 %

 22.9%

Early out

Late start

Editor .................... Caden Patterson Staff Reporters..........Hallee Burgardt Miranda Ghumm Justin Hampel Alex Lutz Kamryn Stark Jon Wiltshire Andrew Withers Adviser........................Judy Hampel

Photographers.................... Trent Adams Jarod DeWeese Gabriel Flanders Lexie Maloney Tara Miller Raul Ramirez Courtney Reece Cade Swonger Megan Urban

November 6, 2015

News

Page 3

Students gather each month for T-Bird teams by Kamryn Stark

Reporter For the first time this year Skyline got the whole students body together to create the T-Birds teams. The teams consisted of one upperclassmen team leader and other students of varying ages. On October 17, the high school leaders got together and were taught how to be a better leader for Skyline. They were taught how to be organized for the upcoming T-Bird team activities. They also were taught how to be in charge instead of the teachers, which helps them to be a stronger leader. They got quizzed on a few questions about Skyline too. “The T-Bird teams are beneficial to our school because they help us connect with the younger kids and get to know everyone,” freshman Kara Bower said. “It helps build leadership.” The first time the teams met up, the activities consisted of everyone getting familiar and more comfortable around each other by remembering everyone’s name. Each group then came up with different rules that would help make Skyline a bet-

photo by Lexie Maloney

T-Bird teams are a way for bringing the students of Skyline together and closer as group. Freshman Adison Hampton’s T-Bird team was in the library during the first 30 meeting.

ter place. They also came up with a little signal to do with each other when seeing other team members throughout the day. “I think the teams help the younger kids get to know the older kids and this helps the school become unified,” sophomore Carson Lee said. High schoolers are big role models for the younger kids since they get to see them every day. Getting to spend a little

bit of time with the people they look up to means a lot to the little kids. “I had fun because I got to play games with the big kids,” first grader Chase Stratford said. The purpose of the teams was for everyone of all ages in the school to come together and be more appreciative of the small school and become closer as a community.

middle school volleyball and basketball. Lee felt that it was too much to teach, coach and do both Pep Club and cheerleaders and only agreed to take the cheerleaders if they were split from the Pep Club. The second time she took time off was when her kids were all young. She coached middle school for two years, then went back to high school cheer in 2008. Lee said that she felt like she was meant to work at Skyline, as two days later, a math position opened at Pratt. She has not thought about leaving once. When her daughter Ashton was going into kindergarten, she and her husband were interviewed at about eight different schools. She said that it became obvious to her that she was meant to teach at Skyline when the school that they agreed

to move to, if offered, was the only school that didn’t offer the couple a job. Now she and her husband, band teacher Bob Lee, work alongside each other. “It is so nice to not be trying to support two schools and two sets of activities,” Kim said. “We were worn thin trying to attend everything.” Not only does she get to work with her husband, but she has also been able to teach all of her kids. “You try not to treat them any differently than anyone else, but at the end of the day, they are still your child and if anything, I think I was harder on them than most kids,” Kim said. “The best part of it all was not missing any of their programs or activities because Skyline has always been so great about ‘family comes first’.”

Veteran math teacher starts 28th consecutive school year

by Miranda Ghumm

Reporter High school math teacher Kim Lee is a full time teacher that has been at Skyline longer than any other teacher who currently works at the school. Lee started working at Skyline in August 1988, 27 years ago. “I needed to find a job close to the Pratt area,” Lee said. “At that time, I thought I wanted to teach at Pratt, but they had no math openings, so I took the job at Skyline.” Lee said that she had wanted to be a math teacher since she was in middle school. Principal Herb McPherson said that it has been nice having someone of her experience in that field here for that long. Lee has been the cheer coach at the school since 1989, with two exceptions. Back then Pep Club and cheerleaders were a combined effort. She also coached

Page 4

Feature

November 6, 2015

1. King Kasey Gilpin and queen Betsy Giles get crowned at the homecoming assembly. 2. At the Pep Club work night, senior Jessica DeWeese works on the backdrop for the Pep Club. 3. Freshmen Kara Bower and Abby Ailstock paint a sign for their class skit. “As a freshman it was a fun experience doing homecoming for the first time,” Bower said. 4. Sophomore Madison Tyler paints in a tracing of the banner. “Homecoming was less stressful this year because we only have to work on a banner this year,” Tyler said. 5. Seniors Rion Westhoff and Alyssa Allphin. 6. Seniors Kasey Gilpin and Miranda Ghumm. 7. Seniors Colin Kumberg and Betsy Giles. 8. Freshmen Cade Swonger and Kayla Flora. 9. Sophomores Carson Lee and Madison Tyler. 10. Juniors Garrett Bell and Star Boley.

Feature

USD 438

Page 5

Fall Homecoming Featuring Pixar by Andrew Withers and Caden Patterson

Reporter and Editor For many years all high school students have been able to prepare a homecoming. A change was made this year, and students had to be in Pep Club to help with homecoming. To be a member in Pep Club students had to pay $2. Classes made a banner and planned a class skit. The banners were showcased during the assembly in the afternoon. Voting was open to the public for the best class banner. There was also class competitions throughout the week for each class to compete for bragging rights. Students had mixed opinions about the situation. “I think that it is pointless to have to be in Pep Club because everybody has to pay the two dollars and not everybody has that money,” sophomore William Wiltshire said. In the past, some students have used the day inappropriately and not done much to help get ready and instead just lounged around all day. “I think that it is good to have to be in Pep Club because it eliminates some of the people who don’t really do much,” sophomore Cooper Gates said. Students that where not in Pep Club went to their regular classes.

10.

Oct. 9

November 6, 2015

Page 6

Sports

November 6, 2015

Lady T-Birds end their season at Sub-State by Justin Hampel

Reporter The volleyball team ended their season at Sub-State held at Kiowa County on October 24. The lady T-Birds lost to St. John in two sets in the first round at the tournament. It wasn’t the finish the girls were looking for but they believe it was a good year under first-year head coach Kathryn McAllister. “I feel like we had a successful season,” McAllister said. “We had some highs and lows throughout the year, and there are a few matches I know we’d like to get back, but we improved in many areas individually and as a team.” One of the highs of the year was the ladies home tournament. The ladies took third place in the T-Bird tournament in a very challenging field, including wins against Pawnee Heights and two wins against Hodgeman County. “Getting third place in our T-Bird tournament was a big accomplishment for this team and I was very proud of them for the way they played there,” McAllister said. The girls had four seniors play their last year of volleyball. Two of those se-

courtesy photo

The Lady T-Birds celebrate as they score in the league tournament at Norwich. They had four games on that day and came out 1-3. They defeated Fairfield in a three match game and lost the other three against Norwich, South Barber and Central Christian.

niors, Betsy Giles and Hanna Baird, were voted on as captains by teammates. The other two seniors were Bailey DeClue and Payje Orler. “We had our ups and downs this year, but I had a lot of fun in my last year in volleyball,” Baird said. The girls started off the year strong

before going through a 1-11 stretch in the middle of the season. They ended the year well, before struggling at Sub-State. “I wish we could have played Sub-State again so we could all play harder than we did that day,” Baird said. They finished the year with a record of 12-19.

Cross country team takes four individuals to State by Justin Hampel

Reporter The cross country teams finished their season at Regionals on October 24 while four individual runners ended their year at State on October 31. The boys’ took fourth place at Regionals, 16 points away from advancing to State as a team and the girls placed sixth. “I know that the kids were disappointed that we did not take full teams to State but with as many personal best times we had that day, I know that they all gave it 100%,” head coach Lynette Freeman said. “They may have not met their expectation to take a full team to State, but I couldn’t be more proud of them as a team.” Three seniors ended their high school cross

country careers at Regionals and one of them ended her season at State. “I thought the year went pretty well, but I wish it would have went a little better, but it was still fun,” senior Colin Kumberg said. The two boys that advanced to State were junior Jared Shriver, who finished 16th, and freshman Erik Ghumm, who finished 40th. The girls that ran were junior Madison Tyler, who finished 50th and senior Miranda Ghumm, who finished 65th. There were 102 runners in the boys race and a 100 runners in the girls race. With so many underclassmen returning, they have very high expectations for next year and the years after. “We had nine freshmen on the team this year, four of which had never ran cross country before,” Freeman said. “The freshmen class has huge potential for future years to come on the cross country team.” Freeman thinks that the boys team has State Championship potential for the next few years.

November 6, 2015

Sports

Page 7

Football team fights through tough schedule by Alex Lutz

Reporter The football team had one of the hardest schedules in Kansas. They lost nine seniors after last year and had a lot of underclassmen with little experience. “The season has went fairly well,” senior Brady McComb said. “We’ve gone a lot further as a team. We’ve got better and better as a team this year.” Head coach Jon Novotny knew after graduating a big class that it would be a tough year and it would take the boys time to get used to their positions. “I’m pleased with our lone senior and how he has helped this year’s team learn and prepare for each game,” Novotny said. “Brady is a very good athlete and an even better young man.” Before the season started the team voted for captains. Along with McComb, they voted for juniors Andrew Withers, Ty Montgomery and Justin Hampel. “The captains all stepped up and will be counted on next year to continue their

hard work and leadership,” Novotny said. The Thunderbirds went 3-6. They beat Macksville 22-18 Kinsley 66-26 and St. John had to forfeit due to school issues. “We have been able to match up with each team and play with them,” McComb said. He thought Withers stepped up big

carrying the ball, including 226 yards against Kinsley. “I feel like Andrew stepped up a lot this year and helped the team,” McComb said. The team had somewhat of a rough year and hope to bounce back next year. They will have more leadership as the six juniors gained a lot of varsity experience.

photo by Gabriel Flanders

Junior Justin Hampel prepares to throw a pass to the lone senior Brady McComb at Kinsley. The Thunderbirds fought hard throughout the game and came out with their second win of the season. The final score was 66-26.

Weightlifting program strengthens athleticism for sports by Andrew Withers

Reporter Some students have been involved in sports and want to be the best that they can be. One way to do that is to lift weights. Skyline has a large weight room in a separate building from the school. It has a good amount of equipment kept in pretty good condition compared to other schools of the same size. Students of all ages have total access to the weight room. All high school sports teams try to involve lifting in their training. Lifting weights makes better athletes, which translates to sports. Another known benefit associated with lifting is less injuries. “I lift three times a week with coach Eddy during the off-season and twice a week during basketball,” senior Kasey Gilpin said. Some students have chosen to lift after

school or early in the morning, sacrificing their own time to try to better themselves. “Lifting is like a hobby to me,” junior Ty Montgomery said. “I like to do it because it makes me a better athlete.” Reasons for lifting differ between people, and some athletes simply choose not to. “I don’t necessarily think that everyone should lift if it is not important to them, but I would suggest it because it makes you more fit and leads to a better lifestyle,” Gilpin said. Training a body by lifting weights can make a difference, big or small, depending on how much work the athlete is willing to put in. “Lifting has shown a difference for me because I’ve seen all of my maxes increase, my vertical has increased, and I have gotten quicker,” Gilpin said. Weightlifting pays off dividends for the students who choose to put in the time and effort to do it.

I enjoy lifting weights because it is a good stress reliever and it makes me a better athlete.

-Trent Adams

Page 8

Feature

Science program goes online for school year by Caden Patterson and Hallee Burgardt

November 6, 2015

Buffer Week “I plan to eat better, lift and run. Also work on my shooting and ball handling.”

Editor and Reporter Skyline’s science program was faced with an uncommon challenge. Teacher Charles Young passed away shortly after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Principal Herb McPherson said it was hard to find a science teacher that could start in the middle of the year. The next best thing that Skyline could have done was transition to online schooling. “I hope that the students can gain knowledge for classes in their future,” McPherson said. The students had many subs in the first four weeks of school until they decided that online photo by Lexie Maloney learning Online facilitator Diane House helps senior Betsy Giles work on the program was the Greenbush. This is the students’ first year with the online program. way to go. Diane House took over the online facilitation for the science program after staying at home for nine years. The science students have been learning through Edgenuity and Moodle. “I’m not trying to fill Mr. Young’s shoes,” House said. “I am trying to fill the gap and give the kids what they need to be successful.” Students have been challenged with the technology change and having to learn without a traditional science teacher in the classroom. “Mrs. Ghumm had to get laptops for us to use because in the advanced biology class the iPads could not be used,” House said. “It has been a lot of fun getting started and getting to know all of the students.” As a parent, Wendy Burgardt is hopeful that this will solve the problem for this year and that next year the school will be able to hire a full time science teacher. Like all parents, they want the best education that their children can receive. “I am excited for the kids to have Mrs. House and have the consistency and support that she is providing,” Burgardt said. House expects the year to end successful for the students. She says that part of their grades will be Scan the QR code to watch based on work ethic and the other part on curricua video about Diane House. lum.

Jessica DeWese, 12

“No plans right now. I’ll probably be pretty lazy.” Tara Miller, 9

“I’m going to condition by myself and try to lift and shoot at Blythe.” Matthew Giles, 11

“Shoot around at home and cut down on drinking pop.” Kasey Gilpin, 12

“Shoot baskets on my own.”

Cooper Gates, 10

“I think that girls who played a fall sport should be taking a break and getting healthy from any injuries. The whole purpose of Buffer Week is to take a real break.” Girls’ coach Morgan Ballard

“I want the boys to be eating correctly and getting comfortable having a ball back in their hands before the season starts.” Boys’ assistant coach Kenny Eddy