Volume 41, Issue 2, November 2016

The

T-Bird Times

Skyline High School • Volume 41 • Issue 2 • November 18, 2016

Performing his lead role in the musical, junior Carson Lee sings to the audience. Lee performed in the play every year since his freshman year. photo by Charly Spitzner

Page 2 • Editorial • The T-Bird Times • November 18, 2016

T-Bird Teams build relationships

RReporter aul Ramirez

T-Bird Teams have come back with more time to spend with each other than before.

The purpose of T-Bird Teams is to get the older kids and younger ones to interact and build relationships with one another. The activities that students are assigned have to do with a theme or something that goes on during that month.

A week before homecoming, the T-Bird Teams worked on posters for the homecoming Olympic assembly. Each T-Bird Team competed to see whose poster was the most creative. The second time they got together each team decorated cards for the veterans.

“I would like T-Bird Teams to be used more than once a month,” student success coordinator Diane House said. “As it does take up a little bit of stu-

dents’ class time, it allows them to meet new people and learn something new about them.”

Junior Francisco Palacios likes to work with younger kids because it lets him know what the younger kids think or their view on things.

“It is a short period of time that we spend together, but it’s pretty cool,’’ Palacios said.

He enjoys being with kids but feels that T-Bird Teams should get to know the other teams as well.

T-Bird Teams gather on every first Friday of the month during third hour. Advisors for the teams focus on helping both the young and older kids to communicate and share their thoughts with each other. Older students help the younger students with the activities assigned to the groups.

“It isn’t that hard to control my T-Bird Team group, they are

pretty set back,” Ag educator Michelle Keener said.

She sees lots of leadership going on during T-Bird Teams.

When they were making Christ-

Sophomore Cassidy Corbet, freshman Jay Crowdis and sophomore Cade Swonger lead their T-Bird Teams in making a poster. Each group made a poster representing the Olympics to be used as decorations for Fall Homecoming. courtesy photo

Thanksgiving overshadowed by early Christmas music AReporter ndrew Withers The leaves have begun to fall and Thanksgiving is now coming our way.

Although most people started looking forward to Thanksgiving, there was also many people who moved on from Halloween and shifted their minds right to Christmas.

This has been expressed in many ways, the most common one being Christmas music played too early.

The girls’ basketball team decided to have a fundraiser in which they played Christmas music constantly throughout the high school classrooms and hallways first thing in the morn-

mas cards the older ones helped write or share ideas with the younger kids. Overall, the teams help build relationships among all Skyline students.

longer played at the beginning ing. Once $100 was donated to of the day. Although the goal the girls’ basketball program, was reached, the music continthe music stopped and many ues in Morgan Ballard’s people got their sanity room. He has a yearly back, while others miss tradition to keep it the music. playing during his “I despise the classes until Christmas Christmas music break, once the tembecause it’s not even Morgan Ballard perature drops below December yet,” senior 32 degrees.

Brayton Fletcher said. “It gets Despite the distractions from pretty annoying.” other major holidays, ThanksWhile some people were giving should not be forgotten against it, some were all for it because of the great food, footand enjoyed the holiday cheer. ball and time with family.

“I love the music because it brings Christmas spirit and Above all of these, we should makes most people happy,” remember that the real meaning sophomore Cassidy Corbet said. is to show our gratitude for The donation was achieved our American freedoms and to on Tuesday, and the music is no praise God.

Copy Editor ....... Justin Hampel Design Editor ....... Mason Brack Adviser................. Judy Hampel Staff Reporters..Hallee Burgardt Ana Lopez-Gil Daisy Marquez Raul Ramirez Jared Shriver Charly Spitzner Kamryn Stark Andrew Withers Photographers Nikolai Andrews Michal Cimerman Sherley Chavez Hayley Roberts Heidi Roberts Charly Spitzner Kayla Urban Jon Wiltshire

November 18, 2016 • The T-Bird Times • News • Page 3

Transportation gets upgrade AReporter na Lopez Gil

Skyline has decided that besides the yellow buses, one bus was needed for activities.

A small white bus, that mechanic Benny Hayes can repair, was purchased for this purpose.

After the purchase, blue and white stripes and the logo of the school were put on the bus.

Hayes said that the new bus has capacity for at least six more students than the suburbans.

The bus was purchased over the internet.

“I love the bus and also the kids,” Hayes said.

Any person with a driver’s license can drive the white bus.

From now on the teachers that go on trips with their students are going to be able to take the bus and take their students.

The bus came from Indiana, and the total price was $5000.

The school would love to have more buses like this one in the future.

The kids love the bus and they think it is a good idea to have a new bus with the colors of the school.

“The best thing about the bus is that it is not yellow like the other ones,” sophomore Kayley Cook said. “The thing that I like most about the bus is that is smaller and it has the colors of the school.”

The first time the bus was used was when it went to State Cross Country in Wamego.

“I think that it was a good idea to have a new bus because it shows school spirit,” senior Jarod DeWeese said. “There should be more buses like this one.”

DeWeese said that the kids seemed enthusiastic after the first trip to State.

The new activity bus sits across the street at the state cross country meet in Wamego on its first ever trip from Skyline. Mechanic Benny Hayes said that it was cheaper to take the small bus rather than two small vehicles because the bus uses diesel. courtesy photo

Advanced students compete at the annual Math Relays JEditor ustin Hampel Math teacher Kim Lee took 14 students to compete in the annual Math Relays competition at Fort Hays State University.

Last Thursday three freshmen, five sophomores, five juniors and one senior left Skyline around 6 a.m. to compete against over 700 students from across the state in classes 1A-6A. The tests they took were then scored and compared to fellow 2A/3A participants. Individuals and teams that placed in the top ten were recognized at the 2A/3A level. There were four team placings and five individual placings in the top ten at the competition.

“We didn’t do as well as we could have because we didn’t have as many people through as many upper level classes due to the trimester schedule, but overall we still had some good success and results,” Lee said.

One of the students who placed individually was senior Jarod DeWeese, who was the only senior to participate.

He placed sixth in one of his events.

“I think we did a good job considering the fact that we only had one senior, but we still had room for improving,” DeWeese said.

Junior Carson Lee and sophomore Erik Ghumm were the other two students to place individually. Carson placed fifth,

sixth and ninth and Ghumm placed sixth in an event.

Kim said that the lack of students having gone through advanced classes made it more challenging than normal, but it was still definitely worth their while.

“I think it is good for the students that go to see other people they have competed against in sports, forensics, and other activities and see that math is also a strength for them,” Kim said.

Math Relays was a good opportunity for students to compete against many other students from much larger schools throughout the state and know that they can perform well at any level.

The Digital Media Technology class has produced their first videos of the year.

Check them out on YouTube.

Reporters Matthew Giles Sheldon Miller Brock Montgomery Francisco Palacios Raul Ramirez William Wiltshire Brendan Winkel

Page 4 • Feature • November 18, 2016

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The Music Man Jr. 2

1. Preparing for their first performance, freshman Reana Sisco helps freshman Brenna Dolezal apply her makeup. The performers got ready before the show in the band room. photo by Sherley Chavez

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2. The cast points to the Wells Fargo Wagon that brought the kids their instruments during a scene. photo by Sherley Chavez 3. Talking on stage, juniors Carson Lee and Jade Downs wait for Cassidy Corbet to make her entrance. Downs role in the musical was Marcellus Washburn. photo by Charly Spitzner 4. Sophomore Cassidy Corbet, as Marian Paroo, gives piano lessons to Amaryllis, played by Kaitlynn Hanson. Hanson played Amaryllis on Thursday night and Emma Ohler took the role on Friday night. photo by Charly Spitzner 5. The quartet, made up of Kendall Davidson, Erik Ghumm, Jon Wiltshire and Zack Urban harmonize during their number. The group got inspired to become a quartet after Harold Hill came to town. photo by Charly Spitzner 6. In front of the audience and the fellow cast members, sophomore Adison Hampton and the Pick-a-Little Ladies perform a skit. Hampton played Eulaile Machecknie Shinn in the musical and her little sister played Winthrop Paroo. photo by Charly Spitzner

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November 18, 2016 • Musical • Page 5 The Main Characters

Carson Lee as Howard Hill

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Cassidy Corbet as Marian Paroo

1. Sophomore Cassidy Corbet sings her part in the duet “Till There Was You” with junior Carson Lee. This was Corbet’s second year in the musical. photo by Charly Spitzner 2. Lee and Corbet interact with fourth grader Cory Hampton. The musical involved several younger students. photo

by Charly Spitzner 3. Lee sings to the crowd in front of his fellow cast members. “I felt honored to be able to play the lead,” Lee said. photo by Michal Cimerman

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Page 6 • Sports • The T-Bird Times • November 18, 2016

Boys’ team qualifies for State KReporter amryn Stark After the Skyline boys’ cross country team took a third place finish at the Regional meet held in Meade, the team traveled to Wamego on October 29, to compete for the first time since 1990.

A three year state qualifier, senior Jared Shriver, placed highest for the team, running an 18:00.04. He placed eighth in class 2A. Shriver participated at the state meet every year but his freshman year. This was the first time he placed in the top ten at the state meet.

“It felt amazing to see all my hard work pay off to reach my goal of placing in the top ten at State,” Shriver said. “I could not have done it without all the support from my family, coaches and teammates.”

Out of the 99 runners in class 2A, six other boys on the team competed along with Shriver. Sophomore Erik Ghumm ran almost a minute slower than his Regional time, placing 35th. Junior Tyler Tobin finished third on the team with a time of 20:36.43, placing 72th. Senior Garrett Bell was not far behind Tobin finishing 76th, with the time of 20:50.38.

Sophomore Colby Shriver and seniors Kendall Davison and Michal Cimerman placed 86th, 93rd and 97th.

“Going to the state cross country meet was probably one of the coolest things I have ever experienced,” Cimerman said. “I have never seen or been to something like that before, which made it a lot of fun, especially for someone who is from a small country like Slovakia.”

The boys’ cross country team ended up falling 14 points short to Wichita County, placing ninth. Although the season is

over, many runners are already looking forward to next year’s season and hope to accomplish their goals.

Senior Jared Shriver receives water from sophomore Adison Hampton at a meet which was held at Sterling. Shriver ran a 17:46 and placed seventh. He also received All-League honors. courtesy photo

SPORTS Q&A’s Cheerleading

Cross Country

Katelynn McGraw

Erik Ghumm

How would you say the year has gone so far?

I think it has good so far. Football season was great and I am sure basketball season will too.

What would you say the squad’s biggest strength is this year?

I think we all work well together and it is really easy for us to focus and get things done with a positive attitude.

What has been your favorite part about your first year of cheering?

My favorite part was probably hanging out with the rest of the squad at cheer camp.

What would you say the most challenging part of cheer has been so far?

Being the only freshman and having to learn all the dances was pretty difficult at first, but I think I am ready for basketball season.

Are you excited to cheer for basketball season?

Yes, I am super excited to cheer during basketball season. I love watching basketball, and I especially like being inside and warm.

Do you see yourself having a future in cheer?

Possibly, depends on how the rest of my high school year goes.

How would you say the season went for yourself and also for the team?

For myself, it went exactly as I planned, better even. I beat my goal by 45 seconds. However, I wanted to place top ten at State, and ended up having my race of the season. We met our team goal of taking the guys to State.

What kind of goals did you have for this season?

I met my goal of 17:30.

What was your favorite memory from the season?

Making my personal record of 16:46, because I thought everyone was messing with me, but then it turned out to be true.

What things do you plan to do to push yourself to be ready for next year’s season?

I plan to find more self motivation and start using heart rate training to make my body more efficient.

What teammate pushed you to better yourself the most?

Jared Shriver. He pushed me since my freshman year. I’ve seen him as a mentor and a big brother and he was one of our fastest runners.

If you do over this year, what would you do different?

I would re-do the actual trip to Hays. My ritual was different.

November 18, 2016 • The T-Bird Times • Sports • Page 7

Boys bring high expectations CReporter harly Spitzner

Skyline has a lot of motivated students who want to play basketball. The season started on November 14. The head coach for the boys is Steve Little, in his fourth year, and the assistant coach is Kenny Eddy, in his third year.

“I’ve played just about my entire life and I played a little bit in college,” Eddy said. “I’ve wanted to be a basketball coach since I was 8 years old.”

The athletes prepared for the season all throughout the fall.

From the people doing football and cross country to the other kids that ran and lifted weights three times a week, many athletes put in extra time to get ready for the season.

“Basketball is my favorite

sport,” freshman Sam Fisher said. “I started to play it in kindergarten. I just always played it.”

Most students have played basketball for more than two years, so they have a lot of returning experience and a lot of motivation to win. The biggest challenge for the boys is reaching the State Tournament.

Going to State is one of the team’s main goals and Eddy is pretty optimistic.

“We have the pieces we need, we just need to put it all together now,” Eddy said.

The players are ready and very excited for this season to get started. They want to play basketball and of course go to State.

“We have a pretty solid team this year, so I think we have a

Sophomore Nik Montgomery takes it to the rack during practice. The boys had three two a day practices during their first week. photo by Justin Hampel

very good chance to make it to State if we work hard in practice

and the weight room,” senior Matthew Giles said.

Young team looks to rebuild program JReporter ared Shriver

Sophomore Courtney Reece practices breaking the press against senior Kamryn Stark. The girls began learning this press on the first day of practice, and they are expecting to face the press this season. photo by Justin Hampel

After nine wins last season, the Lady T-Birds are looking to rebuild. They got knocked out in the second round of Sub-State to the eventual state champs, Central Plains Oilers.

The girls are returning six upperclassmen and only one of them was a starter, which means they will need a heavy amount of help from the underclassman.

“I expect Mily Guerrero to help handle the ball for us,” head coach Morgan Ballard said. “I also expect Brittaney Smith and Courtney Gamble to be big for us down low.”

With the new season comes a new coaching change. Darci Poland took over the assistant coach position due to scheduling. This change moved last year’s assistant, Chris Sanders, down to the middle school

girls’ head coach position. This season will be Poland’s first year at the high school level.

“I’m really looking forward to being with girls that I had coached in previous years,” Poland said.

The players aren’t sure what to expect from this coaching change.

“I’m not sure how the team will act, it just depends on how everyone will contribute to the team,” Guerrero said.

Ballard expects it to be a very successful year for the Lady Thunderbirds. He has many goals for the upcoming season.

“I expect the girls to hold teams to under 40 points every game,” Ballard said. “I also expect us to do everything fundamentally right to put the girls in position to win ball games.”

The Lady T-Birds open up their season against the St John Tigers on December 2, at St. John.

Page 8 • News • The T-Bird Times • November 18, 2016

Thunderbirds fill Mass Band event HReporter allee Burgardt

HOPL mass band was held at Pretty Prairie on November 8. A total of 46 kids went and combined with the other schools in the league. There was a total of 210 musicians.

Mass Band is held every other year, as it alternates with Mass Choir. The band played a total of six songs that night.

“I was super proud of our bands’ leadership throughout the day,” director Bob Lee said.

“I thought it was a good performance overall.”

The band arrived at Pretty Prairie at 12:30 p.m. and rehearsed for four hours.

There was a meal provided and students got an hour to eat and change into their dress clothes

for the concert. The band came back together at 6 p.m. for a final rehearsal.

“Playing with a band that size helps you listen to all the other sections,” junior Joshua Nelson said. “It also helped with patience, having a group that size.”

The concert started at 7 p.m. and lasted about thirty minutes.

“It was interesting to get to watch my students who I teach every day learn from someone else,” Lee said. “You always pick up on new things by watching.”

Shawn Knopp was the director for the day. Knopp is the band instructor at Tabor College in Hillsboro. He transferred there after teaching band at Smoky Valley in Lindsborg for 11 years.

My stepson hasn’t gone overseas yet. He is an air traffic controller in Yuma Arizona. If he was overseas I couldn’t imagine the worry I’d have all the time. I have the utmost respect for the ones that are overseas. Veteran’s Day is very special to me because I’m very patriotic.

Melissa Hittle Stepson-Marines

Salute to veterans

Trump wins school DReporter aisy Marquez

The school voting poll was held by teachers Kenny Eddy, Chris Sanders, Shari Gates and Kris McPherson, while second grade teachers Hannah Barilla and Leah Befort were in charge of decorating.

The whole idea was to see who the students would vote in for president.

“People came out and voted because of (Donald) Trump,” Eddy said. “That’s why he won.”

Of the 379 students and teachers who voted, 73% voted for Trump, 14% voted for Hillary Clinton, and there were a couple votes for Gary Johnson and Jill Stein. ‘’To me, if you don’t vote, you don’t need to complain on who wins,’’ Eddy said.

On the real elections, Trump had 47% and Clinton had 42%

It seems normal to me to have a dad who has served, because that’s what I’ve known all my life. The hardest part is not being able to see them on holidays. Veteran’s Day is special to me and it makes me feel blessed to have a day that pays attention to that.

Katelynn McGraw, 9 Dad-Military

of the votes, while 6% voted for Gary Johnson and 3% supported Jill Stein.

Trump may have scored an astonishing upset presidential victory, but Clinton received more of the popular votes.

Trump had 59,535,522 votes, but won the electoral college.

Freshman Kaylee Harbour said that she voted for Trump and although he said degrading things about women, she thinks he will do great things for this country. She was very pleased with the outcome of the election.

Freshman Heidi Roberts said she voted for Hillary because she liked what she was saying more than Trump. She didn’t like the way Trump talked about women and other people.

Heidi says she was shocked that Trump won because Clinton had the most popularity votes.

I have a lot of good and bad memories with my dad serving and my grandpa who served, but recently passed.

My dad taught me a lot of good lessons, like working hard for what you want and being responsible. Veteran’s Day is special because it’s another day to celebrate my grandpa and remember him.

Kaylee Harbour, 9 Dad-Army Grandpa-Navy