January 2018
Volume 92
Varsity girls basketball; Nine wins and looking for more
Top photo: Sophomore Lateah Willie dribbles down the court in the game against the Lewis Central Titans. Bottom photo: Sophomore Alyssa Schubert takes on an opponent in an attempt to make a basket. Photos by: Cami Wagaman
Jordan McAlpine Reporter December, 18th, a 54-31 win over Ralston gives the Lady Jackets their fifth win of the season, surpassing the season win total from a year ago. Fast forward nearly a month later and the Jackets have continued their winning ways, going 4-2 in that stretch, and now sit at (9-5). “More than anything else, we’ve started to learn how to win,” said girls head coach Devin Schoening. “we’ve started to learn how to not just be in games, but how to actually finish games.
Hoag receives Governor’s STEM Iowa teacher of the year award
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“Defensively, we’ve been really tough. We have been able to hold teams to an average of a little more than 40 points a game, and that has really allowed us to be in every game we have played.” Now 14 games into the season, the Jackets look to be firing on all cylinders. With seven games remaining on the schedule, a huge opportunity awaits for the Jackets. Thomas Jefferson remains right in the thick of things within the conference and a chance at postseason play remains a real possibility. In order to get to that point though, as Schoening points out, every game is key and gives his team a chance to take a step a huge step forward in the Missouri River Conference standings. “Every conference game is vital if we want to have an opportunity to win the conference, and that’s a great feeling. It’s a feeling we haven’t had before, and we relish the opportunity to play meaningful games in January and February.” A big part of the opportunity to play meaningful games as this point of the season is thanks in part to the consistent play of several key players, starting with sophomore LaTeah Willie. Willie leads TJ in scoring on the season
with 209 points and is averaging 14.9 a game. Along with the points, the sophomore has came down with 69 rebounds which leads the team and also owns a team leading 48 steals. In addition to Willie, through 14 games Allisa Schubert has added 105 of her own points, right behind her sister who ranks second on the team with 113. Allison has also grabbed 60 rebounds which ranks third on the team. Senior Josey Starner has also been a big part of the Jackets success this season as she sits fourth in points with 103 and is second on the team in rebounds with 68, all key contributors to the Jackets recent winning ways. With seven games to go, there’s a lot on the line for the Jackets down the stretch and every game counts, but the head coach knows there’s still room for more growth out of his group. “We must not be complacent, or feel like we’ve accomplished anything yet. We have certainly played better this season, but I want to see that we can take our focus to another level and that we are willing to do anything necessary to be the best team that has ever played girls basketball at Thomas Jefferson High School.”
Liebenthal takes win in TJ’s DWTS competition
Cami Wagaman Editor-In-Chief Denise Hoag was caught by surprise when she was awarded with Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Southwest Iowa teacher of the year. On January 19, 2018 the Thomas Jefferson computer science teacher was awarded a $3,000 check for her efforts. The check that was given was split up for $1,500 personal use, and $1,500 for classroom development. Last year, Hoag received the Chapter area Teacher Of the Year award, as well as the State level Teacher Of the Year award, presented from the Nebraska Air Force Association. Before she became a teacher, Hoag was a training manager in the Air Force Reserves for seven years. During the ceremony, Regional STEM Manager, Deb Frazee had a few words to say to the students in attendance. “She is innovative, really out there, doing things that are relevant to help you all be members of the workforce,” states Frazee. “We are so pleased to be able to
Mr. Liebenthal and his partner, Senior Cassy Higgins, pose with the trophy for DWTS. Photo by: Cami Wagaman Computer Science Teacher, Denise Hoag poses with the award she received as Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Southwest Iowa teacher of the year. Photo by: Cami Wagaman
honor her as the 2018 Kemin teacher for Southwest Iowa.” Mrs. Hoag currently teaches three Concurrent Enrollment (CE) classes, as well as two Advanced Placement (AP) classes. She places a large emphasis on preparing elementary and middle school students for computer science courses, including leading several summer camps and after school programs aimed at getting young girls involved in STEM classes, as well as the teacher adviser for the Wilson Middle School robotics team. Hoag has learned her craft
through sitting on the Computer Science Teachers Association Omaha branch, being a part of the Computer Science Education Work Group in 2017, and many more endeavors. Hoag was one of six who had received this award, as one Teacher from each of the six STEM regions is recognized for going above and beyond for their students. All of the recipients will be recognized together at the state Capital with Governor, and STEM Council Co-Chair, Kim Reynolds on the morning of Wednesday, February 14.
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Kelsie Anderson Reporter The Thomas Jefferson Dance team held the second annual Dancing with the Stars of TJ on Friday, January 26. The event was a huge success last year and the audience, judges, and auditioners all had fun and really enjoyed it. Winners of the competition will earn a trophy and possibly gain the chance to dance at a pep rally or with TJ’s dance team at the end of the year. Last years winner, Mr. Tworek explains his experience from last year, saying “It was amazing.” Dancers are required to
recruit a volunteer dancer and a recruit member and to require a short dance routine for both them and their partner. “I loved all of the energy from the crowd and students,” states Tworek. “It was fun for everybody.” The audience was given the chance to vote for the dancers and got one additional vote and may buy more auditional votes. This year, Tworek failed to maintain his title as the champion, and after a putting up a good fight, landing him in the Top Five, was forced to give up his trophy to Mr. Liebenthal. Congratulations to Mr. Liebenthal and Senior Cassy Higgins on their victory!
News
THE SIGNAL Editor-in-Chief Cami Wagaman
CBCSD puts hold on corridor plans
Copy Editor Adriana Ibarra Paginator Adriana Ibarra Cami Wagaman Staff Madasyn Davis Emily Eikenberry Alondra Ibarra Morgan Jacobson Courtney Jones Jordan McAlpine
Cami Wagaman Editor-in-Chief
Adviser Rob Lindquist Phone: 712-328-6493 Facebook: CBJacketJournalism Twitter:@TJHSJournalism Web: cbjacketjournalism.com Snapchat: tjhsjournalism
The Council Bluffs Community School District has proposed a new plan for a corridor that could be put in place at Thomas Jefferson High School in order to connect the main building with the Activities Center (TJAC). The corridor idea was introduced earlier this school year at a school board meeting. Many architects pitched their ideas to the school board, but no plans were set in stone, the board had been simply gathering information in order to go in the best possible direction with the motion to build the connector. As the plans become clearer, the school board will take reasonable action by voting on the project. “The first phase will include the safety measures, such as the reconfiguration of the main building entrance and some beautification, such as landscape,” explains Diane Ostrowski, the district’s spokeswoman. “Any covered walkway or extended
An Idea of what the connector will look like when it is finished. Photo provided by: HGM Associates
structure would come in a later phase.” After the initial plan was approved, the district added two new faces to the TJHS staff, to add some security to the school as the corridor plans were put into motion. “We are excited to partner with the city on enhancements to the First Avenue corridor as we beautify the Thomas Jefferson High School campus, make our buildings more secure and protect our students from some of the elements as they travel between the two buildings,” Superintendent Vickie Murillo stated to The Daily Nonpareil in a
January 7th article. The cost of the project has not yet been determined. “It’s obviously not a very cheap proposition,” states May. “The cost varies depending on which example we go with. At this point it would be skeptical to make a decision as far as the cost is concerned.” As the school board decides on which direction to go in concerning the connector, an estimated cost of $1.3 million was mentioned according to TJHS Principal Todd Barnett. The original plan was set to be finished during the summer of 2018.
Social media; Harmful or Helpful?
The city and the School board have been working hand in hand in order to prepare plans that work for the both of them. “There has been some cooperation from the city to look at what might be done and some things that the city still has planned in the future,” states TJHS principal Todd Barnett. “It’s been a collaborative effort.” The district is still in the process of solidifying the plans for the corridor, and the date has not been set for the start of construction. Stay up to date with the latest news for the proposal of the corridor online at bit.ly/ SignalNews!
The Signal is a school-sponsored publication of Thomas Jefferson High School 2501 W. Broadway Council Bluffs, Iowa 51501. The Signal’s office is located in the upper library. The Signal is printed by OH-K FASTPRINT in Omaha, NE. The Signal is a school-sponsored-publication and therefore recognizes its responsibility to stay within the boundaries that the school administrator sets. The Signal will therefore inform its readers using a high standard of morals and ethics. The Signal encourages readers to respond in the form of letters to the editor, which can be sent to room C128. The Signal’s editorial staff reserves the right to edit the letters for grammatical errors and to remove any profanity. The editors also reserve the right to exclude letters that are false in their statements or accusations. The Signal will not accept advertisements that promote activities illegal to minors. Advertising rates are available upon request.
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Learning Commons
Morgan Jacobson Reporter The 21st century has shown that society has come a long way, almost everyone has a phone and some sort of platform to speak on, such as Facebook or Twitter. There are things that some of us don’t notice, that are really affecting the way we live life. Most people are on their phones so much that they don’t really notice what is going on around them. You can make a big change to spare someone from feeling unimportant, you could easily start by putting your phone down and having a conversation about your day or their day and just listen to them. Another tip is to make some rules, regarding the amount of time that you may spend on your phone or watching. Kids are getting phones at younger ages and sometimes it is the only way to make them happy, and it is getting to be a bigger problem because not only are they not spending time with their family and friends but they have a bigger chance to be bullied. So many kids today have
Newspaper staff laughing at social media instead of doing their work. Photo by: Morgan Jacobson
phones, if they don’t have the newest phones or anything they are picked on for that. This doesn’t sound like a giant issue right? Wrong, the kids are also using platforms like snapchat to say things about other students and bully them for their clothes or how they don’t have super nice shoes. A lot of the times it is actually in elementary schools and the kids aren’t taking these insults well, it is scary how the youth of today has changed from 10 years ago. Social media is such a big thing today, it holds such an influence and certain people who are supposed to be role models for the younger crowd are not doing anything to show them the right path. YouTube is probably the biggest platform for this at the moment and YouTubers like
Logan Paul, are giant role models because kids want to be exactly like him. Recently he was in Japan and went to the suicide forest and actually filmed a man dead and his audience who is mostly made up of kids from 10 - 12. People are so into Logan Paul and his brother Jake Paul that they will go to the extreme to bullying one student for being a fan of the brother they do not like. We could live life without social media, if you have such an addiction to social media then deactivate your account. Some social media sites such as Facebook can allow you to deactivate your account for as long as you want and you can reactivate it when you feel like it. You can start a plan or even challenge yourself to see how long you can go without.
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The new and improved library clerk desk. Photo by: Emily Eikenberry
Emily Eikenberry Reporter In the month of December, construction started in the downstairs of the library, where a desk was built in the center of the room. The desk makes the library clerk more accessible to students that have questions, or need to check out a book. “I think converting it to the Learning Commons is a good idea,” says K-12 instructional technology program lead, Devin Schoening. “It is a opportunity to create a space that is just more than books, we never want to say that the library is just books and research. We also wanted a space where kids can collaborate, create things, and just sit and relax somethings. We want to be more of a college library/ Learning commons than just a typically library.”
After the desk was built, books that were removed from the shelves in order to renovate were put on new shelves. Earlier this trimester, the technology support center had some renovations themselves. They received a plexiglass wall for the entrance. Construction to the learning commons doesn’t stop there. Soon there will be new shelves upstairs, as well as new furniture. “The next steps getting the back offices cleaned out and putting the wall between the conference room and Lindquist’s room,” states Schoening. “Once all that is in place we can put all the yearbooks on shelves from the back offices.” The Learning commons is expected to be done with construction at the beginning of the 2018-19 school year. Stay updated with Jacket Journalism at www.cbjacketjournalism.com!
NEWS
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