March 2014

“The Latinos in Action is a class for Latinos to have a chance to learn leadership skills and help the community. Right now we are working on a service project to raise money to research a cure for cancer by promising a pizza party for the winning teacher that brings in the most money. Our goal is to earn 3,000 dollars for our fundraiser.” said Mr. Beebe, the Latinos in Action leader.

“We help the community and do fundraisers, we also help the school and other people like every Tuesday and Thursday we go to Brookside Elementary and help kids that need help with reading or writing. We really just try to contribute as much as we can,” said Daniela Melendez, an eighth grader in Latinos in Action.

Have you seen the new school? If you have not,  you should go and take a peek at how it is progressing. The current building has been around a long while and will be missed. It has such great memories, but we can make some new ones at the new school too.        

Our school principal, Mr. VanAusdal, said, “I think the students will love everything about the new school. Everything is bigger; we have two gyms that are bigger than the ones here. I just think it’s a beautiful building, and that it’s an energized environment for learning.”          

Second semester we have a new student council! Sean Stapel, Savannah Grant, Clara Brotherson, and Tyree Strong. According to Mrs. Murray, the student council supervisor, the student council meets every Tuesday and Friday during Quest Time. They plan the dance themes, conduct Super Knight assemblies, and plan school activities. Some of the school activities include, Red Ribbon Week, RASK Week, and selling Valegrams for Valentine’s Day. 

 Mr. Tsugawa is the orchestra teacher at SJHS, as well as a teacher of multiple music classes at the high school.

Those who have had Mr. Tsugawa love being in his class. “I like getting to play a lot of different songs,” said Mikinna McHoes, a violinist in Mr. Tsugawa’s ninth grade orchestra class.  According to another orchestra student, Brayden Miller, Mr. Tsugawa has a great sense of humor, but still knows when he needs to be serious. Many of his students here at the junior high plan to continue lessons from him in high school.

The students are preparing for an upcoming orchestra concert, and they sound great, thanks to the fine tuning and expert help they get from Mr. Tsugawa.

The counseling office is a great place to go for help.  But what exactly do the counselors do?  We have a sneak-peak into the everyday life of an SJHS counselor.

Mrs. Distefano, the seventh grade counselor here at SJHS, says that everyday is different.  “We have such a variety of things that we do, we want to help all students explore their options for the future so they can develop a plan to achieve their goals.”  The counselors work with students to help them be more successful in school, and to get through the challenges of being a teenager.

Foods Exploration is a class you can take when you are in eighth grade, and you can take Foods 1 in ninth grade. The foods teachers at SJHS are Mrs. Luke and Mrs. Murray. Mrs. Luke, a foods teacher at SJHS, said, “I love teaching kids a skill that they can use for the rest of their lives. The ability to cook helps a person be more self-sufficient, and it makes them feel great when they are able to create something yummy they can eat! I want them to be able to cook several meals/dishes by the end of the class, be able to read any recipe well enough that they can complete any dish successfully, and to learn about nutrition and be an amazing chef!” 

The Utah State Office of Education has made a big push for students in Utah to be "College and Career Ready" upon graduation.  As a way of helping students to get through that journey, Mrs. Walker from the Counseling office has designed a bulletin board in the game room (room #14) with some helpful information on what students can do throughout that process. Come check out what you can be doing now to become college and career ready!

On Wednesday, February 26th ninth graders went to Springville High School to get registered for next year. Anna Claire Smith, a ninth grade girl, is getting ready for high school. Anna Claire said she wants to take “really educational classes that will make my brain smarter… and sewing. Anna Claire is considering some high school sports, like soccer and cheerleading. 

Diana Sanchez, a ninth grade girl that visited the high school, says she wants to take classes in high school that will make her feel like  a “warrior”. Diana also is talking about high school sports and she wants to play soccer in high school.

What have the Gifted and Talented students been up to lately?The eighth grade Gifted and Talented (G&T) students took a field trip to the Hill Air Force Base on Friday, February 21. According to Mr. Hatfield, a science teacher who supervises the G&T groups, the purpose of this field trip was to teach the students the science behind flying aircraft. He says that he likes taking the students on field trips “to give them enrichment beyond what they learn in the regular classroom.”       

We see them all of the time. They serve our lunch every day. But do we really know who they are? Lisa Faber and Cory Ostler are two of the lunch ladies at SJHS who work hard to provide us with our food each day.       

Lisa Faber has been working at SJHS for two and a half years. She said that she really likes working here because she gets to come hang out with her friends. 

Aside from work, she has other hobbies she likes to do. “I am a book blogger. I read new books for publishers and authors,” she says.