Volume 12 Issue 7 - Unit School District #304

IN THIS ISSUE:
First place for art pair
p. 8
3rd quarter honor rolls
p. 8
Small, but mighty
p. 10
Storm Tracker
THE United High School NewsLine
Volume 12, Issue 7
STORM ALERTS
Calendar notes
No days off are scheduled for April but there
will be one early dismissal.
Classes will be dismissed on Wednesday,
April 13, at 1:00 p.m.
for the monthly school
improvement day.
The month of May
depends on whether
any emergency days are
used.
At present, the last
day for senior attendance
is Tuesday, May 10, with
graduation set for Sunday May 15.
Underclassmen are
scheduled to attend
school through Tuesday,
May 24, and teachers are
scheduled through May
25.
Classes for the 20162017 school year will
commence on August
15 & 16 for teachers,
while students will be in
session for a full day of
classes on Wednesday,
August 17.
State payments lag
once again
A month after only
owing United $38,724,
the State of is once
again lagging in its payments to the district.
As of March 31, the
state owes the district
more than $200,000,
much of which is for
transportation reimbursement.
It’s not known when,
of if, the school district
will ever receive the
money owed it.
United ICTM qualifies for state tourney
By Bridget Perkins
ICTM, or the Illinois
Council of Teachers of
Mathematics, is a mathematics competition which
ranges from algebra to
pre-­calculus with individual competitions and team
competitions.
Regionals were held on
February 27 at Western Illinois University.
“We faced some tough
competition at regionals
because of new schools, but
in the end it was really just
a competition between us
and Illini West,” ICTM advisor and high school math
teacher Brooke Anderson
said.
Senior Brody Freiden
and junior Marshall McDorman placed well in the
oral competition which put
them ahead in the score.
Brody Frieden and
McDorman were also on a
two­person team at regionals along with another two­
person team consisting of
sophomore Zac Frieden and
freshman Alena Buckley.
“We worked really hard
for months to try to do well
in an event that can be very
challenging. Mr. McIntosh
works with us a lot to make
sure we know what we are
doing,” Brody Frieden said.
Ben McIntosh taught for
40 years, 32 of those years
at Warren/United, where he
taught mathematics, physics and some computer
science.
United’s ICTM team
was able to win regionals and will advance
onto the state finals on
May 7 at the University
of Illinois Champaign­/
Urbana.
Final preparations underway as prom quickly approaches
By Natalie Johnson
If you could travel
around the world in one
night, would you?
Those attending United
High School’s 2016 prom,
themed “Around the World”
can!
“We’ve been working
really efficiently and been
so ahead of schedule. It’s
been really nice to not have
to stress about anything,”
said junior prom committee
member Ellie Cheline.
The prom committee
has also been wise and
saved a lot of money by
making centerpieces as
well as other various decorations.
United’s after prom party will be held at YMCA in
Monmouth as well as being
highlighted by another trip
to Six Flags in St. Louis
following activities at the
YMCA.
Every year, two members of the sophomore class
are chosen to represent
their class at prom as well
as help prom advisor Madeline Wood with promenade
ballots.
The two members that
have been chosen are Claire
Oetting and Darrin Ross.
“I think both of the
sophomore attendants are
very responsible and are
very deserving to be the attendants,” said junior prom
committee member Mallory Flynn.
Promenade will be
held on April 23 beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the
United High School
Fieldhouse, with the
dinner and dance to
follow in Galesburg at
Soangetaha Country
Club.
The public is invited
to attend the promenade
and there is no charge to
attend.
The State of Illinois owes the United School District...
$211,900.75!
Source:
Illinois State Board of Education (3/31/2016)
STORM TRACKER
1905 100th Street
Monmouth, IL 61462
(309) 734-9411
The Storm Tracker is published
monthly, wth additional issues as warranted, by the journalism students of
United High School, and is distributed
online via the World Wide Web. The
material published does not necessarily
reflect the viewpoint of the administration
of United School District #304.
While every attempt is made to
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contained herein, the advertising in the
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color, handicapped status, veteran or
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print ads that violate any local, state, or
federal laws.
Parties interested in advertising in
the Storm Tracker should contact Mr.
Kozelichki at the address and/or phone
number listed above.
Letters to the editor must be mailed
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than 350 words. The author’s name and
phone number must be included for verification purposes. The Storm Tracker
only edits letters in cases of timeliness
and obscenity and does not guarantee
publication of all letters.
STORM TRACKER
Cass Singleton, Editor
Reporters:
Carena Choate, Bridget
Perkins, Becca Rutledge,
Maggie Simkins, Miranda
Bryan, Hanna Dunton,
Emma Giese, Natalie
Johnson, Lauren Sperry &
Nathan Studer
“Some material courtesy
of American Society of
Newspaper Editors/MCT
Campus High School
Newspaper Service.”
WEBPAGE ADDRESS
www.united.k12.il.us
The webpage contains
links to each district building and office, as well as
access to the online grading
system and calendar.
page 2
Personnel changes may be dictated by finances
By Cass Singleton
Editor-in-Chief
On March 10, the United school board discussed
the issues of personnel to
prepare for next school
year.
One personal change
discussed at the meeting
was that three teachers in
the United district have
resigned and will not be returning to teach next school
year.
One of those teachers
who resigned was high
school chemistry and
physics teacher Tayler
Kuenneth, who just began
teaching for the district this
past year.
Kuenneth’s resignation
means the district must
search for its fourth chemistry teacher in three years.
“The teachers who resigned did it on their own,
but how we fill the positions will be dependent on
the budget. We might not
fill them person to person
like we used to,” superintendent Jeff Whitsitt said.
Five teachers were also
POSITION
ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Board of Education of the United Community Unit School District #304 is accepting
applications for the following positions for the
2016-2017 school year:
Certified Position JH Math Teacher
Elementary Self-Contained Teacher(s)
Cross-Categorical Special Ed Teacher
HS Science Teacher
Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Elementary Media Teacher (Tech/Library)
Stipend Positions
Fresh-Soph Volleyball Coach
All letters of application inquires and credentials are to be sent to:
Jeff Whitsitt, Superintendent
United Community School District #304
1905 100th St. Monmouth, IL 61462
The Superintendent of Schools will screen all applications. The administrative staff will conduct
interviews. Applicants are not to contact board
members.
UNITED CUSD #304
contact numbers
Superintendent’s Office
734-9413
FAX 734-0223
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734-9411
FAX 734-6090
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United Junior High
734-8511
FAX 734-6094
United Elementary North
482-3332
FAX 482-3341
United Elementary West
734-8513
FAX 734-8515
DAVID REID CLARK
STEVEN R. GLASGOW
MICHELLE SPERRY, Paralegal
309-734-8464
MONMOUTH, ILLINOIS
moved to tenured status at
the meeting which is something the school feels can
really add some comfort
to teachers and help them
excel more in their classrooms.
“Tenure makes teachers feel better about taking
risks in the classroom and
makes them want to try
new things. They know
that even if something they
try doesn’t work, they can’t
get fired for it,” Whitsitt
said.
At the meeting the
board also rehired four
non-tenured teachers and
hired a new special education teacher to a full time
position at the West El-
ementary.
At the North Elementary, Julie Olin has been
moved from a full time
special reading teacher to
part time, at her request.
“With the move we will
lose half a day of reading,
but we will just have to
adapt. I doubt if we will
rehire that other half,”
Whitsitt said.
At the meeting members
also voted and agreed to
amend next year’s calendar
and move parent/teacher
conferences off of the
weekend of homecoming.
The next school board
meeting is scheduled for
April 19.
CSC opens doors to sophomore career exploration
By Natalie Johnson
The future can be scary
for most high schoolers
who are all carrying the
same question: What are
they going to be?
Every single year the
United sophomores take a
trip to Carl Sandburg College where a career fair is
held.
At the fair students
spend 30 minutes with
each of their chosen career
classes.
Sixty-five students were
in attendance from United.
“I think the fair helped a
lot with explaining careers,” sophomore Laura
Hart said.
Students had 29 choices
of career based classes to
choose from, and students
chose three to take during
the day.
Among the choices of
careers were nursing, journalism and welding.
“I really liked the nursing class because they
explained much more about
the career than I knew
before walking in,” said
sophomore Janelle King
Every year the career
fair is sponsored by Delabar CTE System.
Perhaps one of the most
important classes offered
at the fair was the class entitled “Your Career: Choosing A College And Paying
For It.”
The presentation was to
help students in the process of choosing a school,
applying for financial aid
and talk about their future
educational expenses.
210 N. Main Monmouth
734-5100
page 3
B.O.O.S.T programs looking to add more clubs to rotation
By Cass Singleton
Editor-in-Chief
Even though the United
High School B.O.O.S.T
program has already served
257 students as of February, the program is looking
to add three new clubs into
their weekly rotation to be
able cater to even more of
the student body.
One of the clubs that the
program is wanting to add
is a cooking club where
students will have the opportunity to learn about
the basics of being in the
kitchen, kitchen safety and
basic sanitation.
“My thought would be
to choose some healthy
recipes, that would include
a grocery list, preparation,
clean up and then being
able to enjoy the days
project either on site or
take home and share with
family,” Doug Dennison,
21st Century Site Coordinator, said.
Another club idea would
be a Sewing Club where
students could learn the
basics of using a sewing machine and students
would have some kind of
finished project to enjoy.
The third new club
idea is an Auto Club for
students to learn simple
auto care skills, such as
troubleshooting/diagnos-
ing warning lights, simple
maintenance and simple
repairs.
“This club could provide an opportunity for our
students to jump start an
interest in going to college to earn a certification
in auto mechanics, auto
repairs or some similar
trades,” Dennison said.
Chris Menge, who
already runs the B.O.O.S.T
RRCC Club, is planning on
heading the Auto Club, and
high school guidance counselor Kay Shaver is planning on running the sewing
and cooking clubs.
The starting date for
these clubs is still unde-
termined, but the program
would like to begin them
before the end of the year,
if enough students want to
participate.
Spanish class experiences Chicago’s “Little Village”
By Lauren Sperry
The annual Spanish IV
trip to Chicago took place
on Saturday, March 5, and
included 13 students and
Spanish teacher Mr. Brian
Higbee and his wife.
“I think it’s a great thing
to have all that Chicago
offers just a relatively short
distance from us,” Senor
Higbee said.
The first stop was at a
fresh market called Cermak
which was a mixture of
Spanish foods and packages along with what one
would normally see in a
grocery store.
There was also a wide
3317 Agency St
Burlington, IA
(319) 754-7975
variety of seafood and meat
freshly butchered and on
display to purchase.
Across the street was
a party and candy store
which was full of pinatas
and chili flavored candy.
The next stop was La
Baguette, a Mexican bakery.
As the trip participants
walked in the door, there
was a stack of metal platters and tongs which they
used to gather up the self­
serve baked goods for purchase at a shockingly low
price.
Not too far away was
the Discount Mall, which
was set up with multiple
vendors in a row and offered anything from prom
dresses and tuxedos to live
animals.
From the Discount Mall,
AD SPACE AS LOW AS
$10 A YEAR!
CONTACT THE STORM TRACKER FOR MORE INFORMATION
ALEXIS
Public Library
102 N. Broadway
(309) 482-6109
M-W-Th-F
2:00-5:00 p.m.
Saturday
9:00 a.m.-Noon
(closed Tue & Sun)
Large Print Books, Interlibrary
Loan, Children’s Stories, Programs,
Copy Machine, Magazines,
Monmouth Review Atlas,
Computer Use
they walked to Taqueria el
Milagro for lunch where
they served many varieties of burritos, tacos and
quesadillas.
“My favorite part was
all of the food. It was a lot
better than I expected,”
senior Kathryn Lee said.
The next stop was at
the National Museum of
Mexican Art, the largest in
the nation.
The museum serves to
connect the diversity of art
from both Mexico and the
United States.
Dinner at Meson Sabika
in Naperville concluded the
trip.
This restaurant is known
for their tapas, or Spanish
appetizers, which are meant
to be shared around the
table, as well the paella, a
common Mexican rice dish.
“I like to provide this
opportunity especially for
those students who are not
able to go on our trip to
Spain. In just a day’s time
students are able to experience firsthand a number of
things that we discuss in
class,” Higbee said.
This experience allowed
the Spanish class to try authentic Mexican food and it
exposed them to a Mexican
culture.
page 4
SCENES FROM THE SOUTH SIDE
Individual successes lead to team achievements in a wide range of activities
FFA
By Bridget Perkins
This year’s FFA banquet was held February
17, which was run by the
2015­2016 officers including president J.C. Campbell, vice president Kaylyn
Hall, reporter Brooke
Ryner, secretary Ian Allaman, treasurer Randi Shimmin and sentinel Same
Brownlee.
“I think this year the
selection committee put together a great group of officers. Many of them have a
lot of experience and all of
them have a great passion
for FFA and agriculture. I
expect very big things for
them,” Campbell said.
The 2016­2017 officers include Allaman as
president, Ryner as vice
president, Jessica Hall as
reporter, Loren Fox as sentinel, Kodiak Shimmin as
treasurer and Alison Barrington as historian.
“I believe that next
year’s officers will be very
successful. We added a
historian office to the team
and I know that this office
will add a lot of help to our
FFA. We all have worked
together and we are all very
active in FFA. I cannot wait
to get this year started with
all of the great leadership
skills that are on this officer
team,” Ryner said.
Connor Carmody, the
Illinois state vice president,
was the keynote speaker
at the banquet while Don
Moffitt, the Illinois state
legislator, came to support.
Other awards were
given to Emma Parkins for
star greenhand, Jessica Hall
for star chapter farmer and
Russ Campbell was elected
into the honorary chapter
member where members
were recognized for their
accomplishments in CDEs
or Career development
events and SAEs or supervised agriculture experiences.
Carly Thompson was
the most active freshman,
Casey Struble was the most
active sophomore, Kodiak
Shimmin was the most
active junior and Wyatt
Chandler was the most active senior.
The 2016-17 FFA Leadership Team
Scholastic Bowl
By Maggie Simkins
Regional champs is
the current title the United
High School Scholastic
Bowl team holds.
On March 7, the scholastic bowl team went to
Annawan High School to
compete for the regional
championship and they
brought it home.
“It was pretty intense
for scholastic bowl. Our
first match was our most
competitive. After that,
though, the questions got
really hard. Thank goodness Marshall McDorman
was on our team! There
was a question about fine
arts and when I buzzed
in my entire team looked
either afraid or absolutely
stunned. When I got it right
everyone was surprised,”
senior J.C. Campbell said.
The varsity team went
21-7 overall for the season,
while the JV ended the season with a winning record,
as well.
Brody Frieden and Marshall McDorman were excellent leaders this season
with both teams. Darrin
Ross, Alena Buckley and
Carson Huff were leaders
for the JV.
Success at both levels
leaves United looking
forward to next winter’s
season.
Ending conference play
undefeated with a record of
15-0, the team was hoping
to have great success at
regionals.
At the Annawan Re-
United’s regional champion Scholastic Bowl team
gional, they faced hard
competition from Knoxville, Bushnell-Prairie City,
and Galva but came out
with victories in some very
close matches.
Sectionals saw very
tough competition as well.
“Having the school’s
first Scholastic Bowl
Sectional appearance was
a great experience for the
kids,” coach Susie Frieden
said.
The varsity faced Port
Byron-Riverdale, Peoria
Christian and Peru St.
Bede. United played well
but in the end had a record
of 0-3 for the day.
It was a round robin
tournament, so the team
with the most wins advanced.
“We had a very good
season. We were able to
win out until sectionals.
We like to joke that we are
United’s best winter sports
team. The best part of the
season was when we beat
our conference rivals, Annawan, twice. Yes, there
are rivalries in scholastic
bowl,” Campbell said.
Music Solo/Ensemble
By Emma Giese,
Freshman Sydney Elswick got a one, a perfect
score on a scale of one to
five, on the solo she sang at
Solo and Ensemble Contest
on March 5 at MonmouthRoseville High School.
Elswick was the only
person in United’s choir to
get a perfect score at the
event.
“ It was a rough day,
with people being ill
and being nervous, but I
thought it went well overall! I’m very proud of the
students that performed,”
said choir director Mrs.
Katy Pedigo.
For next year Pedigo
plans on changing the
amount of time students
spend preparing their
pieces. She believes extra
practice time could help
them become more successful with future performances.
“The highlight for me
was seeing some of my
See “Musicians” on p. 6
PIERCE TRUCKING
FOR
ALL
YOUR
GRAIN
AND
ROCK
HAULING
NEEDS
WAYNE PIERCE
and
DENNIS HIGGINS
2076 U.S. Hwy 67
Monmouth, IL
Phone
309-734-2218
Cell
309-221-6171
page 5
CSC Presents THE COLLEGIATE CONNECTION
Stories, clues and hints to help you prepare for life after high school
CSC receives largest donation in school’s history
Carl Sandburg College
has received a $2.5 million
donation left by a recently
passed away community
business leader.
Ann Asplund’s is the
largest single gift the
school’s foundation has
ever received according to
a Sandburg news release.
The proceeds of the
gift will go towards “helping students realize their
dreams of achieving a col-
lege education”.
Dr. Lori Sundberg saus
Asplund, who she knew
personally, was a “trailblazer.”
“I’m just beyond words
really with this gift,” Sun-
College Career Fair to be held next week
GALESBURG — The
25th annual Carl Sandburg
College Career Expo will
take place from 11 a.m. to
1 p.m. April 5 in John M.
Lewis Gymnasium on the
College’s Main Campus in
Galesburg.
The Career Expo is free
and open to the public. Job
seekers will have the opportunity to network with more
than 60 organizations, explore career fields and learn
about Sandburg’s programs
of study.
The following organizations are scheduled to participate in the Career Expo:
182nd Illinois Air National
Guard
Aflac
AMC Theatres
Beacon of Hope Hospice
B.D.i
Big River Resources
Bright Futures Preschool
Caterpillar
Compassus Hospice and
Palliative Care
Cottage Home Health
DD Homes
DHS – Division of Reha
bilitation Services
Eagle View Community
Health System
Family Video/Marco’s
Pizza
Federal Bureau of Prisons
First Midwest Bank
FM95/WGIL/105.3
KFM/92.7 FM The
Laser
Fleet Staff
Galesburg Fire Department
Gales/Knox County 911
Galesburg Police Dept.
Genesis Medical Center
Goodwill Learning Center
Graham Health System
Great Clips
Great Oaks Camp
Harbor Light Hospice
Heartland Healthcare
Henderson, Knox, Mercer
Warren Regional Office
of Education No. 33
Hy-Vee
Illinois Department of Em
ployment Security
Illinois Laborers & Con
tractors Joint Appren
ticeship Program
Illinois State Police
Iowa Dept. of Corrections
JCPenney Salon
Knox County Health Dept.
Knox County Nursing
Home
Knox County Workforce
Office
Learning Connections
Local 25 Plumbers and
Pipefitters
Lowe’s
Marigold Rehab and
Health Care Center
Mary Kay Cosmetics
Mediacom
Menards
Oak Lane Nursing &
Rehab/Oakwood Retire
ment Center
OSF Healthcare System
Per Mar Security Services
Professional Swine Mgt
River Crossing Rehab
Roseville Rehab and
Health Care
Royal Publishing
Saint Francis Medical
College of Nursing
Securitas
Seminary Village
Sherwin Williams
Stone-Hayes, CIL
Trinity College of Nursing
& Health Sciences
Unique Personnel Consul
tants
United States Army
United States Customs and
Border Protection
Unity Point Health Meth
odist/Proctor
Unity Point Health
University of Central Mis
souri, RN-BSN Online
Walgreens
Walmart
Warren Achievement
Center
WHBF TV
To view the most upto-date list of participating
organizations, visit www.
sandburg.edu/careerexpo.
For more information,
contact Tracy Engstrom,
coordinator of career development, at 341-5246 or
[email protected]
dberg said. “I hope that
others in the community
see Ann’s gift and legacy
and they see the value of
the college.”
The Carl Sandburg College Foundation that will
receive the gift is a nonprofit that contributions to
it go towards expanding
and enhancing the school’s
“programs, support students through scholarships and crisis loans and
grants.”
Despite financial
strain amidst the community college not receiving
state funds in the last nine
months due to the Illinois
budget crisis, Sundberg
insists these funds won’t be
used for operational costs.
Asplund, who passed
away February 9 at the age
of 84, was a Galesburg
business leader who was
the first woman to win the
Galesburg Chamber of
Commerce Outstanding
Business Leader Award.
High school coming fast
for current 8th graders
By Nathan Studer
On March 30 The high
school hosted a freshman
orientation, where all current 8th graders came to
the high school and went
over all of the thing they’ll
need to know about attending high school in the fall.
The incoming freshman
were told about the classes
that they can take and will
be taking, as well as those
that will have to wait until
later in their high school
career.
They will also be
talked to about the current
B.O.O.S.T program, which
will be grant funded for at
least another year,
“This is an extremely
important meeting to
help the incoming freshman begin high school in
a positive direction. We
want to give the students
and their parents as much
information as we can for a
successful high school experience,” Mrs Kay Shaver,
high school counselor said.
The meeting also went
over how the food services work, extracurricular
activities there are for the
students, and how they will
get helped to prepare themselves for when they leave
high school.
“I can’t believe that i
will be entering high school
already, but I am ready for
whatever it has to throw at
me. I’m looking forward
to playing football, and
playing the snare drums
in band,” freshman-to-be
Samuel Mono said.
CSC CALENDAR REMINDERS
Thursday, May 11 Spring Semester Ends
Friday, May 12 Graduation
Tuesday, August 9 Fall Tuition Due
Monday, August 22 Fall Classes Begin
page 6
April North Campus Lunch Menu
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
1
TBA
4
Sausage Pizza
Green Beans
Applesauce
Cookie
5
Breaded Chicken Patty
French Fries
Mandarin Oranges
Teddy Grahams
6
Hamburger
Chips & Salsa
Peas
Pear Half
7
Crispito
Lettuce & Tomato
Spanish Rice
Pineapple Tidbits
8
BBQ Pork Sandwich
Tator Tots
Fruit Cocktail
Rice Krispie Treat
11
Catfish Strips
Baked Beans
Coleslaw
Cherry Freeze
12
Italian Chicken Sandwich
Pasta Salad
Green Beans
Applesauce
13
Ham & Cheese Sandwich
French Fries
Tropical Fruit
Cookie
14
Hot Dog
Tator Triangle
Mandarin Oranges
Jello Cup
15
Taco Stack
Lettuce & Tomato
Pineapple Tidbits
Teddy Grahams
18
Chicken Nuggets
AuGratin Potatoes
Green Beans
Strawberries
19
Spaghetti w/Meat Sauce
Lettuce Salad
Garlic Stix
Fruit Cocktail
20
BBQ Rib Sandwich
Tator Tots
Peach
Fruit Snack
21
Chicken Fajita
Lettuce & Tomato
Red Beans & Rice
Mandarin Oranges
22
Cheeseburger
Chips & Salsa
Corn
Pear
25
Tenderloin
French Fries
Tropical Fruit
Teddy Grahams
26
Chicken Strips
Baked Beans
Applesauce
Cookie
27
Stormburger
Chips & Salsa
Peas
Pineapple Tidbits
28
Hot Dog
Tator Triangle
Peach
Fruit Snack
29
Taco Tator
Lettuce & Tomato
Fruit Cocktail
Pudding Cup
21 United student council members attends regional meeting in Milan
By Becca Rutledge
The 31st annual student
council district convention
was held March 10 at the
Milan Community Center.
United sent 21 members this year accompanied
by advisors Mrs. Jennifer
Stoneking and Mrs. Brooke
Anderson.
This years theme was
“Be a Super Hero.” Dave
Ernst was the guest speaker.
Ernst is an inspirational
speaker who lost his son
in 2000 due to a car accident, Ernst shared the many
heroes in his life and says
he tries to make everyday
worth living.
“Listening to the message the speaker shared
was very eye opening. I
think it made everyone
think of how we are never
guranteed another day of
life, so we should make
days count,” student council president Addy McKee
said.
The student councils
were split into groups and
put with students from
other schools.
They did this so the
students could meet new
people and try something
different.
“I thought the district
convention went well. It is
always nice to get together
with other schools in our
area and collect ideas and
collaborate,” Anderson
said.
Another tradition is the
‘hall of ideas’ where the
different councils bring one
idea they did the last year
and share it with everyone.
United’s student council
shared their idea of “bring
Seven Hills Alpacas
your own banana.’
For a week on announcements every student was
told to bring a banana on
Friday and there would be a
surprise.
On Friday everyone
who brought a banana got a
sundae.
The student council did
this more for appreciation
for all the students that get
involved in the activities
that the hold all year long.
Musicians compete at Solo/Ensemble contest
Continued from page 4
upper classmen growth
from their performances
last year. Also, having the
Chamber Choir perform a
piece together was pretty
special. This is the first
time I’ve taken a group of
that size to perform,” said
Pedigo.
As for band, they ranked
third in state for their class.
Last year, they ranked as
sixth.
Brody Frieden and
Lizzie Pleshko earned perfect scores on their instrumental solos while Darrin
Ross, Sydney Elswick, Erin
Glisan, Brody Frieden, and
Kyle Flicek all played their
scales without error.
“ I feel so fortunate all
38 events showed up on
time, dressed professionally, with music and numbered score, and instrument.
I greatly enjoyed being in
the audience and listening
to many beautiful performances. I am so proud of
the United band program,”
band director Mrs. Madeline Wood said.
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April High School & West Campus Lunch Menu & Calendar
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
page 7
FRIDAY
1
Pizza
Romaine Salad
Blueberry Muffin
Mandarin Oranges
4
Tenderloin
AuGratin Potatoes
Peas
Pears
5
Tacos
Black Beans
Spanish Rice
Peaches
6
Chicken Strips
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Green Beans
Banana
7
BBQ Rib Sandwich
Macaroni & Cheese
Carrots & Celery
Strawberries
8
Fiestada
Romaine Salad
Cookies & Creme
Apple
11
Hot Dog
Tator Tots
Baked Beans
Orange
12
Super Nachos
Mexican Corn
Spanish Rice
Applesauce Sweetie
13
Chicken Nuggets
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Carrots
Grapes
14
Chicken Alfredo
Bosco Stick
Romaine Salad
Peaches
15
Ham Sandwich
Fritos
Ice Cream
Fruit Cocktail
18
Hamburger
French Fries
Baked Beans
Apple
19
Taco in a Bag
Carrots
Lettuce & Tomato
Banana
20
Chicken Fried Steak
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Green Beans
Grapes
21
Spaghetti w/Meat Sauce
Bosco Stick
Peas
Pears
22
Cheese Sticks
Marinara Sauce
Romaine Salad
Rice Krispie Treat
25
Storm Burger
Hashbrowns
Baked Beans
Mandarin Oranges
26
Fajitas
Spanish Rice
Refried Beans
Strawberries
27
Popcorn Chicken
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Carrots
Applesauce Sweetie
28
Chicken Patty
Broccoli & Cheese
Sun Chips
Fruit Cocktail
29
Turkey Sub
Lettuce & Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Ice Cream Bar
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FRIDAY
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1
FFA Star Awards @ U of I
V/FS BB @ BWP
2
FFA State Awards @ U of I
JH Solo/Ensemble @ W..C.
V BB vs Galva DH
V SB vs Galva DH
3
4
FFA Farm Bureau Youth
Conf in Springfield
FS BB vs Ridgewood
5
FFA Envirothon
FFA Farm Bureau Youth
Conf in Springfield
V B Track @ M&R Quad
V G Track @ ROWVA
JH Track @ Knoxville
V/FS BB @ Ridgewood
V/FS SB @ Ridgewood
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Career Shadowing for Jrs
FFA Dist 1 Public Speaking
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Jostens Grad Delivery
FFA Ag Mechanics CDE
JH Schol Bowl @ A-town
JH Track @ M/R
V/FS SB vs Ridgewood
V BB vs Ridgewood
8
9
JH Track @ Orion
V BB @ A&W DH
V SB @ A&W DH
10
11
FS BB @ A&W DH
V/FS SB @ North Fulton
12
FFA Sect 4 Livestock CDE
JH Schol Bowl vs Galva
JH Track @ Bushnell
V/FS SB vs Mercer County
V BB vs Mercer County
13
1:00 Dismissal
JH Track @ ICS
V/FS BB vs Knoxville
14
V G Track @ Rockridge
V/FS SB @ Mercer County
V BB @ Mercer County
School Board Meeting
15
16
FS SB United Tourney
FFA @ ICC Livestock
V/FS BB @ Illini Bluffs
17
18
V B&G Track @ Muggs
McGinnis Invite
19
JH Track @ Sherrard
V/FS BB @ West Central
V/FS SB @ West Central
20
FS B Track @ Wethersfield
JH Track at United High
V/FS BB @ Knoxville
21
V/FS BB vs West Central
V/FS SB vs West Central
7th & 8th grade Band LTC
concert @ ROWVA
22
FFA @ Livestock&Poultry
CDE at U of I
B&G Track @ Rockridge
23
Prom
JH Track-Bobby Dunlap
Relays @ Sunnylane
24
25
B&G Track United Invite
@ Monmouth College
26
V/FS BB vs Stark County
V/FS SB vs Stark County
27
8th Schol Bowl Regional
V B&G Track @ Mercer
FS BB @ Unity Christian
28
V/FS BB @ Stark County
V/FS SB @ Stark County
29
B&G Track @ Wethersield
FS BB vs R&W
V/FS SB vs Knoxville
30
JH Track @ Mercer
V BB @ ROWVA DH
V SB @ ROWVA DH
page 8
United High School & Junior High announce 3rd quarter honor rolls
United High School is
pleased to announced the
following students have
attained honor roll status
for the third quarter of the
2015-2016 school year:
HIGH HONORS: 3.67
and higher GPA
Seniors: Lance Anderson, Michael Brown, John
Campbell, McKenzie
Campbell, Wyatt Chandler,
Dalton Chenault, Christian
Christy, Lauren Colbrese,
Caitlyn Costner-Withee,
Shelby Davin, Isabella
Ewalt, Brody Frieden,
Emma Giese, Baylee Gillette, Kaitlin Grace, Kaylyn
Hall, Tiffany Hart, Natalie
Johnson, Alissa Lee, Kathryn Lee, Adriana Martin,
Addison McKee, Cole
McKee, Kaylee McLaughlin, Meghan Medhurst,
Elijah Olin, Nicholas Penn,
Bridget Perkins, Madison
Perry, Elizabeth Pleshko,
Ashley Raes, Rebecca
Rutledge, Randi Shimmin,
Margaret Simkins, Cassandra Singleton, Lauren
Sperry, Tiffany Vancil,
Ian Walters.
Juniors: Ian Allaman,
Shelia Bowling, Samuel
Brownlee, Hunter Butler,
Brittany Chapman, Ellie
Cheline, Trystan Dell, Tristin Eckert, Mallory Flynn,
Loren Fox, Nicolette Fredrickson, Madeline Gavin,
Presslie Gillen, Bailey
Johnston, William Kane,
Emma Marshall, Jacelyn
Marshall, Marshall McDorman, Aubrey McMillen,
Michael Moore, Sydney
Orth, Alexandra Perry,
Sarah Purlee, Kaily Scott,
Alyssa Shea, Joelle Shea,
Kodiak Shimmin, Rachel
Straitiff, Jesse Struble,
Kayla Stull, Victoria Taylor, Rachel Watson, Claire
Wynne, Kal Youngquist.
Jenna Tippett, Elias Van
Norman.
Freshmen: Nathaniel
Clark, Carter Ehlen, Sydney Elswick, Skyler Hoke,
Sophomores: Kenneth
Ayla Johnston, Joseph
Bergren, Olivia Bishop, Ty- Jones, Blake Ryner, Breler Bitar, Cheyenne Brown- anna Shea, Avery Yung
lee, Ashton Chandler, Sarah
Colbrese, Jordian Cook,
United Junior High is
Hayley Corbin, Caropleased to announce the
lina Cruz-Ramirez, Riley
following students have
Davin, Allison Feltmeyer,
attained honor roll status
Zachary Frieden, Claire
for the third quarter of the
Gregory, Vada Gregory,
2015-2016 school year:
Jessica Hall, Laura Hart,
Janelle King, Madalyn
6th Grade High Honors
McKee, Noah Northrup,
(3.75 or higher):
Claire Oetting, Samuel
Elaina Allaman, Amelia
Olson, Emma Poole, Nicole Bennett, Benjamin Bennett,
Poole, Darrin Ross, Alyssa Cole Boock, Laney Butler,
Schneider, Matthew Simon- Parker Cassidy, Kathryn
son, Sara Simonson, Allie
Douglas, Jacob Dutton,
Smith, Toby Whitsitt.
Grant Gillen, Paige Hall,
Luci Kane, Daniel KimFreshmen: Savannah Bal- ball, Ashton McCormick,
lard, Alena Buckly, Makay- Josie McElwee, Mackenzie
la Crain, Erin Glisan,
Smock, Karragan Sperry &
Kelsey Hart, Tyler HenAustin Thompson
drickson, Yovani LariosSaavedra, Alejandro MarHonors (3.0 – 3.74)
tin, Emma Parkins, Bailey
Alexis Blake, Sarrah
Shimmin, Carly Thompson, Brown, Cadence BrownBenjamin Watson.
lee, Jenna Bushong, Jared
Butts, Claire Carnes, Eva
HONORS: 3.34–3.66 GPA Green, Taylor Gustafson,
Jaylee Hasten, Kim Hays,
Seniors: Alexander Esp,
Kyle Flicek, Adrian Gillette, Haley Sims, Nathan
Tippett.
Madelynn Higbee, Abby
Hinton, Mason Hootman,
Colin Jenks, Nolan Leffler,
Dakota McNabb, David
Oberhaus, Madison Penn,
Ellie Robinson, Angel
Sargeant, Savanna Seidl,
Blake Stewart, Payten
Swenson, Andrea Teel,
Addyson Trego, Zander
Updike, Ashlyn Vallero &
Reed Yung
7th Grade High Honors
(3.75 or higher)
Tyler Barrington, Jackson
Bergren, Danielle Bowling, Drew Brown, Emma
Colbrese, Makaila Hootman, Riley Horner, Haley
Marshall, Morgaine Olson,
Jennifer Shimmin, Kaylan
Sperry, Laney Tabb, Aubrey Thompson & Trace
Titus
Honors (3.0 – 3.74)
Hunter Austin, Alyssa Beltran, Mallorie Brunswig,
Gage Chenault, Landon
Conard, Mallory Cooper, Zucka Cruz, Bennett
Frisby, Derek Johnston,
Ricky Kroncke, Jordan
Lantz, Paige McKeown,
Gage Melton, Rebecca
Merry, Grace Mono, Cameron Morris, Noah Olson,
Coleman Orth, Sully Ross,
Spencer Schneider, Kloey
Scott, Riley Tyrrell & Paige
Widger
8th Grade High Honors
(3.75 or higher)
Carson Clayton, Jalyn Curtis, DJ Dutton, Natalie Gillette, Anne Gregory, Owen
Jenks, Keirstyn Johnson,
Natalie King, Madisyn Lee,
Avery Leffler, Shalyn Lucas, Quinton McVey, Olivia
Mitchell, Cassiday Tierney,
Cade Whitsitt, Emily Wilson & Evan Wynne
Honors (3.0 – 3.74)
Nicole Baker, Michael
Brown, Nick Brown,
Cameron Brownlee, Taylor
Carlson, Dylan Cheline,
Kaylee Cornell, Adonay
Cruz, Justin Dell, William
Douglas, Lexi Dutton,
Emily Grodjesk, Courtney
Hinton, Nick Hodges, Jerzi
Johnson, Alexis Johnston,
Isabella Kilgore, Kalyn
Lee, Sam Mono, Gabrielle
Neice, Will Ornduff, Stewart Svob, Damian Tharp,
Richard Tompkins, Ellie
VanFleet, Ariana Villarreal,
Avery Winking & Emily
Younge
Juniors: Adam Burnett,
Andrew Burnett, Tavis Colbrese, Austin Davis, John
Dunn, Emily Glisan, Noah
Harshbarger, Zoe Hawk,
Brooke Ryner, Kealy Simkins, Courtney Watts.
Sophomores: Caitlin Bennett, Tanner Gorden, Karissa Pierce, Mary Smith,
Senior Bella Ewalt took first placed in Mixed Media at the LTC Artr Festrival on
March 14. Nolan Raymond also placed first in Graphic Design.
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page 9
Softball team looks to improve with returning players
By Lauren Sperry
United Softball kicked
off their first practice outside on February 29, which
is unusual for the first day.
Warmer weather isn’t
the only change this year;
Lance Oetting, who spent a
number of years coaching
pitchers on the Warren and
Junior Carissa Smith executes a sacrifice.
United baseball teams, has
offered to help out as the
assistant coach alongside
Head Coach Hannah Baker.
There are six returning starters from last year:
senior Lauren Sperry and
juniors Ellie Cheline,
Emma Marshall, Rachel
Watson, Alyssa Shea and
Joelle Shea.
“​We have the core of
our starters back this year,
and they learned a lot from
playing with Abbey, Maddie, and Ashleigh. We can
never replace those three,
but I firmly believe the returning players will follow
in their footsteps,” Baker
said.
United got off to a great
start by winning their first
game against Kewanee 16­2 and as did Rachel Watson
by hitting her first high
school career home run in
the third inning.
“​As long as the 14 varsity girls continue to work
together and gel like they
have been, this season is
No sponsored sports physicals for next year
For the better part of
the past decade, the United
Sports Boosters have provided an opportunity for
student-athletes to obtain
a physical for the coming
school year at the high
school.
Not only that, but the
cost of the physical was
substantially less than nor-
mally charged at a doctor’s
office.
Such will not be the
case this spring.
The Sports Boosters
will not be sponsoring
physicals this coming May
for the 2016-2017 school
year.
All athletes must have a
current physical on file to
be allowed to practice or
play. Physcials are good
for a calendar year, so
it will be up to the athlete, himself, to obtain a
physcial prior to starting
practice in the fall.
Fall sports practices
will begin on August 8 for
football and August 10 for
volleyball, golf and cross
country.
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Senior catcher Lauren Sperry
going to go very well and
be really fun,” Baker said.
Every year the seniors
are asked to pick a word
or phrase to live by for the
season and Lauren Sperry
and Alissa Lee found
“Never Settle” very suitable.
“We picked this phrase
because the momentum of
a softball game can change
so quickly and no matter
how good or bad the game
is going, you still have to
give it your best and never
settle until it’s over,” Lee, a
senior, said.
page 10
Baseball team facing struggles, growing pains as first month wraps up
By Nathan Studer
The United High School
baseball team is having a
tough start to their season
with a record of 1-9.
The players on the team
works hard in practice with
all the drills that the they
do on the field and the time
that they spend in the cages
Baseball isn’t just about
winning, it is about playing
hard on the field and having fun with your team.
“I think that the season
started off pretty rough, but
I believe in my team and I
hope that we can improve
by regionals,” senior Brett
Welch said.
The team plans to improve on a few things and
be even more successful by
the end of the season.
“Nobody wants to start
the season off like this, but
the important thing is we
are improving. We have
only played five games so
far and it’s a long season,
plenty of time to get better,” junior Kal Youngquist
said.
“My freshman year we
started of this season with
zero wins and thirteen
losses and then finished
off with nine wins and six
losses under the coaching of (Ryan) Molek. I
have faith in our team and
coaches and believe that we
will have a better record by
the end of the season.”
The team plans to work
even harder in practice
and hopes to have a better
record by regionals.
Interestingly, both
Mercer County and Monmouth-Roseville have been
selected by the IHSA for
regional sites, so it will
be that record, along with
seeding, that will determine
where United will go when
it comes to regional play.
Junior 1st baseman Hunter Butler reacts to a to a
ground ball. The baseball team hosts Galva Saturday.
Small Team; Big Dreams
Senior hurler Eli Olin will likely be on the mound
when the team hosts a doubleheader on Saturday.
By Carena Choate
While the team may not
be as big as the school has
seen in past years, the high
school track team starts the
season strong with high
hopes as always.
“No, it’s not as big as
last year but we still have
a good sized team,” senior
Haley Sims said.
“I feel like we have a
better chance at sectionals
this year than we did
last year; our sprinters are better and we
are working harder
this year.”
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“We are doing fairly
good as a team,” Coach
Fred Lucas said.
Although the team lost
a few members with last
year’s graduation and some
deciding to switch sports,
the team is remaining focused on the goals ahead.
“A goal of mine is to
have someone beat a record for our school and we
have a good shot at doing
that, I think,” Lucas said.
“Toby Whitsitt almost
beat one last year but he
was short by like maybe
two seconds,” Sims said.
United’s lone home
meet will be on Monday,
April 25, when they host
the United Invitational at
Monmouth College beginning at 4:00 p.m.
page 11
Beyond the Playing Field:
Culling Snow Geese may be a solution to a five-million strong problem
By Hanna Dunton
While there are many
animals whose conservation status is least concerned, it is rare that you
hear of people going to
extreme lengths to harm a
specific species.
Rarely do we have to
worry about these people
causing harm to other
people, as they are just set
on hurting animals.
In Lewes, Delaware,
there has been a report of
a black Trailblazer creating potential hazard for the
other vehicles and drivers
near Mulberry Knoll Road.
There is already lowered
visibility in the nighttime,
but this assailant decided to
take it further and swerve
off-road into a field full of
snow geese, killing many
of the birds and injuring at
least 20 of the geese.
Thankfully, there was a
good citizen behind them
who followed the vehicle in an attempt to get a
license plate number and
called the police.
Other drivers who witnessed this scene stopped
to try and save the birds.
While snow geese can be
a nuisance, the Delaware
police don’t think this is
the proper solution.
In Illinois there are
several hunting seasons for
snow geese and in the conservation order light goose
season that ended March
31 there is no bag limit on
Snow/Blue and Ross geese.
In this conservation season many of the things you
aren’t allowed to use in the
normal seasons are allowed
(unplugged shotguns, number of shells in shotgun is
unlimited, calling devices,
no federal duck stamp
required).
Most hunters believe this
to be a solution that can
help solve the population
problem.
The population is estimated and put between 3.9
million and more than 5
million geese.
It is said that conserva-
tion tillage (residue from
the previous harvest such
as grain and plant material)
has caused the population
swell.
At this time of the year
you can see huge flocks of
Canadian geese with a majority of snow geese flying
over rural areas.
It is illegal in Illinois to
hunt by driving, rallying
or chasing birds with any
motorized vehicle or boat
to put them in range of
hunters.
Winter sports awards honor individual athletes
By Becca Rutledge
There’s one very special
award given to an athlete
that shows desirable characteristics of a teammate in
memory of a former United
high school athlete Anton
Kozelichki.
The coaching staff
decides on which teammate
qualifies as the ideal teammate.
This season’s recipients
are (pictured right) Becca
Rutledge (cheerleading)
Kyle Flicek (boys’ basketball) and Baylee Gillette
(girls’ basketball).
The boys’ basketball
team gave out four awards
this season:
Most improved to Ian
Allaman; Dirty work
player of the year to Derek
Hart; Highest free throw
percentageto Noah Runge
(74%); and the 2016 practice champion was Dalton
Chenault, who was also
named second ream allconference, while Noah
Runge received all confer-
ence honorable mention.
“This was a very enjoyable group to work with.
I appreciate their positive
attitudes and the consistent
effort that they brought
throughout the year,”
Coach Jim Noonan said.
The girls’ basketball
team gave out five different
awards:
Highest free throw percentage was Claire Wynne
(82%); Most Improved
Player was awarded to
Baylee Gillette; Hustle
went to Addy McKee; and
the
Pride Award winner was
Claire Wynne
“I couldn’t have asked
for a better group of girls
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Coach Lisa Gartelos said.
Gartelos took over for
Coach Fred Lucas this year
as head coach of the girls’
varsity basketball team.
Honorable mention allconference went to Joelle
Shea
Cheerleading also had
five different awards given
out.
Awesome Attitude
Award was given to Maggie
Simkins; Courtney Watts
was named Miss Energetic;
Most dedicatedmember was
Alyssa Vicker; the Spirit
Award went to Erin Bushong; and the All Star Award
was presented to Mckenzie
Campbell
“I feel things went really
well this season. We got off
to a late start but the girls
really worked hard to make
this season a success,”
Coach Melissa Bushong
said.
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