Junior-Senior Prom! - San Marcos Academy

Vol. 97
Number 5
May 11, 2016
S a n Ma rc o s A c a d e my
2 8 0 1 Ra n c h Ro a d 1 2
San Marcos TX 78666
Junior-Senior Prom!
Taylor & Whitaker
Christian, Allee & Hank
Jimmy
Prom Fun: Students enjoyed good food, dancing, games, and a photo booth at this year’s Junior-Senior Prom held at the Milltown Historic District - The
Grande in New Braunfels.
Marie, Teyana, Mallory, & Mae
Tanner, Whitaker, Walker
Ethan, Devon, Sterling
by Ife Dahunsi
After months of preparation by students and teachers, the Junior-Senior Prom
finally took place on Saturday, April 23rd. Prom-goers traveled back to when
flapper dresses and fringe
were cool: The Roaring
Twenties.
Before the dance, students could go off campus to have dinner before
arriving for the party. Some
students went with dates,
others with friends and
some with both.
The venue was located
at a beautiful place close to
downtown New Braunfels
and part of the Milltown
Historic District - The
Grande. The doors opened
promptly at 8 p.m. Girls
arrived in their beautiful
dresses while boys had on
handsome suits. Mr. Don
Anders was there to take
photos of the students as
they arrived at the venue
with their dates and friends.
As there was no DJ this
year, songs were played
from a Spotify playlist that
was put together before
the prom began. The
songs ranged from hype to
slow and students danced
throughout the night to
songs from various artists.
Outside, there were
games to play like Jenga
and cards when students
wanted to take a break from
the dance floor.
Refreshments included
pigs-in-a-blanket, cookies
and crackers for the students to snack on. There
were mini Coke bottles
which gave the dance more
of a 20s vibe.
There was also a photo
booth where students could
put on silly costumes like
hats, glasses and necklaces
and take pictures to keep
the memory forever.
Overall, the juniors did
a good job in making sure
they threw the seniors a
prom to remember.
“It had a really good
time. It was really pretty
and everyone looked really
pretty,” said Celeste Barrientos (11).
Leadership Camp: An Amazing Experience
by Justin He
This year, the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps
(JROTC) leadership camp was held at Camp Bullis,
Angela & Yoyo
outside of San Antonio, April 13-17. This five-day experience was offered to current JROTC Cadets as well as other students who were interested in participating in JROTC
o
hot
PromhPF
for the 2016-17 school year.
un!
Boot
“I think this program helped me with my ability to do
things by myself,” said CPL Yinkai Feng (11). “The most
memorable thing during this camp was marching and a
What’s Ahead... lot of training made my legs stronger. I really learned a
lot in this camp. The camp helped me overcome my fear
of heights. I was afraid of the high places and it made me
May
feel bad, but after we did some training, I am not afraid
13... Baccalaureate 7 p.m.
anymore.”
A lot of people think camp is painful and bad, but that
14... Ribbon Ceremony
is
just
not true.
8:30 AM
“They
have good food and those courses are fun,” said
Rose & Sabre 10:30 AM
Academy Awards 7 PM Battalion Commander Cadet Colonel Jerry Sainah (12).
Final Review 8:30 PM
“I had not been there before and many friends asked me
to go with them, so I went. It was really fun and the food
15... Commencement 2 PM
was so good. Even when we were tired, I still liked that
place. I really got to know my friends more and it really
16-19... 6-11 Final Exams
helped me become more outgoing. But though the phys20... Summer Break Begins! ical training was bad, it made me stronger. I think I will
go there next year, so I can get more training, not only for
my body, but also for my life skills and spirit. This camp
really let me know how those real life soldiers live,” said
Yinkai.
It will be good for students to try out Leadership Camp
next year. As was proved by the people that went to the
camp this year, students can always learn something new
from the experience.
Teamwork: Keeping his balance navigating the course, Cadet Corporal Yinkai
Feng is backed up by fellow juniors Cadet Staff Sergeant Paul Hurt and Cadet
Sergeant Major Tyler Welch during Leadership Camp at Camp Bullis in midApril.
Page 2
The Laurel May 11, 2016
Class of 2016 -- Seniors Wills
Amy
Batiste
I, Amy Batiste, will the
following to:
Abry Solis: Have strength
and guidance - it’s all that
I’m wishing for my friends.
You slay lives around you.
Do not let these Michelle’s
suck all the Beyonce out of
you. Stay petty.
Tuka Uzor: The strength
to deny all and any Yoruba
demon that comes your
way, in Jesus name, we
pray, Amen. I will you
to continue to slay in all
of your Africana queen
goodness. P-E to the T-T-Y!
Ellenya Brito & Sharon
Okafor-Paul: Stay cute
and funny and never let
anyone persuade you to
stop speaking their mind.
~~~~~~
Mackenzie
Heldstab
I, Mackenzie Heldstab,
hereby will the following
to:
Hank Shirley: All of
the musical rehearsals,
random Mochas trips, and
the 5 years of awesome
memories. I can’t thank
you enough for all of your
friendship and love all
these years, even when I
was extra awkward.
Caleb Guenther: All my
love. Also, all of the fun
roles I know you will get as
you get older and continue
to do theater. I am so proud
of all that you have already
accomplished and all that I
know you will accomplish.
Mac Daniel Howard: Oh
Featherbaby, I know you
are going to do great things
in your life. You get all the
fun conversations and silly
songs from musical season.
You also get my hope that
you won’t break your tooth
again and that you continue
to do great things in your
life.
Truett Martin: You are
my favorite. You have
already accomplished so
much and I know you will
only continue to grow
and change and become
someone that changes the
world. Know that if you
need me I will always be
there. Never give up on
your dreams and always
follow your heart. You get
all of the backstage hugs
and random hair fixing.
Kaelee Crowder: My
sweet girl, you get all of
the Disney songs we sang
in the dressing room. You
also get all of the poetry
competitions because I
know you are going to
excel in everything you do.
Sammy Tawakkol: You
have to notice me now. I
can’t give you much, since
so much of our relationship
revolves around inside
jokes, but know that you
are such a light and joy to
be around.
Virginia Myers: My
fellow Scouty Scout, I so
appreciate all of the things
you have helped me realize
about myself. I can’t give
you much either, because
we also have many inside
jokes. But know that you
have been a true friend to
me and I can’t thank you
enough for that. And you
know, it will always be
our table in English. Also,
Peanut Gallery forever.
Purvi Patel: You will find
your place, I know you
will. I give to you courage
and confidence to carry
out your senior year with
pride and know that you are
amazing. You have been a
wonderful little sister and
I couldn’t have asked for
anyone better.
Zachary Cox: You get all
of the clay class sing alongs
because you play awesome
music. You also are a pretty
awesome artist and I can
only hope you continue to
get better.
Christian Wilson: You
also get part of the table
in English. And I suppose
you can be included in the
Peanut Gallery love. Thank
you for being such a good
friend to me for so long.
Teyana Walker: Thank
you for encouraging me
everyday and being my
friend. You get all of our
cheer camps, football
games, and crazy bus
rides. You also get all of
our office running and the
insane number of passes
you and I have probably
delivered over the last
semester alone. I couldn’t
have asked for a better
cheer captain.
Marshall Marburger:
You have been such a light
in my life, even when we
weren’t very close. You get
all of the moments where
we have just laughed at
ourselves because of the
stupid things we say. You
also get all of the stick
on mustaches and I’ll try
to find as many colors as
possible.
Jenna Marburger: My
super girl, you are so strong
and mighty in everything
you do that I almost
don’t know what to give
you. But I’m giving you
strength because even the
strongest people need extra
sometimes. Don’t give up
on the things that make you
happy, no matter how hard
it gets. You are amazing, so
stay that way.
~~~~~~
Kelsey
Chandler
Sean
Quigley
Mr. Matthews: A
lifetime of happiness and
an unlimited amount of
Chemistry supplies for
being the realest, most
friendliest and happiest
teacher throughout my 6
years at the Academy and
for always thinking the best
of me. ~~~~~~
Ife Dahunsi
Justin He
Reese Pickett
Mike Zhang
Adviser:
Mrs. Cindy Rollins
Policies:
I, Sean Quigley, hereby
will the following to:
I want to thank all the
people who were there for
me to help see me through
the years.
I especially want to thank
Mr. Rollins, who’s been
the best father-figure I’ve
ever had and an excellent
example of a Christian
man.
I hope that everyone who
comes through this school
is blessed in some way.
~~~~~~
Ife
Dahunsi
The Laurel is published
several times each school year.
It is distributed free of charge
to the San Marcos Academy
student body. The Laurel may
also be viewed online at the
Academy web site, https://
smabears.org. .
Opinions expressed in
columns and editorials are
those of the student writers
and do not necessarily reflect
the views of the faculty or administration of San Marcos
Academy.
Letters to the Editor are
encouraged. Letters must be
typed and submitted to the
editor one week prior to the
publication date. All letters
should be signed.
For information on San
Marcos Academy, please visit our web site at https://
smabears.org.
Contact:
Phone: (512) 753-8040
Fax: (512) 753-8031
Email: [email protected]
Site: https://smabears.org
Address:
2801 Ranch Road 12
San Marcos, Texas 78666
I, Ife Dahunsi, hereby will
the following to:
Sharon & Ellenya:
Strength to continue
being African queens and
continue slaying.
Tuka: Continuous slayage
and better things after
SMA. Continue to be jollof
rice in a sea of beans and
plantains.
I, Kelsey Chandler, hereby
will the following to:
Staff Reporters:
Laurel Staff: The 2015-2016
newspaper staff included Ife
Dahunsi (12), Mike Zhang (10),
Justin He (10) & Reese Pickett (10).
Abry: I will you a petty
crown, resources for future
concerts and better things
after SMA. Continue to
be a Beyonce in a sea of
Michelles.
College Bound Seniors!
Christopher Alexander
Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY
Amy Batiste
University of California - San Diego
University of San Francisco, California
Marie Pearce
East Texas Baptist University, Marshall, Texas
Page 3
The Laurel May 11, 2016
— Spring Dessert Theatre —
The Case of the
Malted Falcon
bumbling private eye);
Miracle Okafor-Paul (12,
The Theatre class perHarvey Featherby: falconer
formed a murder mystery
and undercover spy); and
play called “The Case Of
Sean Quigley (12, Casey
The Malted Falcon”. The
Stourbridge: penniless
play was produced by Mr.
railroad tycoon heir and
Don Rollins and directed
by senior Hank Shirley. The entertainer/engineer). All
are clue-providing suspects
cast was made up of Hank
Shirley (Nigel Nightingale: in the play.
The Academy’s theater
a bird rescue fanatic); Purvi
class
put on a very good
Patel (11, Miss Marbles:
performance.
The play was
a famous mystery novelfunny, suspenseful and
ist); Dalton Stanford (10,
filled with comedy throughRandal Raven: famous TV
chef and cookbook author); out.
“I had difficulties memoMichael Salomon (10, Robin Hawkins: nephew of the rizing lines, but overall the
play was a success,” said
Malted Falcon sculptor);
Dalton.
Mae McIvor (11, Velma
The cool thing about the
Vavoomski: ditzy detecplay was how the audience
tive’s assistant); Marshall
was involved. The actors
Marburger (12, Sam Club:
by Reese Pickett
It’s murder: The cast of the spring murder mystery dessert theatre production of “The Case of the Malted Falcon” come
together to reveal “who-dun-it”. The comedy was performed in the library April 22, 24 and 28 to delighted audiences who
enjoyed dessert while taking an active role in solving the sticky mystery.
talked with audience members throughout the play,
threw feathers at them, and
even ate the food off their
plates. At the end, the audience got a chance to solve
the mystery for themselves
and test their detective
skills by guessing who the
killer was.
The costumes were creative and funny. You could
tell that the cast put a lot
of hard work and determi-
Get Charged:
Build an Orange Battery
by Mike Zhang
You have to admit that
cell phones have already
became one the most
important things in daily life. Image it, one day
you are walking down
the street, the sun is shining and everything is so
peaceful. Suddenly, your
cell phone rings. You get
your phone out, but there’s
only five-percent battery
remaining. “Aaaaaaugh!”
You start to worry that your
friends are calling you to
come to their party or your
parents are looking for
you for some very serious
issues. What do you do?!
There is actually a really
interesting way to charge
your cell phone if a traditional charger is not available. First, go to a grocery
store and buy ten oranges.
Then stop by Radio Shack
to pick up 10 pairs of electronic wire and a charging
wire for your phone. Now
you are set!
First, insert use the electronic wires in the oranges.
Make sure all of electronic
wires are connecting all of
these oranges together. After that, plug your charging
wire into one of the oranges. Your phone will start
charging shortly.
You probably wonder
why oranges can charge a
phone. Oranges and apples
are both kinds of acidic
fruits and can be used as
Zap! In a pinch, a cell phone can be charged using a few oranges, some wire
and a charging wire.
biofuel cells. The oxidation
of glucose inside the fruit
produces electrons, which
is the reason why oranges
can charge your phone.
Biofuel cells are much
better than traditional
chemical batteries. Biofuel
cells can produce all of the
same materials as electrons.
Biofuel cells are safer and
more efficient than chemical batteries. Biofuel cells
can work even in very low
nation into the play. They
did a great job entertaining
the crowd. The night was
full of desserts, mystery,
laughs, and great performances. Go Theatre Bears!
temperatures. They can
even be directly implanted
into the human body safely.
They will not pollute the
environment and can be
disposed of in a regular
trash can without special
treatment.
The discovery biofuel
cells is important. The issue
of pollution will be solved
because you do not have
to worry about the battery
being safe, or if it will
explode. Biofuel cells are
much better than chemical
batteries. They will be used
widely in the future and
they will take place chemical batteries for sure in
the future. Give the orange
charger a try – you will be
amazed that, in a pinch, it
really works!
Building a Better Bridge
by Justin He
Weighty matters: Physics I students Justin Marentes (10) and Michael Bolton
(11) are assisted by Col. Max Smith to see just how much weight the bridge will
hold. Each bridge also needed to be designed to “function” so a toy car could
roll across it. Reese Pickett’s (10) bridge won the competition, holding 105
pounds before shattering.
Throughout last week,
people walked across
the hallways with sets of
balsa wood. If you were
wondering what they were
doing with the wood, it was
actually meant for building
a bridge that could hold a
large amount of weight for
a project for all the Physics 1 classes. All told, 48
bridges were built, tested
and demolished.
The rules were as follows: (1) The mass of the
bridge could not be more
than 100 grams. (2) The
bridge should actually be
able to function as a bridge
which meant that a toy car
should be able to travel
from one side of the bridge
to the other. (3) Any borders on top of the bridge
had to be at least 5 cm high.
(4) There had to be at least
2 cm high pedestals underneath the bridge. And, (5)
the distance between each
pedestal had to be at least
40 cm in length.
The final winner was
sophomore Reese Pickett. Reese is in Ms. Shirley-Howell’s 7th period
Physics 1 class. Reese’s
bridge weighed 100 grams
and was able to carry 105
pounds of weight.
“The most interesting
part of doing this project
was watching how much
my bridge could hold,” said
Reese. “I was kind of surprised that my bridge held
so much. It was kind of
devastating when it broke.
It was a pretty clean break.”
“This hand-on project
helped me with understanding Physics,” said Celeste
Barrientos (11). “Even
though (my bridge) did
not hold that much weight,
I still think it was a good
project.”
Page 4
The Laurel May 11, 2016
Bear Baseball Winding Down
by Mike Zhang
Baseball is one of the
most popular sports on
campus and it is getting
close to the end of the
season. On May 12-15 the
Bears will participate in the
TCAL State Baseball Tournament in Franklin, Texas.
There are sixteen members on the Bear baseball
team and six of them are
seniors. With 19 games
played so far this season,
the team is currently 11-8.
“This season, we have
new members and we have
a little more experience,”
said Coach Peter Garza.
“So this season is like a
roller coaster. We have
some difficulties sometimes, but we always surmount the difficulties.”
by Ife Dahunsi
Right-fielder Timothy
Wang is one of the seniors
on the team. Timothy started playing baseball when
he first came to the Academy and has since became
a great player and a crazy
baseball lover. Timothy has
always felt grateful to SMA
baseball because playing
with the Academy team
was the starting point of his
dream. He always works
hard and tries his best in
every game and every single practice.
“I am leaving this
school. It is so regrettable,”
said Timothy. “This season
is my last season at SMA.
I am very thankful for this
three-year baseball playing experience. I love my
coach. I love my team. I
hope I can be better in the
future.”
“I really love playing
baseball. Baseball is different from all other kinds
of sports – it needs team
work,” said left-fielder
Khyle Danhach (10). “The
pitcher has to play well,
the catcher as to do his job
well, and everybody else
has to hit the ball well. I
love baseball. This sport is
all about teamwork. You
can not win the game by
yourself. You always have
to be well-coordinated with
your teammates.”
The Bear baseball team
is doing great this season.
They put hard work into
practicing and overcome
the struggles they meet.
They are making us proud
all the time. Go Bears!
.
Softball Recap
Softball kicked off at a
home game against TMI on
February 18th. Although
the team had to deal with
some game cancellations
due to weather issues, they
have pushed through and
put their best into every
game.
“I enjoy softball very
much,” said outfielder Kim
Nguyen (11). “We have
definitely become closer
as a team and we have also
improved our skills.”
The Lady Bears have
strong guidance through
Coach Toby Wade, who
has worked at SMA for 13
years. He has held several
positions while here and
is currently the Assistant
Director of Athletics and an
assistant football coach. He
also recently served as Vice
President and still serves
as basketball commissioner
for the Christian Athletic
League of San Antonio
(CALSA), our middle
school athletic district.
“The scores don’t always
reflect how much we have
learned,” said Coach Wade.
“Coach Guenther and I see
things daily in practices
that are encouraging and it
is obvious that progress is
being made.”
The TCAL State Tournament is coming up on May
12-15. We wish our Lady
Bears the best of luck!
Promising
Summer Movies
by Reese Pickett
Summer break is just
around the corner! It is not a
question of if boredom will
occur, but when. Some people turn to movies and T.V
to entertain themselves. Here
are a few movies that will be
hitting theaters throughout
your summer vacation that
look worthy of your watching.
Coming to theaters on
May 27th is “X-Men Apocalypse”. The plot of the
new X-Men movie has a
lot of action and adventure.
There’s a villain in the film,
called Apocalypse. He came
from the same universe as
the X-Men but holds even
greater powers. Apocalypse’s goal is wiping out the
entire race of mankind. Can
the X-Men stop him? Watch
the movie, out on May 27th.
Another movie that looks
worth the wait is “Independence Day – Resurgence”.
This adventure/sci-fi movie
comes out June 24th. In the
movie, all of earth’s nations
unite in order to save the
planet which is under siege
by aliens whose goal seems
to be to exterminate humans. Earth’s nations have
joined and used recovered
alien technology in hopes
to protect earth, but will it
be enough? Find out for
yourself.
Another movie that you
might enjoy if you’re a fan
of fantasy and adventure is
“WarCraft”. “WarCraft” is
coming out on June 10th.
The fantasy/adventure movie
follows a peaceful realm
called Azeroth, which is facing a large war and possible
destruction. The civilization
of Azeroth must decide their
fate – fight to save their
family from beasts and Orc
warriors or to die cowards.
In my non-expert opinion,
the movies listed are not the
best I’ve seen to come out
in summer but they do look
like a fun watch, so get out
there and watch on!
Fun in San Marcos
walk through the museum,
you might just fall in love
San Marcos Texas has a
with one of the classic cars.
wide variety of fun, interAdmission is $10 for adults
esting activities to keep you but it is worth the money.
busy this summer. You may
Another cool outdoor
not realize that when you
activity in San Marcos is
are trapped in the dorm, but Wonder World Park. Wonbelieve it or not, San Marder World Park has many
cos is a place with all kinds different activities. You
of fun, different things to
can get a tour in “Wonder
do.
Cave”, a large cave that
One of my personal
was found and established
favorites activity is floating in 1903. Wonder Cave
the rivers. The Hill Country open all year in all types of
is home to many rivers. The weather. You can also climb
Guadalupe, San Marcos,
to the top of Tejas Obserand Blanco Rivers are all
vation Tower. The tower
found in the area. These
is 190 feet tall and it will
rivers are known for their
give you a good view of the
beauty and clear water.
beautiful Hill Country. You
There are many different
may want to visit the Woninner tubing/rafting rentder World Wildlife Park
al companies that can be
where you can ride a train
found around these rivers.
to recover from the hiking
State Champions:
400M Relay Team
Germer, Oles, Baergen, Walker
Although
tubing
is
mostin the cave while getting to
High JumpBaergen, Shaw
ly a summer activity, you
Discus ThrowB. Hethcock, Ugbome
see wildlife native to this
can rent a canoe or kayak
2nd Place:
Lady Bear Track Team
107 pts overall
area. Those are just some
800M Relay Team
Germer, Oles, Baergen, Walker
to float the river. If you’re
of the fun activities. AdmisBoucher, Folabi, Sainah, D. Hethcock
feeling adventurous, you
Shot PutGermer
sion is $25 per person, but
Discus ThrowGermer, Powerscan raft down whitewater
it includes all of the activi
Triple & Long Jumps
K. Christensen
rapids. You may also enjoy ties listed above.
High JumpCleveland
spending the day fishing on
110 M HurdlesShaw
There’s also many parks
the rivers.
rd
3 Place:Boys’ Track Team101 pts overall
in San Marcos with vol
400M Relay Team
Boucher, D. Feigl, Sainah, D. Hethcock
If it is ever too hot or
leyball courts, basketball
1600M Relay Team
Oles, Baergen, K. Christensen, B.
cold for an outdoor activ
Hethcock
courts and plenty of other
ity, you may want to visit
300M HurdlesShaw
people to start a pick up
Dick’s Classic Car Muse4th Place:
Discus ThrowMyers
game. San Marcos is full
um on Hunter Road. The
5th Place:Shot PutMyers
of fun activities. If you are
museum is home to over
Long JumpB. Christensen
staying in the area, get out
80 classic cars which are
6th Place:Long JumpD. Hethcock
and have some fun this
800M RunKorzeniewski
rotated periodically. As you summer!
State High School Track Stars
By Reese Pickett