Band takes first at Indian Hills Jazz Festival

Luke Goodman (l) and Elijah Bryan (r) practice for the Indian Hills Jazz Festival on Feb. 25 where they earned first place in the 1A Division.

by Vincent Bushong

Montezuma showed its abilities in the arts by winning the 1A division of the annual Indian Hills Jazz Festival on Saturday, Feb. 25. 

Under the direction of Scott Stanton, Montezuma’s high school band competed against two other 1A schools, Van Meter and Moulton-Udell, for the title. This year’s festival was held in Ottumwa’s Bridgeview Center. 

The Montezuma band, which acts as the school’s concert, rock, jazz and pep band, performed three songs at the festival: “Swing Machine” by Larry Neeck, “Deja Blues” by Scott Stanton and “Abaco” by Scott Stanton. 

A panel of three judges critiqued the performance based on the categories of rhythm, ensemble, interpretation, improvisation and programming and rated the band on a scale of one to four, with one meaning excellence.

“The band performed admirably; we peaked at the right time,” Stanton said. “Other directors and adult musicians who have heard our band couldn’t believe how much we’ve grown in the past four years. We’ll keep building upon our success for future years of performance.”

The members of the award-winning band included seniors Elizabeth Ostrem, Natalie Wheeler and Nathan Wheeler; juniors Mariah Hirsch, Norman Martin, Colton Tompkins and  Kayla Werner; sophomore   Elijah Bryan; freshmen Vincent Bushong, Jade Crandall, Seth Fahlenkamp, Luke Goodman, Clara Johnson, Trevor Moyer, Sidney Roorda and Shayla Townsend; and eighth grader Jake Shaver.    

In addition to winning the 1A division overall, Montezuma was awarded an honorable mention for best soloist award. The recipient of the award was Elijah Bryan, one of the band’s guitar players.

“There were many other great soloists in the 1A division,” Bryan said. “I was excited to receive the prize.”

Graduates return for panel

by Kayla Werner

On March 9, at 1:00 p.m., six to eight past Montezuma graduates and one college representative will be coming to participate in a college panel for the senior class. 

Sarah Laudner, Parallel Porgram Coordinator; Earlene Taylor, OASIS instructor; and John Gallagher, guidance counselor, are in charge of this event. 

The graduates and the representative will be speaking to this year’s seniors about what to expect from college and what challenges they could be facing as they prepare for their futures. 

The team will be bringing in graduates who went to a community college and a four-year college,  students who transferred schools and students who dropped out of college to show  possible paths that students may end up taking once they leave Montezuma. 

The college panel was created so  that this year’s seniors will feel more prepared for the upcoming year after hearing from the former Montezuma students and being able to ask them questions. They want the past graduates to give some insight on college life to the seniors.  By presenting this panel, the goal is to increase the number of students that stay in college instead of dropping out. 

Gallagher said, “We are trying to help seniors understand they will need to advocate for themselves and expect adversity and deal with it.”

Individual speech participants move on to State

by Bridgette Moore

On Saturday, Feb. 25, the District Individual Speech Contest was held in Oskaloosa. There were 23 performers, and 17 entries received Division “I” ratings.

The categories that the students participated in were literary program, storytelling, poetry, acting, spontaneous speaking, improvisational acting and prose. 

The students that participate in Individual Speech learn the art of speaking in front of an audience and building confidence. 

Cassie Corbin, a junior, said, “Individual Speech benefits all students because it helps them feel more comfortable talking in front of people.” 

The performers that received a Division “I” rating were Aly James, Macy Taylor, and Destiny Romberg in literary program; Shena Bryan and Clara Johnson in storytelling; Cassie Corbin in poetry; Karah Hansen, Alyssa Lyddon, Destiny Romberg and Macy Taylor in acting; Zach Gibson, Niall Lyons and Seth Fahlenkamp in improvisational acting; Seth Fahlenkamp in spontaneous speaking; and Mariah Hirsch, Abbi Nelson and Luke Goodman in prose. 

The performers that received a Division “II” rating were Heaven Lorenz in poetry and acting, Abbie Wedgewood and Kaylene Corbin in prose and Matt Armstrong and Luke Goodman in improvisational acting.

The performers who received a Division “I” rating will be performing at the State Individual Speech competition in Clinton, on Saturday, March 10.

Turn of the Page: 'The Hunger Games'

by Natalie Kirton, Elizabeth Ostrem and Kayla Werner

In anticipation of the upcoming movie rendition hitting theaters on March 23, people are hungrily reading “The Hunger Games” written by Suzanne Collins.  It is the first book in a triology that continues with “Catching Fire” and “Mockingjay.”

This book is set in the future, in the ruins of what was America. The land is divided into 12 districts and the Capitol. The Capitol is the government of Panem, the country that replaced America. 

In punishment for a past war, every year the Capitol forces tributes to perform in the Hunger Games. The tributes, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district, are sent to an arena to fight to the death while on live television. “The Hunger Games” follows Katniss Everdeen, through her shock of being chosen as tribute and her trials in the arena. 

Liz:

The first time I read “The Hunger Games,” I was more than a bit under-whelmed. Part of that was due to Katniss, the main character and narrator of the book, being, to put it bluntly, hard to like or feel any connection to. She was always suspicious of everything and, though that sometimes served to help her in the arena, it got on my nerves at times. 

The second time through, for whatever reason, left a better impression on me, though I still can’t say I feel any affinity toward Katniss.

The characters in the book aren’t as memorable to me as those in other novels, but the plot was definitely appealing. The arena reminded me of the great Roman Colesseum: different environments would be fabricated to recreate scenes, and even animals were brought in for the audience’s amusement. Sparring gladiators, along with the occasional execution, were also popular entertainment.

Although it wasn’t my favorite, “The Hunger Games” is a good book to check out if you have some spare time. Unless you plan on seeing the movie first, of course.

Kayla:

From the beginning, I couldn’t put this book down. The intensity doesn’t start up right away, but when it does, you don’t want to stop reading it. All of the attention to little details and describing the personalities of each character so vividly makes it a very interesting read. 

Once the games begin, the story picks up the intensity. Everyone had a plan. Whether it was fighting off everyone to get to the supplies they needed or running to find a good place to hide before the stronger tributes began their hunting, everyone knew what they were going to do. The action continued throughout the book but had some really touching moments in the mix.

This is one book that I really enjoyed reading. I couldn’t wait to finish and start the second book, “Catching Fire”. I could definitely read the book multiple times and still enjoy it.

Montezuma hosts its first academic fair

Cami Shaver works on her academic fair project that incorporates history and photography to demonstrate the history of camera angles.

by Kayla Werner

Last year, Montezuma held Pi Day, a math fair, but this year they decided to change it up by hosting an academic fair including all subjects.

Students are allowed to choose a topic that includes any two academic subject areas that they want to focus on and incorporate into their projects. 

School officials decided to change from Pi Day, the math fair, because they knew some students had a hard time with the total focus on math. This year it is easier because they have the freedom to choose the subjects that they would like to use and really catch their attention and imagination. 

One example of a project is senior Cami Shaver, who will combine the subject areas of history and photography to develop a project on the history of specific camera angles.

The students have a schedule that they will need to follow if they want to complete the project in time for the juding and display. On Feb. 17 students need to have their supplies and models organized.  The school will supply tri-fold boards for the students to use for their presentations.  The students should be ready to assemble their display boards by Feb. 20. 

From Feb. 27 through March 2, students will practice their presentations, and they will present to their adviser classes March 5 through March 9. During the week of March 12 through March 16, the projects will be presented to judges, who will judge on criteria including the information or experiment procedure, presentation, and bibliography. Finally, students will be presenting to the public at the school from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. on March 20, taking the place of the usual parent-teacher conferences for an evening.

The display board is required to be no more than three feet in length, at least three feet tall and has to be free standing. They must also include the title, a brief overview of the project, research, materials, procedure, data, conclusions and acknowledgements. 

While some students aren’t thrilled about the academic fair, others are ecstatic. A few have really gotten into their projects and can’t wait to present them. The projects have many different themes, from video games to genetics and anywhere in between. 

Senior Bridgette Moore said, “I’m glad that we actually got to choose something that interested us, instead of just math. I am working with health and anatomy to research how organic and non-organic foods affect your body.”

Students will be dilligently working on their projects during adviser time and free time during school to create presentations for the public to enjoy as the day of the Academic Fair nears.

Bond issue passes with 62.5%

by Andrea Farrington

The high school gym was filled with applause and cheering on Tuesday, Feb. 7 during the home basketball game against HLV, when it was announced that the bond issue election held that day had passed. 

It was required that there be at least 60% “yes” votes for the bond to pass. The third time around, the most recent election, there were 62.5% “yes” votes.

With each new bond issue proposal, the “yes” votes have gradually increased.  As the amount for the bond issue decrased, it gained support from the community.  In Sept. 2010 there were only 40% “yes,” and in April of 2011 there were 56% “yes” votes. This year there were 972 votes total, 608 votes being “yes” and 364 being “no.”

Superintendent Dave Versteeg said, “It is an important investment in our school and community. The money will be put to good use improving the facility.”

It is predicted that some of the smaller projects for the school will begin this summer; however, the  large projects including electrical, plumbing and ventilation will not start until the summer of 2013. The school board will be discussing what project they will start with during their meeting on Feb. 15.

The construction on the school should be done within the next two or three years.

I am personally very enthusiastic that the bond passed because I would like the school I attended all my life to be open for as long as possible. I am proud of this school and community and would not like to see it fall to pieces because students have to transfer to other schools. Thank you to those of you that voted yes on the school bond issue, it is much appreciated.

Speech & Drama competes at State

by Natalie Kirton

On Saturday, Feb. 4, all 11 large group Speech & Drama teams traveled to Washington High School in Cedar Rapids to perform for State Competition. 

Each group acted in front of three judges, as well as other contestants and audience members.
Every group did their best, improving performances from Dress Rehearsal Night and even District competition. 

Judges were given a ballot to comment on as they viewed different performances from across the southeast portion of the state. They were also given a rating from I-III, with I being excellence. 

Three groups were rated three straight I’s, the best possible score you can achieve at competition. They were Reader’s Theatre in “The 11^th”, Freshmen Choral Reading in “Magic Theatre”, as well as an Improv group consisting of Niall Lyons, Zach Gibson, and Matthew Armstrong.

Four teams received two I’s and a II, which is an overall I rating: Varsity Choral Reading in “Move,” Short Film in “Dreamscape,” the Ensemble group “Party for Three” and the Improv group of Kaylee White, Cassie Corbin, and Dayton Pringle. 

Three groups got two II’s and a I: Radio Broadcasting “KFIT,” the Ensemble group “The Supers,” as well as the Ensemble “Elevator Games.”

Musical Theatre, performing “Legally Blonde,” received three II’s from the judges.

Some groups receiving an overall I rating are then invited to the All-State competition held in Ames on Feb. 18. 

Normally, I-rated contestants are told the Monday after State performances whether or not they can advance to All-State competition, but due to winter weather, the southwest State competition had to be postponed until Saturday, Feb. 11.

On Sunday evening, it was announced that Varsity Choral Reading, Freshmen Choral Reading, and Reader’s Theatre were nominated for All-State Non-Performing. Altogether this has been a great season for the large group Speech & Drama teams.

JV Braves dominate against Tri-County

by Bridgette Moore

On Monday, Feb. 6 the JV Braves dominated the Tri-County Trojans at Thornburg in their second to last game, with a score of 46-25. 

In the first quarter Siraj Thomasen made six points, Dillion Wilhelm made a total of four points and Joe Peck made two points. 

In the second quarter Bryant Suftin made six points, Wilhelm made four points and Peck made two points.  Going into half time the Braves and the Trojans were tied with 12 points .

The Braves pulled ahead and stayed ahead for the rest of the game.

 In the second half,  Peck made six points. Thomasen and Jay Lebahn followed with three points. Wilhelm, Seth Fahlenkamp, Bryan Gregson, Mikey Lyons and Luke Goodman each made two points.