Frisbee Club Makes An Ultimate Impression

By OHS Torch Reporter, Cole Hammel

Early this year the students of Olympia High School were given the opportunity to join an ultimate Frisbee club, many students were new to ultimate Frisbee and this created an excitement which motivated many kids to come out.

Ultimate Frisbee is a sport that has not been offered to Olympia Students in the past. This year it will be offered as a club with the possibility of playing in the State Championships in June and maybe even scrimmaging the ISU team.

While Ultimate Frisbee is new to the school the students of Olympia have been playing Ultimate Frisbee for years.

Junior Jadyn Talbert said, “ I haven't been out to a practice yet but I've been playing Ultimate forever with my church, so I’m gonna have to come out to practice once.”

Ultimate Frisbee is played with two teams both trying to score touchdowns. The game is played with one Frisbee and is thrown from teammate to teammate in an attempt to score. Once a player catches a Frisbee, they cannot move only pivot on a foot till they release the Frisbee.

The Olympia Frisbee club will be run by new guidance counselor Mr. Castillo who is a former Ultimate Frisbee player himself. Mr. Castillo played for Eastern Illinois Reapers and is also the president of the board.

Senior Tristan Ballinger said, “ This club is great I love the sport and it gives me something fun to do and it helps lose weight before wrestling meets. I wish we had this before my senior year”.

Ultimate Frisbee is a fun sport that all can play. With the season starting in the spring there is still plenty of time for students to sign up to play.

 

American Government Class Goes on Trial

By Taylor Stirsman, Torch Reporter

   

    On Thursday, December 17, Mr. Haak’s 2nd and 4th block American Government and Law classes participated in a mock criminal trial to test their knowledge on American Law and the criminal justice system.

    For the trial, the class had one student acting as a judge, two students acting as attorney’s, one defense and one prosecuting, a hand full will be witnesses, and some will be the jury. The attorneys started preparing last week because they had so much to learn for the trial. The witnesses received their information this week and have been studying their information since Monday.

    For the trials, the classes were joined by Mr. Mays and Mr. Warden, two student teachers the classes had been working with previously in the semester.

    OHS Senior, John Crawford was convicted of first degree murder, while another senior, Clayton Willis, got off on a mistrial.

    “The students had a lot of fun with this project and they learned a lot along the way, which is always great,” said Haak.

Because the project was so successful, Haak said that next semester, the American Government and Law class would also be doing the same thing and it is likely it will become a regular thing in the class.

    Not only did the students learn a lot about the criminal justice system during the process of preparing for the project, but Haak said he also learned a lot.  He found ways he could improve the project for future classes to make it even more successful.

Spartans Look to Finish Strong in Leader Classic

 

By Justin Slager, OHS Torch Reporter

On Friday December 18th, the Olympia Spartans boys basketball team will travel to St. Joe-Ogden to compete in the Leader Classic Tournament; last season the Spartans finished 5th in the Classic.

This year the Spartans(5-4, 3-1) head into the Leader's Classic the winner of 5 of their last 7 contests. The Spartans who are coming off their worst loss of the season and first conference loss to University High are looking to rebound against Cissna Park.

“The game Tuesday night is behind us and we can only look forward as we are continuing to build for February” said Coach Yoder.

The Spartans beat Eureka, Mahomet and Pontiac so far this season in the conference. The team is excited to bring its school home some hardware this season from the leader classic.

Senior Karl Fasse said, “ With a little hard work and dedication we are hoping to play Tuesday night for the championship.”

Olympia is the third overall seed in the tournament behind PBL and the host St Joe-Ogden. The St Joe-Ogden Spartans are currently 4th in class 2a state rankings.

Senior Thomas Hallstein said, “ I am really excited to show everyone what our team is made of and prove of a worthy spot.”

If you’re able to come out to watch this year’s basketball team as they start this year's Leader Classic Tournament. Go Spartans!

Meet Squeaky the Adopted Manatee

Sophomores Isacc Reigler, Kayla Miller, and Lauren Turner pose with a picture of Squeaky the manatee. Photo by Karl Fasse, OHS Torch Reporter

By Karl Fasse, OHS Torch Reporter

Recently, Mr. Abrams and his OHS sophomore advisory decided that they wanted to do something unique as an advisory family; what they came up with was adopting a manatee named Squeaky from www.savethemanatee.org.

What started out as a joke for Mr. Abrams’ advisory has quickly turned into reality. When his advisory was thinking of ideas for things that they could do together, a student brought up the idea of adopting a manatee as a joke. This student did not know that some students, such as Sophomore Isaac Reigler, actually thought this was an awesome idea.

Isaac is very proud of his advisory and he feels as if they are good people for adopting their manatee. Isaac said, “I know that Squeaky is much happier now that he knows he has a family who cares about him.”

Like many of his advisory students, Mr. Abrams is very proud of his advisory because he has seen first hand what conditions wild Manatee endure. He knows that the money that his advisory has raised will be helping these wonderful creatures.

Now many may ask, where do they keep this manatee? Mr. Abrams made it very clear that his class does not actually have a pet Manatee that they take care of. Adopting their manatee was basically donating money to an organization that strives to help wild manatees, who are endangered. By donating this money, his advisory was given a picture of the manatee that they ‘adopted’, as well as coloring books and many other souvenirs.

These souvenirs are what Sophomores Kayla Miller and Lauren Turner liked best about adopting Squeaky. They said, “We love the coloring books, they are so much fun!”

Adopting this Manatee has been something that the entire advisory has enjoyed doing. Mr. Abrams is confident that his advisory will continue to support their manatee and other manatees in the future.

To close, sophomore Isaac Riegler said it best. He said, “We are just doing our best to show compassion towards the manatee population. My classmates and I are just doing our best to awaken the Spartan learner.”

OHS Art Class Mixes Art and Technology

By Logan Gill

 

The Art class has been using Photoshop the past couple of weeks to manipulate pictures and art to create visual designs and effects making the photos looked distorted or altered.  

 

Mrs. Pitcher is the new art teacher that has come to Olympia and she has been introducing new material into the art department.  This includes using technology to test the students in her class.  

 

The students have been making abstract pictures using the shape tools.  They have been also using the crop tool to manipulate pictures.

 

Senior Taylor Rich said,” I like using Photoshop in Art class because you can make cool and neat things with it.”

 

A Lot of the students agree that art is a lot easier on technology instead of using just plain paper and art utensils.  The projects also look better when done with technology.

 

Sophomore Victoria Carmona said, ”I like it a lot better because it’s simple and easy to fix if you mess up.”

 

If you are good with Photoshop and enjoy making art give art class a try.  It is highly recommended.

Art is very easy to learn and fun to do. Give it a try!

OHS Should Take the Plunge

By Sarah Marsiglio, OHS Torch Reporter

                The Polar Plunge is an annual event that many people participate where the money goes toward the Special Olympics. It is a fun way to do your part and help in some way!

Senior Taylor Rich said, “I did the polar plunge before and it was really cold but when it was all done I felt really satisfied with the amount of money I donated to the Special Olympics.”

                To participate in the Polar Plunge you need a minimum donation of $100. Anyone who raises more are eligible for certain incentives.  There are no restrictions on age; however if one is under the age of 18, they need parent consent.

Sophomore Isaac Riegler said, “I donated $250 and I was in the water for what felt like forever but actually probably was 30 seconds.”

                Participants get to decide how far and how long they want to be in the water. Some only go ankle deep. A water rescue team will be present and will explain to everyone how to plunge properly.

                Teacher Mr. Hiero said, “I went to watch the Polar Plunge once and the participants had to be in the water for at least five minutes and complete an obstacle course.”

                Many participants of the Polar Plunge attempt to make it as fun as possible. They gather together with friends and will put costumes together to get a chuckle out of the day.

                So consider participating in this awesome event and help out with a charity. You have time to decide, the next Polar Plunge will be in late February/ early March!

 

Spartan Wrestling Off to a Great Start

By OHS Torch Reporter TJ Peters

 

The Olympia Spartan wrestling program is off to a great 6-0, beating multiple state ranked teams, start to their 2015-2016 season; the Spartan wrestling are ranked sixth in class A.

 

On December 1, the Spartans faced off the Porta Blue Jays. Porta was state ranked 9 and the Spartans pulled away with a 56-22 win.

 

Two days later the Spartans traveled to Bloomington High School and battled a state ranked 8 in class AA Bloomington Raiders. Each wrestler had a battle and it came all the way down to the wire when Senior captain Wyatt Spaulding pinned his opponent to win the match 39-35.

 

On Saturday the 5th, the Spartans hosted five teams for a day of duals. They started the day off with Danville, beating them, 42-31.

 

Saint Joe Ogden was the next opponent for Olympia. The Spartans handled them easy with a 54-24 victory.

 

The Spartans continued their winning streak when faced with Urbana High School. Olympia only lost three of their matches winning with a score of 61-16.

 

Next the wrestlers faced a rival and state ranked 13 LeRoy High School. All of the Spartans battled to the end and came out on top with a 42-31 victory.

 

The Spartans are off to a great start with a 6-0 record. Great job and good luck Spartans!

Olympia Swim Team Making A Splash

By Alex Switzer

    When it comes to Oly swimming, the new motto is quality over quantity, as they only have four members this season: Johann Meyer, Chance Cook, Mathew Nelson, and Hunter Schuerman.

    Although they have a low membership, Olympia Boy’s swimming does have two returning veterans to the sport: Junior Hunter Schuerman, a 3 year high school swimmer, and senior Chance Cook, also a 3 year high school swimmer.

    They also have a secret weapon on the team. Junior foreign exchange student, Johann Meyer, a German native, is trying out swimming for the first time. He’s bringing a great amount of enthusiasm to the team this year.

    When asked how he felt this season would go, Hunter said, “With only four members, I don’t know how many meets we’ll win, but I still enjoy swimming and being around my friends.”

    With this season just beginning now, the swimmers are working up their endurance. As the season progresses, the swimmers will be switching to more specialized practices for their events.

    Junior Hunter Schuerman has decided not to dive this year. After two successful diving years, he decided he’d like to just focus on swimming instead.

    When asked why he made this decision he said, “We don’t have a dive coach and I was the only diver and so it made dive practice very boring.”

    With four members or forty, numbers don’t mean anything if the team isn’t willing to put forth effort. One thing we can be certain of is that the Olympia boy’s swim team gives it their all.

OHS Undergoes Course Changes

By Sierra Priebe

    Next year the Olympia High School course catalog will undergo some significant changes; with new classes being added, names being changed and new requirements, the students will face tough decisions.

    A major change in scheduling next year is the emphasis on STEM related fields. Students will be required to take four science credit classes. All students are required to take Physical Science and Biology, after that they have a choice of either BSAA, Environmental Science or Advanced Bio. After completing one of those three classes students must take one of the following classes, Physics, Chemistry, Engineering Design (formally called POT class) or a new class called STEM Research.

    STEM Research is a class designed to motivate creative, inquisitive students. This class is more flexible, allowing students to conceive and design their own experiments. One main goal of the class is to give the students experience controlling and manipulating variables.

    OHS Guidance Counselor Alex Castillo said, “The idea of more STEM classes is because STEM fields are expanding and have lots of available jobs.”

    Next year more dual credit options will be available for students. Computers, which wasn’t a dual credit class in previous years, will be offered as a dual credit next year. A new class called music appreciation will also be added for dual credit.

    A few classes will be returning next year just with new names. Principals of Technology will be changed to Engineering Design and Drawing and Design will be changed to 2D art. Drawing and Design is being changed to 2D art because that is what it is called most places and on the college level.

    Junior Jenna Wood said, “I’m really excited about the changes being made next year. I want to take some of the new classes if my schedule allows.”

    New classes will offer the students more opportunities to take classes on things they’re interested in. Hopefully the new classes will help prepare students for college or even future careers.

OHS Science Dept. Takes to Facebook

by Lucas Smith

    With social media growing larger every day, it’s hard to not find what you’re looking for online, so Oly Science Department students and staff have now made this department no exception.

    Students and staff have designed a Facebook page for the OHS Science Department, making it more accessible and visible throughout the district.

    With big things happening throughout all of OHS’s science classes, the staff was looking for ways to share with the community what’s happening in the classrooms.

    “We asked students for their opinions and suggestions on how to share with the community how and what students were learning in the classroom, and we decided to go to Facebook,” OHS Science teacher Mr. Rackauskas.

    Students in current science classes have been helping design the Facebook page in attempt to make the page user friendly and easy to find.

    “I think the page is a good idea.  Last year The Pantagraph wrote about our science classes a couple times but now we can spread our own word,” said OHS senior TJ Peters.

    The Science Department hopes to attract interest of community members in their projects and to gain support.

    “Overall so far the Facebook page has been a success it’s bringing a lot of attention to the great things we are doing here at OHS,” said Mr. Rackauskas.

 

OHS Sails Away For Winter break

By Lucas Smith

    With the second annual OHS Boat Regatta approaching fast, students prepare for a cruise to remember, using cardboard and tape students take on the great sail across the OHS pool.

   during the 2015 spring semester, OHS Science teacher Mr. Rackauskas was looking for a new and exciting project for his Principles of Technology class. Boats seemed a simple idea, but Mr. Rackauskas brought a bigger challenge then to build just an ordinary boat.

    The P.O.T. class is an engineering and design class, structured for hands on projects filled with a lot critical thinking which bring out student creativity and problem solving abilities.

    The Boat Regatta is a project where students are only allowed to use tape and cardboard to build a life size boat; not only do they have to design and build this structure from such basic materials, the boat is required to hold 3 of the group's students.

    “Even though this project is new to OHS, I really enjoyed our fist run last semester and it will be a project I continue to give to my classes in the Future,” said  Mr. Rackauskas

    Last year the project was a large success, drawing a large crowd from the other classes throughout OHS to watch the Regatta. The project even drew attention from the surrounding community when Local news channels and The Pantagraph shared the story on the internet and in the newspaper.

    “I particularly like the creativity of this project because not only do I see the different designs, I get to also watch how my students solve the issue of strengthening the boats to hold the weight of the kids,” said Mr. Rackauskas.

    The class plans on another successful year of boat building along with hopes to make the project even bigger than it was in the past.

NHS to Hold Canned Food Drive

By Alex Switzer

    Every year the National Honor Society holds a canned food drive;  this year, the drive is running in January and, with these donations, families needing food in the Olympia community will be fed.

    National Honor Society still needs volunteers for the canned food drive committee to help with the coordinating. This includes meetings and helping with making people aware of what’s going on and transporting the cans.

    Collection boxes will be placed in every advisory. Whichever advisory can produce the most canned food will be winning a prize yet to be determined.

    Last year, NHS held a canned food sculptures competition in the commons with the donated cans. NHS hasn’t decided yet if they will do that again or think of something new. Either way, bring in as many cans as possible to help the community.

    Mrs. Hapgood, NHS advisor, said, “We appreciate all the donations but make sure you check the cans' expiration date before turning them in.”

    All the cans raised will be delivered to the Stanford food pantry at the end of the food drive. Boxed food can be brought into take away points from other advisories.

    For a small donation of cans, you can help feed a family and win a prize for your advisory. Help out the community on January by bringing in some cans.

   

   

Sophomore Advisory Participates in Adopt a

By Taylor Stirsman

During the month of November, Mrs. Karin Stephan’s sdvisory of sophomores ran project to help gather donations of needed items to send to soldiers fighting overseas.

The project ran from the beginning of November to Thanksgiving. Donations that were gathered are being sent into Operation Gratitude.

The class decided tin heir freshman year that each year they wanted to do at least one charity project.  Kenzie Timmons mentioned that she would like to do something for soldiers. Timmons and fellow classmates gathered boxes to collect donations in and found a list of items that soldiers needed. Students talked to Principal Jodlowski about how to set up the project in the school and researched which charity to send in the donations.

Items included: aspirin, baby powder, baby wipes, books, breath mints, dental floss, deodorant, dry soup, electrolyte replacement drink mix, eye drops/ eye wash, foot powder, gum, Kleenex, lip balm, lotion, mouthwash, pens, paper, envelopes, phone cards, pillows, playing cards, protein powders/ protein bars, Q-tips, socks, toilet paper, toiletries, sunglasses, sunscreen, toothbrushes and toothpaste and t-shirts.

“We received about a computer box full of items to send in. The students were expecting to get piles and piles of donations so they were feeling discouraged and like we weren’t very successful. I still see it as a success because the students learned to help those that are in need, do research, and talk to administrators, which can sometimes be scary,” said Stephan.

Chamber Choir Tunes up for Madrigals

 

 

By Kathryn Bergeron, OHS Torch Reporter

In November the OHS Chamber Choir toured different places in the surrounding communities; while there they performed and practiced many of the Christmas songs that they will perform at Madrigals.

OHS senior Bekah Bauersfeld said, “This was my fourth year going on the Chamber Choir tour. My favorite part every year is visiting the cancer center and singing to the sick as they get their chemo. It’s one of the rare and beautiful  moments when you get to see someone’s face literally light up."

The Chamber Choir visited Minier Community Bank, the Hopedale Nursing Home, Boyton Mennonite Church, the Community Cancer Center, Broman Hospital, Broadview Mansion, and Luther Oaks.

This year there are 18 members in the Chamber Choir. The members consist of five sopranos: Anna Adams, Megan Driver, Kelsey Schrag, Kristen Schuette, and Paedra Tabor, four altos: Bekah Bauersfeld, Addie Ewalt, Marissa Horning, and Lauren Hostetter, four tenors: Dylan Maris, Ethan Shopp, Doug Stribling, and Alex Weber, and five basses: Matthew Althoff, Jacob Bowers, Daulton FInchum, Collin Shopp, and Caleb Yeazle.

OHS senior Daulton Finchum said, “The tour is one of my favorite parts of the year for Chamber Choir. People really enjoy listening to us and every year the places we visit ask for us to come back.”

This year there are 25 different songs that will be performed at Madrigals. Madrigals is a production that the Olympia Chamber Choir puts on every year around Christmas time.

The tour is a chance for the Chamber Choir to practice their songs before Madrigals. It gives the performers a chance to practice in front of people, unlike regular practices.

OHS senior Caleb Yeazle said, “This was my third year doing the tour and my favorite part is when the Bauersfeld’s make the food for us. It is so good!”

Success Club Promotes Strong Study Habits

By Cameron Litwiller, OHS Torch Reporter

    Success Club is a club where students receive help from teachers with homework and projects; which has been up and running since September of this year.

    “ The main goal is to give students an opportunity to work with teachers to get help with something they’re struggling in,” said Assistant Principal Hurley.

    “ It makes every teacher feel good when a student has that light bulb go off in their head. We want to make sure our students succeed,” said OHS Science teacher, Mrs. Cooper.

    For students to participate in Success Club, a signup sheet must be filled out with a parent’s signature. Students are to be dedicated to doing well in classes and bringing any homework or project to the club meetings.

    Any student can join Success Club. Their is no fee required to be able to participate.

    Principal Jodlowski and Assistant Principal Hurley are the advisors for the club along with 3-4 teachers. During the Success Club meetings, students have access to computers, libraries, and help from the teachers.

    All subjects are covered every time they meet. There tends to be at least one Science and one Math teacher present no matter what. Teachers also volunteer to help out with Success Club.

    Success Club helps lots of students to do better with their school work and set them up for future success. It’s one of many aspects that makes Olympia so great.

   

NHS Members go Bowling

By Cameron Litwiller, OHS Torch Reporter

    NHS members know how to have fun with lower classmen; twice a month they hang out with middle schoolers at Minier Lanes.

    “ Bowling with the middle schoolers is a great opportunity to connect and create a bond,” said NHS Advisor, Ms. Steve.

    This event happens usually in the 2nd and last week of every month. Any NHS member or middle schooler can participate.

    “ Getting to connect with the younger kids is definitely the best part because they’re a lot of fun to hang out with,” said NHS member, Bekah Bauersfield.

    Middle School P.E. teacher, Mrs. Davis, is the person who puts all the bowling dates together. Bowling with the middle schoolers started just a few years ago.

    “ I really wanted to let kids have the opportunity to go bowling with their friends. When the NHS members go, the kids always get excited,” said bowling coordinator Mrs. Davis.

    “ I love getting to just spend time with the kids,” said NHS Treasurer, Ellie Martin.

    NHS members always enjoy getting the opportunity to connect with the younger generation. It any member is interested, please let Ms. Steve know!

   

   

OHS Students Get Jiggy With It During Halftime

By OHS Torch Reporter Ethan Sebok

On Friday, December 11th, during boy’s basketball had home game, the OHS dance team partnered up with high school boys for a co-op dance. This is a tradition that has happened for quite some time.

The girls of the OHS dance team each selected a male from any grade in the high school. There are 12 fabulous ladies on the OHS dance team. They chose 12 flawless boys to dance with them. The boys then started the daunting task of learning a 4 minute song in three days with coaching by the dance team.

    “This was one of the best times the dance team has ever had!” said Jamie Hamblin of the OHS dance team.   

 

“Ethan killed it!” said OHS sophomore Hailee Van Dyke about Ethan Sebok.

    This was a very amusing spectacle as you can tell by reading this. It was a huge hit with the crowd also!

 

So next year if a dance team member asked you to dance at the basketball game say yes! You will have loads of fun and great memories.

This Semester OHS Key Club Made An Impact

By Ashlyn Biddle, OHS Torch reporter

        This semester, OHS Key Club has been involved in several service projects in the nation such as donating blankets to hospitals, collecting money for UNICEF, and ringing bells for the Salvation Army.

        During advisory a couple weeks ago, Key Club members were able to make blankets or decorate socks for children in hospitals. The blankets that OHS Key Club donated to local hospitals were made out of fleece material by the students. Also the socks decorated by students were non-slip for the kids in these specific hospitals.

        The Key Club Vice President, Ellie Martin, said, “When I decorated socks in advisory for young patients in local hospitals, it was a lot of fun!”

        The OHS students in Key Club we’re given earlier this semester, different cardboard boxes to raise money, for an organization called UNICEF. The organization, UNICEF, is a United Nations program headquartered in New York City that provides long-term humanitarian and developmental assistance to children and mothers in developing countries.

        Another way OHS Key Club members served our community was by ringing bells at different locations around the area, for the organization, Salvation Army. The organization, Salvation Army is a Christian denomination church and an international charitable organization structured in a quasi-military fashion.

        Nikole Barnes, an OHS Key Club member, said, “I had volunteered to ring bells for the Salvation Army this semester and it was very impacting!”

        Every student that is in Key Club at OHS got to be involved in these service  projects. When the members of Key Club volunteered at these service projects they got to earn volunteer hours to put on their hour sheets.

        Bekah Bauersfeld, OHS Key Club President, said, “I can’t wait for next year, our Key Club group will help so many people around us!”

Bell, Schopp Rally OHS Speech Team to Many Victories

By OHS Torch Reporter, Thomas Hallstein

    The Olympia High School speech team hasn't just been winning this season; many of the team's members have been winning individual awards and also team tournament awards, making them the top team in the conference.

Over the past couple of speech competitions, many OHS members have done big things for them individually and for their team, rallying them past other competitors.

OHS Senior veteran member David Bell is one of the main reasons why the team is having such great success. “I’ve been doing this for 4 years, I have plenty of experience under my belt," said Bell.

With Bell doing big things individually for himself and the team, the team has another great Senior Collin Schopp and his little brother Freshman Ethan Schopp.

“It’s nice to see my little brother off to a great career in speech,” said Senior Collin Schopp.

The 3 of them together create a pretty mean trio, with their skills and talents put together the team has high hopes of being conference champs.

“My brother has taught me a lot of things about speech, he’s showed me the basics,” said Freshman Ethan Schopp.

With the holidays coming up, the team has a decent amount of time off, but once it comes back to meets the team will be back to doing successful things.