CENTER HIGH SCHOOL: THE HIVE NEWS
PRINCIPAL'S NEWSLETTER March. 2021 VOL#7
Message from the Principal
Dear Center High School – and Center Middle School -- Parents & Students,
It’s hard to believe that we are almost to the end of the 3rd quarter of this school year. Every day seems to bring new changes and challenges.
The week of March 8th CHS will have virtual Parent/ Teacher Conferences. If you have not signed up with your scholar’s teachers, you can do so with this link: https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/CenterHighSchool@center.k12.mo.us/bookings/s/kev46Ho9f0Kpl3dI0BqLwA2
As you are no doubt aware, Center School District has decided to allow scholars to return to the buildings in person with a hybrid schedule. Our talented teachers have been preparing for this event and are looking forward to seeing students in person.
I’m proud to report that almost all of our Seniors participated in Senior testing day and performed admirably. COVID has made fulfilling some of graduation requirements tricky, but our seniors have persevered. I’m very proud of them.
You may notice that this edition of the newsletter is focused on enrollment of 8th grade scholars who will be joining us next year, and all the various opportunities available to students at Center High School. We have been working diligently over the last year and a half to promote these programs. While this information will be helpful for middle school parents, I hope you will also explore the options students who are already at CHS have. Current CHS scholars will be enrolling in classes for the 2021-2022 school year after we return from Spring Break. If you have any questions about these programs, feel free to reach out to your child’s counselor.
Sincerely,
Mr. Edward Tate
Center High School Principal
Information for 8th Grade Parents
Skilled Trades Program - Shop Class Returning to CHS
PrepKC Career Academies
Parent University March 25, 2021
Please contact Mrs. Stevenson at ostevenson@center.k12.mo.us for details.
Debaters Win Big!
Kamryn Coppock won first place a Macbook Pro, and Damarion Mitchell won 3rd place $250 gift card to Nike.
So proud of our debaters!
Submitted by Debate Coach, Mrs. Bates
Wrestling Results from Districts
On February 13th, The Yellowjacket Wrestling Program competed in the MSHSAA CLASS 2, DISTRICT 6 TOURNAMENT. We took 9 wrestlers, ready to battle it out for a chance to go to Sectionals and then State. After a tough day of wrestling, we had 5 wrestlers qualify for Sectionals!
113 So. Eric Franklin, 4th place
120 Jr. Elijah Gunnels, 3rd Place
138 Sr. Alex Hillard, 4th Place (Captain)
182 So. Harold Tsafack, 3rd Place (1st year wrestler)
195 Sr. Nosa Ohanmu, 3rd Place (Captain)
These wrestlers move on to Sectionals at Seneca, MO on February 27th, 2021. Top three finishers move on to the State Tournament, which will be at the Cable Dahmer Arena in Independence.
To our guys that fell on Saturday, you did an amazing job this season. We are so proud of you. Do not let the results from that day take away the accomplishments you made this season. Let it be the fuel to drive you into next season! It is a great day to be a Yellowjacket!
Submitted by Wrestling Coach, Mr. Mischer
Scholar Bowl Update
So, there they were, on the final night of competition in the MRVC Conference Scholar Bowl regular season. On the eve of the Conference tournament with seeding at stake. Your Yellowjacket Academic Team had a challenging night ahead – 3 matches against some very good teams. It would bring them to the end of their conference season and usher in the conference tournament. This was their first season in the MRVC, and up until tonight, they had not been beaten in conference play.
Now, they have had SEVERAL very close games. In fact, 4 of their 12 matches had come down to the final two or the final question of the match. Several matches could have gone either way for this Yellowjacket team. But they were persistent and relentless all year!
So tonight, they knew they had to be at their best and sharpest to defeat these final 3 teams and finish with a perfect record. Well, you know their names, and you already know the outcome because you have been following this team all year!
We won all three matches with scores of 440-120, 410-170, and 400-70!
Yes ladies and gentlemen, your Yellowjackets came ready to play! And Play they did - - - they have officially ended the regular season of the MRVC Conference matches with a perfect 12-0 Record!!!!!!
Tomorrow, Thursday March 4 the team should be back at almost full strength (minus Alex, maybe!?!) to begin their “march” thru the conference tournament. Yes, March Madness begins tomorrow in the MRVC Scholar Bowl Competition with your Yellowjackets as the #1 Seed!
The pressure is on. We have had such a great run thru the regular season we are hoping to be able to finish strong in the tournament against some VERY GOOD teams who definitely want a rematch. Stay tuned and to find out how the conference season ends up.
Quick summary for the year:
MRVC Regular Season – 12 wins, 0 losses
Overall Record: 14 wins, 3 losses
4th place finish at Maple Woods Scholar Bowl (14 teams entered)
MRVC Conference Tournament – TBD
District Championship - TBD
Submitted by Mr. Phillips, Sponsor (3/3/21)
Science Student Posters for Black History Month
In honor of Black History Month, Ms. Wolfe's biology and physical science students did a research project about prominent Black scientists, mathematicians, technologists, inventors and engineers. They were tasked with choosing one of these individuals to create an informational poster about. Here are some examples, though all were great.
Scholar Bowl Updates
Your Yellowjackets competed in two matches in our third Conference outing. In the first round we had a bye so the team was able to rest a little and prepare for the two matches they would have that evening.
In our first match of the night, we ended up setting what their coach would say are team records – certainly season records. The team scored 490 points! That will certainly bring up our average of 340 points per game! We did end up victorious in that match which also saw a feat not often witnessed. One quizzer, the Yellowjackets Captain Ben Lahann, score an unprecedented 16 Toss Up questions in that one game! There are only 26 Toss Ups for the entire match and Ben answered 16 of them – That has to be some sort of record!
In our second match of the night, it was another real nail biter! Another match that came down to the FINAL Toss up and bonus questions. Our opponents had an opportunity to win, however, a misstep by the opponent was jumped on by the Jackets and we were able to come away with a 270-250 point win – that represents a 2 question margin!
So your Yellowjackets Scholar Bowl team is currently undefeated in Conference with a perfect 9-0 record with 3 matches to go before the Conference Tournament. This has been such an exciting year for this team as 6 of our victories have been won by less than 100 points each and 3 of those wins have come down to the final toss up question of the game! These scholars have been able to stay focused thru some long nights of quizzing and have finished each match strong! You should be proud of what they have accomplished as they represent the Mighty Center High School Yellowjackets!
We finish conference next Wed, March 3 with those final three matches and then head into the Conference Tournament next Thursday, March 4. In the meantime, we do have some Non-conference matchups to help us continue to practice and prepare for what will be a difficult finish to the conference schedule.
If you see any of these students, take the opportunity to congratulate them on a fine performance!
Ben Lahann, Jordan Rolf, Alex Harper, Denny Mosby, Annemarie Ball, Avery Bennekin
Submitted by the Scholar Bowl Sponsor, Mr. Phillips
February’s student recognition theme: RESPECT
February’s student recognition theme is RESPECT. Here are the submissions:
Dawon Irvin “Being an active participant in advisory class and proactively reaching out to me when he was going to be late due to a technology issue.” (Mrs. Gibson)
Richard Cunningham “Student demonstrates respect by always coming to advisory and asking me how I'm doing. Richard always has a really good attitude.” (Ms. Wolfe)
Sofia Trout “Being unbothered by speaking to the teacher and making them feel important still.” (abanks40233)
Tradon Stricklen “Tradon showed perseverance by changing his failing grades to passing grades. I was very impressed with his determination.” (Ms. Brede)
Jadan Smith “Jadan is always present in advisory and shows respect (February) by being polite to me and her peers.” (Ms. McArtor)
Sophia Trout “She is always the first to help someone, and she is the most respectful person I know. She is sweet, kind, and intelligent. I’d anyone deserves to be recognized, it’s her.” (bbridge38167)
K'On Silverman “K'On demonstrates Respect by always doing the right thing. He is always looking for ways to help teachers. He is very kind and well mannered.” (Ms. Scribner)
Kisa Robinson “She is always respectful during advisory.” (Ms. Gyswyt)
Kaitlin Lewis “Kat is always kind to others, participates willingly, and is helpful to others. They email me just to ask how I am doing and to check on their teachers, and they are always striving to show compassion for others.” (Ms. Hobbs)
Montez Willis “Montez is very respectful in advisory. I appreciate him always coming to class with a positive attitude and asking great questions.” (Ms. Decker)
Alex Hillard “Continually being in class and working with any student when asked to do so.” (Mr. Nichols)
Jasmine Cage “Jasmine is a great example of respect, hard work, and selflessness. She is also willing to engage in conversation, strive to help those around her, and pursue her goals in ways that inspire those around her.” (Ms. Rand)
Ellie Peoples “She demonstrates selflessness by being there for her friends and peers when they need to talk to someone.” (scaldwel11558)
Ashlin Towns “Ashlin demonstrates respect daily. She is polite and helpful to fellow classmates as well as teachers and staff.” (Ms. Mayes)
Amani Wishom-Mason “Amani has been amazing addition to my advisory! For being so virtual and NEW to Center, she has just been amazing. She always helps in Advisory to ask great questions and to help answer questions of fellow advisory students.” (Ms. Giangrosso)
Evan Dean “He always tries to think of others helping out his family with chores and doing things for his grandmother.” (Ms. Bates)
Ellie Peoples “She demonstrated selflessness by helping me out when I needed her.” (scaldwel11558)
Ahmed Benyusuf “Helps his dad out a lot at his car dealership while still staying on top of his schoolwork. He has attended class meetings from an office at his dad's office several times and never complained about it once because he wants to be helpful to his dad! “ (Mr. Chambers)
Marisa Quarles “Speaking up while virtual, always showing up, communicating like an adult!” (Ms. Porter)
Project Graduation 2021
Senior Parents:
Please join us for the next project grad meeting via Zoom.
Topic: Class of 2021 Project Grad parent meeting
Time: Mar 11, 2021 06:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89022117161?pwd=L1J3Y1ZlOTlJR0MzR2ExTEJuMzQyZz09
Meeting ID: 890 2211 7161
Passcode: 837937
SIS - SISTERS INSPIRING SISTERS
The group is led by Dr. Yolanda Cargile who will provide opportunities for students to connect with adults, hear their journeys and discuss topics, including race, equity, gender and much more. The Center High School group will meet on the 3rd Tuesday of each Month from 4:00 - 5:15 p.m.
CHS Schedule:
Tuesday, March 9 from 4:00 - 5:15 p.m.
Tuesday, April 13 from 4:00 - 5:15 p.m.
To join please contact your building principal or Ms. Stephanie Archie at sarchie@center.k12.mo.us. We will require a parent permission slip, before you are able to join us.
Parent Permission Slip
Support Group for Caregivers of Remote Learners
Winter Sports and Activities
Important Note: Due to increases in COVID transmission, and regulations set forth by local government, our Sports season will start with no spectators. That decision will be revisited as the year progresses. Thank you for your support and understanding.
If any student is interested in competing in Scholar Bowl, a competition where you answer knowledge and trivia questions, please email Mr. Brian Phillips at bphillips@center.k12.mo.us for more information.
Spring Sports seasons begin March 1. Contact the following head coaches for additional information.
Where to watch Winter Sports
Good morning CSD Family,
I wanted to share some information with you all regarding our upcoming home athletic events. We will start our Winter Sports Season not allowing any spectators to attend any home events. We will revisit this decision when we return after winter break.
Our plan is to live stream as many high school events as possible. At the present time, we do not have the capacity to live stream our middle school events. To watch our high school events, go to HiveTV CHS YouTube Channel, and search for the event.
A special THANK YOU to Mr. Steve Parker for all his hard work managing our live streams at the high school. It would not be possible without his dedication to our athletic program.
Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.
Have a great day everyone!
GO YELLOWJACKETS!
_
Samuel Simmons, Sr.
Assistant Principal & District Athletic/Activities Director
Center High School
Additional information regarding live streaming of CSD athletic events
Our middle school basketball home events will be live streamed on the Center Middle School Facebook page. A special thank you to Jessica Steffes for her willingness to live stream each middle school home basketball game. Our first event is today with our boys taking on Oak Grove at 5pm.
Our high school Girls Swimming & Diving team kick off their season at The Gladstone Community Center on Saturday, December 12th at 10:45am. Here is the link to the live stream for our Girl's Swimming & Diving meet on Saturday.
N2 Sports Tonka YouTube channel
Our home Swimming & Diving meets will be live streamed on our Center Athletics 58 Facebook page.
Please go to our CSD Athletic website to find the schedules for all middle school and high school winter sports team.
Senior Graduation Orders with Jostens
Jostens had a virtual class meeting with Seniors during Yellowjacket Success Time on October 21st. They presented information about purchasing cap & gown, graduation announcements, and most importantly, senior hoodies and sweats.
To order online:
To place your order online, please use this link: https://union.thegraduationcenter.com/home?school_id=9
If you order online, hoodies and other products will be shipped to you, or you can pick them up from the Josten’s office.
If you have any questions concerning graduation orders, please contact Stephanie Parrish with Jostens directly. She can be reached at Stephanie.Parrish@jostens.com
2020 TENTATIVE Senior Dates Guide
Link to Senior Guide: https://www.smore.com/5kanr