Cougar Call
Volume 3, Issue 9
College Road Trip
Approaching my senior year, I am starting to get anxious about deciding where to go to college. The College Road Trip, a three day field trip for 10th and 11th graders, is a fun way to tour colleges in the state with your classmates. This year, the group toured Mercer University, Middle Georgia State, Lagrange College, Columbus State, and The University of West Georgia. On the tours, we experienced good and bad dining hall food, small and large dorms, and energetic and apathetic tour guides.
On the first day, Mercer was very impressive. The homey campus was inviting and pretty. Some buildings were old while others were bright and modern. Next, we visited Middle Georgia State. Middle Georgia was less impressive and more boring. The smaller campus was not inviting, but the dorms were very nice. Of the two we visited Wednesday, Mercer was my favorite.
Thursday we toured Lagrange College and Columbus State. While Lagrange was small, Columbus was huge and spread out. Lagrange College is very old, but the dorms are large and the buildings have been renovated. The ice cream at the Dining Hall was definitely a plus! Columbus State was modern and expansive, but it was a little too big for me. We also did an escape room while we were in Columbus and walked to Alabama. Although I probably will not attend, Lagrange was my favorite college from Thursday.
On Friday, we travelled to Carrolton to tour the University of West Georgia. This college was larger, hilly, and had a great dining hall. While I still don’t know where I will be attending college in two years, the College Road Trip definitely helped me narrow down my options.
By: Ivy English
Student Council
High school and middle school May day is rapidly approaching! May Day is a day full of games, competitions, and fun that is held every year close to the last day of school. It is the responsibility of our high school and middle school student council to decide the theme, games and activities, t-shirts, prizes, teams, and team leaders for May Day. Mrs. Tonya Coe is the high school student council sponsor. Mrs. Amber Hawkes is the middle school student council sponsor, and the members include: president, Taylor Boyd, treasurer, Malynne Webb, secretary, Carina Valdivia, 8th grade representatives, Ava Anglin and Laney Martin, 7th grade representative, Adrianna Chapko, and 6th grade representatives Dakota Floyd and Emily McEwen. Soon our student councils will be discussing these things at each of their meetings. I’m sure they are thrilled to be a part of planning this day of fun.
By: Mallory Boyd
Literary Wins State
This year Piedmont Academy’s literary team took home the gold once again in what the students have affectionately referred to as a “3peat.” This is the team’s second straight region win and third straight state championship. Head Literary Coach, Mary Catherine Sikes, states, “I am so proud of all the hard work they put into the months leading up to competition. We have a highly experienced group of seniors who have been the recipe for our success, and I am so pleased that they were able to bring home one last region and state championship.” The team consisted of 14 students and included events in music, drama, speech, spelling, and essay writing.
Gracie Brittain, Martina Coleman, and Anne Marie Hildebrant placed 2nd in the trio competition at region. Anne Marie Hildebrant also competed in the girl’s solo event and placed 2nd in region and 4th in state. Danny Ramsdell and Will Tillman competed in Duo Interpretation and finished 2nd at both region and state. Danny Ramsdell also competed in Boy’s Solo and Dramatic Oral Interpretation. He finished 3rd in region in Boy’s Solo, and in Dramatic Interpretation, he finished 1st in region and 4th in state. In addition to Duo Interpretation, Will Tillman also competed in Humorous Oral Interpretation where he finished 1st in region and 2nd in state. Chris McClain competed in Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking placing 1st in region and, for the third straight year, 1st in state. Nick Maynard competed in International Extemporaneous speaking; he placed 2nd in region and 1st in state. In the spelling competition, Kevin Davis placed 1st in both region and state for a third year. The team had three first place wins in the essay competitions at region. Emma Kate Edmonds competed with a personal essay, Jackson Waddleton competed in Rhetorical, and Ivy English competed in Argumentative.
Additionally, Ivy English placed 1st in state with her argumentative essay. Grace Roberts and Jessica McEwen joined the team as alternates, and Maddie Mooneyham accompanied as our student photographer.
The school, as well as all of its faculty and students, is proud to have an amazing team full of such talented individuals. The Piedmont Academy literary team would also like to extend a special “thank you” to Ms. Mary Catherine Sikes, Mrs. Allison Hildebrant, Mrs. Leslie White, Mrs. April Allen, and Mrs. Jackie Tarrh who made this all possible. In addition we would like to also thank Ms. Bobbie Sauls who, despite no longer being at Piedmont, is a huge part of what we are and what we do.
-Article written by State champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking, Nick Maynard, who is also a member of the school’s journalism class.
By: Nick Maynard
Teacher Spotlight: Julie Tucker
1. How long have you been at Piedmont? “I have been at Piedmont for 29 years.”
2. What is your favorite thing about Piedmont? “All the wonderful students I have watched grow from Kindergarten.”
3. Where did you get your teaching degree from? “My teaching degree is from Georgia College University and State in Milledgeville.”
4. Where are you originally from? “I am originally from South Carolina.”
5. Who influenced you to be a teacher? “I would say Mrs. Betsy, my mother.”
6. If you could choose another occupation what would it be? “I would be a meteorologist.”
7. What is your favorite thing you have taught? “Teaching children how to read.”
By: Savannah Stanton
Baseball
Piedmont Academy 2017’s baseball season has arrived! Our varsity, B-team, and middle school teams have played their best to compete against other schools and pull the victories. Our middle school roster includes the following players: Dawson Coe, Cameron Mobley, Brody Anderson, Drake Coody, Andrew Parish, Ryan Holder, Joe Clark, Nick Richards, Jake Richards, Harrison Dowdy, Mark Hicks, Tanner Locklear, Russ Hagwood, Mason Owens, David Bishop, Dalton Wallace, Spencer Carter, Hunter Robinson, and Drew Maddox. This year, the team has played Briarwood Academy, Gatewood, Brentwood, John Milledge Academy, and ACE. They have won a total of five games and have one left to go. Their last game is March 30 at Loganville Christian Academy.
Our B-team, however, has only played three teams so far. They have competed against John Milledge Academy and had a double header against Bethlehem Christian Academy. The B-team roster includes: Owen Brady, Clayton Carter, Caleb Coffey, Dylan Coe, Drake Coody, Caleb Faircloth, Matthew Griffin, Tanner Locklear, Tate Marks, Cameron Mobley, Zach Spivey, Payton Wallace, and JT Webb. They have won two out of three of the games. The team plays a double header against Bethlehem Christian Academy on April 10th at Piedmont, at Windsor on April 11th, John Milledge Academy on April 20 at Piedmont, Windsor on April 22 at Piedmont, and at ACE on April 24. The team and coaches hope to pull as many victories as they can, however they just want their best.
Our varsity team roster includes: Michael Edwards, Clayton Carter, Caleb Faircloth, Caleb Coffey, Matthew Griffin, Mack Brady, Wyatt Galloway, JT Webb, Tyler Mills, Brock Carter, Owen Brady, Rob Allgood, Zach Spivey, Tate Marks, Payton Wallace, Jay Sheets, Dylan Coe, Sam Wright, and Chase Porter. They have played a total of 12 games with 7 to go. They have won ten games and lost two. The rest of the schedule includes: Briarwood at Piedmont on March 31, at Windsor on April 11, at Thomas Jefferson on April 13, Monsignor Donovan at Piedmont on April 18, John Milledge Academy at Piedmont on April 20, at Brentwood on April 21, and Windsor at Piedmont on April 22.
The coaches are an integral part of what makes our teams so special. They support the players in ups and downs and help them fix mistakes. For middle school, the head coach is Cameron Vaughn, the assistant coach is Rick Ringer, and the trainer is Mary Catherine Sikes. For varsity, the head coach is Wes Tanner and the assistant coaches are Colt Spivey and Cameron Vaughn. The managers for varsity and b-team include Ashley Johnston, Madison Burnham, MaKenna Holifield, Deacon Robinson, Mackensie Johnston, and Loren Pope.
By: Mackensie Johnston
Devotional
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you, He will never leave you nor forsake you.
Deuteronomy 31:6
Everyday, everyone battles some fight, whether it is fear, anxiety, depression, etc. Fear is something I have found to be extremely common. Life can be frightening. At this point in my life, a good amount of change has been taking place. Change has always scared me for the reason one can never be completely certain what will happen. When God placed a big change on my heart, I was completely terrified.
By: Kelsey Leach
Soccer
On March the 10th, the varsity soccer teams played GMC. The Girls lost 3-1, and the boys were run-ruled. On March 14th, the girls lost to John Milledge 8-1. The boys got run ruled again. On March 23rd, the cougars played against Westfield at home. The girls won 4-3. The boys lost 11-2. Ezra King scored a goal on a PK and Trent Coots scored on an assist from Joseph Anderson. Last night the cougars played at Westminster. The girls lost 3-1. The goal for the Cougars was made by Caitlyn Young on a free kick. And the boys got run-ruled after less than 40 minutes.
By: Joseph Anderson
Jokes
1. What do you call a fake Irish stone? A shamrock.
2. Why is a flower like the letter a? A b comes after it.
3. What do you call a rabbit with fleas? Bugs bunny?
4. Who do you call when a rabbit needs a haircut? A hare dresser.
5. Why is a rabbit and a corn stalk a like? They both have big ears.
6. Why was the cucumber mad? He was in a pickle.
7. What do you give a sick lemon? Lemon Aid
8. Whats an elephants favorite vegetable? Squash
9. What has no fingers and a lot of rings? A tree.
10. What do you get when flowers kiss? Tulips.
By: Savannah Stanton
Editorial
What role is a facility such as a school to play in a student’s life? Is it to educate them on facts and equations, or perhaps to instruct them on morality and how our society views certain acts and their repercussions? Well, the answer is rather simple. A school’s function is to teach a student how to function in the world. It is a school’s job to teach a student how to make sense of basic algebra, how to solve problems, and how to think freely. A school's reputation comes from how well they do that job, how much of an opportunity that school provides. A schools job is NOT; however, to dictate the acts of that student outside the campuses grounds. A school must act as a caretaker in the absence of the parents, this much is clear, but it is not to assume the role of the parent as that is the parent’s job themselves.
Some people would see this as a “lack of respect for authority;” however, there cannot be a lack of something which should not exist in the first place. A student may not follow the instructions for an assignment that day. A student may not arrive on time to school. Both of these are reasons for a school to take action, but when a student leaves a school and is at home, the school legally has NO authority over that student. Any contract signed by a student is only enforceable while on the grounds of the establishment. The school has no authority over said student as it has shifted back into the sole hands of the student. This, in it of itself, transcends just a school setting. For instance: a student who partakes in an “illicit substance” such as alcohol; it is not the school's place to condemn that act unless its effects were apparent on the campus itself or even if it affected a student’s studies, and if a parent does not wish for their child to engage in such acts, that must come down to the actions of the parent, not the school. If one were to “helicopter” their child and protect them from all things found frequently in the world, even bad, it would do only one of two things and nothing else: breed irrational fear and judgment upon undeserving people, or cause an attraction to said acts by the child. This thesis is supported by numerous scientific articles and studies.
By: Nick Maynard
Creative Writing
Four Ideas for a Novel That You’ll Never Write
- A kid goes on an adventure with his dad where his dad dies at the end. When his dad dies, the kid wakes up to his dad telling him to wake up. It was all a dream. He wakes up next to a drawing of his adventure that he drew before bed.
- A teenage girl finds out in high school that she can see a few minutes to days into the future in random visions. She keeps getting visions of this one guy, so she sets out to find him. When she finds him, she finds out that he also has visions of the future, and that they were genetically engineered at birth to save people’s lives in future wars.
- From birth everyone is meant to meet someone specific. One might say a soul mate. Every time that someone is in the same area or room as their soulmate, they get a mark on them. Once they finally meet this person, all of the marks come together to form a claddagh which stand for love, loyalty, and friendship.
- A girl was living a normal life when everyone around her’s eyes started sporadically turning completely black and they started acting creepy. Not only that, but there was an unusually high number of murder counts. After some research was done about the events, it was found out that someone was dispensing a gas that alters the brain activity. Someone was trying to manipulate the students into killing others, but why?
By: Mallory Boyd
Tennis
Love all! The Piedmont Academy tennis team is having a very exciting season. Playing after school and in matches is helping the team grow in strength. The tennis season began Monday, March 6 at Briarwood in Warrenton. Grayson Bradley and Gracie Hunt won their doubles match 8-4. New doubles partners Ivy English and Emma Kate Edmonds, Ryn Smith and Emily Mills, and Caleb Vander Ven and Daniel Respess also made their season debuts. Makenna Holifield also started her season as a singles player. Anne Marie Hildebrant and Danny Ramsdell could not attend the match, but also play singles. The tennis team is looking forward to a season of growth and enjoyment!
By: Ivy English
Want to Know Wednesdays
By: Kensie Johnston