Cougar Call
Volume 1, Issue 1
Piedmont Academy Fall Sports Kick Off the Season
PAC Varsity Football
Lady Cougars Softball
Cougar's Cheer Squad
Brice Dodson running for the Varsity Cougars
Mari Jablonski places first for the Cougar Cross Country Team
Fall Sports
The Piedmont Academy fall sports' teams have kicked off their seasons, as football and softball start their practices and games. Both teams have high expectations for the year. The teams are expecting to see a huge improvement from previous seasons. The football team had its opening game against Gatewood here at home on August 21st. The Piedmont Lady Cougars softball team started their season off August 1st with an opening tournament in Macon, and the girls brought home a second place trophy.
The football team and coaches are very excited for the season to come. Senior player Gaven Edge says his favorite part of the season so far is being able to be with his “pals” every day. Gaven was asked what he was looking forward to most in the season, and his response was “beating all of the squads.” He has set his goal as an individual to do the best he can possibly do, but he feels all of the team need to work on their energy during the game. Coach Wes Tanner said that this year’s season is going to go very well. Coach Tanner also said that he is most proud of how the team is buying into a new system, and how they are playing together. Further into the season he would like to start expanding the playbook and being more diverse on offense and defense. When Coach was asked who the major stars were going to be this year, his response was “None, we do everything and play as a team!” With that being said, the coaches and players seem to be extremely excited to see what the season has in store for them!
PAC Lady Cougars softball have had a great start of the year and are expecting big things throughout. The coaches and players seem to be loving the game all around! While interviewing senior, Morgan Tillman, she was asked what her favorite part of the season is and her response was “The team and each of the girls on it.” She said that she is looking forward to the season, and hopefully winning and earning a state championship ring. She has set her individual goal as being a team leader and helping carry the team. The one thing she thinks everyone needs to improve on is picking each other up and staying “pumped” in the dugout.
Coach Daniel Funt is also looking forward to the season, hoping for a region title and potentially winning state. He says the team needs to keep improving on fundamentals and continuing to gel together. He also stated “This year’s team is different from last year’s because the overall chemistry seems to be better and the team is more experienced.” When Coach Funt was asked who the toughest opponent was going to be, he answered with “Region opponents because there will be more pressure with trying to win region, and other regions, as well going further into the season. Also, we, ourselves, can be the toughest opponents at times.”
The cross country team opened up their season on August 23rd at Loganville Christian Academy. For the varsity team, Piedmont is proud to have Brice Dodson and Alina Jablonski representing our school. The Middle School representatives are Mari Jablonski, Mallory Boyd, Gracie Black, Browning Benton, and Garrett King. At LCA Piedmont's varsity runner Brice Dodson finished the 3.1 mile race with a time of 26 minutes and 21 seconds, while Alina Jablonski finished with a 27 minute 57 second run despite having an injured knee. The Cougars Middle School runner Mari Jablonski placed first in the 1.5 mile race with a time of 12 minutes and 36 seconds. Other middle school results were: Benton with a 12:24 race, Boyd with a 17:38 race, Black with a 18:06 race, and King with a race time of 15:47. Despite fighting the heat, Traci Brady states, “This race was a very good start to the season."
All Piedmont coaches and players seem to feel great about what this year holds for them. As the teams continue to work and play, this year will, hopefully, be one of the best athletic years that Piedmont Academy has ever experienced. We hope to see each and every one of you at the fields supporting our teams as they take on the year’s competition!
Good luck to the Cougar football, Lady Cougar softball, and Cross Country teams!
By: Haley Tyler
New Faculty and Students
It’s a new school year here at Piedmont Academy. With a new school year, come new students. This year Piedmont Academy is proud of the addition of 38 new students. Joining the Piedmont family in grades K4 through 5th grade are Helen Downs, Isaac Lockett, Nicholas Chapko, Carly Maddox, Taylor Maddox, Cotton Young, Ella Satterwhite, Ben Haase, Presley Purser, Marissa Holder, Kaylee Reed, Rep Morton, Drew Maddox, Cassidy Burrell, and Ryan Holder. New middle school students include: Kayla Fuller, Katherine Haase, Olivia Gibby, Blake Calhoun, Trent Coots, Emma Satterwhite, Rainey Loftin, Kailyn Evans, Logan Conner, Christian Lessington, and Meg Collins. High school students new to Piedmont Academy include: Cobrin Burrell, Kylie Garner, Daniel Respess, Caleb VanderVen, Madison Suttles, Maddie Drake, Brock Carter, Summer Conley, Sarah Holland, Austin Sullivan, Jeremiah Dave, and Seth Wiles. These students come from a variety of backgrounds and areas.
New fourth grader Drew Maddox is excited about his new school. His favorite activities about his new school are his recess time, his new friends, and his wonderful teachers. He has a sister, Carly, who also moved to Piedmont.
Meg Collins is a new 8th grader here at Piedmont. She is excited about school here because she has already made new friends. She cheers and has an older cousin, Summer Collins 11th, here. Her older brother Drew Collins graduated in 2013.
Jerimiah Dave is also a new student at Piedmont. Jerimiah comes to Piedmont from Alcovy High school in Newton County. Jerimiah likes it here because the student to teacher ratio is 8:1 here compared to the 17:1 at Alcovy. Jerimiah is on the football and track teams this year.
A new school year also brings new teachers. These new teachers are Jeff Beggs, new assistant headmaster and athletics director. Amber Hawkes who will be teaching middle school science; Angie Marks who will be teaching high school English; Walt Nelson who will be teaching computer applications and assisting with Spanish; Zach Norris who will be teaching physical education and performing the duties of an athletic trainer; Wes Tanner who will be teaching high school electives and coaching football and baseball; and Cameron Vaughn who will be teaching middle school history and middle and high school Agricultural Science. The final addition to the Piedmont Academy family is Kirstie Lewis who will be teaching high school social studies and assisting in coaching softball and baseball.
Among the new teachers is alumna Kirstie Lewis. Ms. Lewis decided to teach at Piedmont because she wanted to come home and be closer to her family. She is coming to Piedmont after teaching 6 months at David Emanuel Academy in Stillmore Georgia. She has always loved history and has decided to come to Piedmont to teach government and U.S. history.
Piedmont welcomes all of our new students and teachers and wishes them every success.
By: Joseph Anderson
The Importance of a Second Language
Multiple studies have shown that learning a second language can help increase one’s intellectual capabilities, ability to find a job, and chances to earn a higher wage. So why are most students so reluctant to take on the challenge? According to Mrs. Taylor, Spanish teacher, “Students are not motivated to learn a foreign language because it can be difficult. There is not an emphasis on foreign language in our school systems.” She added, “One must take four years of a math or English class, but only two in a foreign language. This is simply because people are ignorant to the immigration patterns in the United States and around the world. Also there is the mentality that ‘if you come to my country you speak the language.’ Many people simply do not understand the value of a foreign language or do not feel the need to communicate with others outside their culture.”
As international business increases, cultures and languages intermingle. This integration causes a greater demand for multilingual translators and speakers. Since Spanish is now the second most common language in the world, the need for more Americans to learn multiple languages is slowly becoming evident. For example, universal healthcare forced a large number of previously uninsured, non-English speaking Americans to navigate a predominantly English system. In order to keep business running smoothly, communication is key. Trying to tackle both the healthcare system and language barrier can discourage the uninsured from signing up.
Shocking statistics show the low priority America places on learning a second language. 56% of Europeans, 35% of Canadians, and a total of 66% of the world’s population are bilingual, while only 17% of Americans are bilingual. Mrs. Taylor believes that the number of multilingual Americans is on the rise. “People are now in competition with immigrants for jobs.”
Recent studies also reveal adults and adolescents may have an easier time learning a new language than younger children. Children may be able to pick up the pronunciation quicker and form words easier; however, when the student is older, he or she can better understand how language is built and, therefore, learn it faster. The younger the better has, thus, been proven a myth. Possibly, our school systems might not need to change language instruction as much as originally thought.
Another common belief is that children learning a new language will be unsuccessful in mastering the first language if learning both languages simultaneously. This idea is false. When children learn to speak in a bilingual household, "They receive more exercise in resolving internal conflicts. This is a relatively new discovery,” says Forbes.com. According to The New York Times, “The bilingual experience improves the brain’s so-called executive function- a command system that directs the attention processes that we use for planning, solving problems and performing various other mentally demanding tasks.”
Two of our bilingual students here at Piedmont, Mary and Mark Miles, are confirmation of the benefits of being bilingual. When asked which language is easier, Mark claimed both languages are simple. Mary stated she preferred English, but has no difficulty speaking both languages. Observation indicates both children see nothing challenging, nor unusual, in being bilingual.
Learning a new language has many benefits. More job opportunities and an improvement in cognitive abilities are positive effects of learning a second language. Studies have proven some negative dogmas to be myths, while giving new hope to students attempting to learn a second language. No matter the reason for learning multiple languages, there are NO down sides to becoming bilingual.
By: Sarah Holland
About Us
Faculty Advisor- Angie Marks