By Afton Johnson and Brennan Ensz

Trojan Tribune Staff

Photo Courtesy of Herter Music Center

On Wednesday, April 18, the West Central chorus and band went to Harrisburg to perform in a contest. Band director Danny Eye stated what the contest really is. “It is where you go perform for three very old, boring judges and they tell you what you need to work on.” Both groups received very high ratings. The choir obtained two superiors and one excellent. Superior is the highest rating one can get with excellent being second best. The judges suggested that they work on their pitch and resonance, which is being more lively and sounding more musical with the piece. “Choir performed very well and the judges really liked us. The band played better than they did on Tuesday in the concert,” said junior Donovan Minor.

Eye was not as pleased. “I thought we played very well, but I think we should’ve gotten a superior rating. As for improvements, we need to work on balance and blend. We have a lot of higher pitched instruments and we need more lower pitched instruments. We also need to work on having everyone eligible to compete.” All in all, both groups did very well and are taking in the advice of the judges and using it to prepare for next year.

By Afton Johnson and Brennan Ensz

Trojan Tribune Staff

Photo Courtesy of Winthrop High School

A new year, a new group of students eligible for National Honor Society. For those who don’t know what NHS is, “It’s a national organization that serves to honor students who excel in the areas of scholarship, leadership, service and character,” stated West Central NHS adviser Sherry Knutson. Juniors and seniors with a minimum GPA of 3.5 are offered a chance to be in NHS. The number of students eligible this year is at a record high of 43 students. Out of the 43 students, 33 took on the challenge and handed in the paperwork detailing their efforts in leadership, service and character, eight of whom are seniors. Sixteen seniors were inducted into NHS last year as juniors, so they do not need to apply again.

Once the applicants have handed in their applications, the applications go through a rating process. These applications contain lists of the service activities they have performed throughout their high school years. Teachers and staff members who have had a working relationship with the student within the last three years will judge their applications and cast their vote for each specific student. “Students are rated on their accomplishments in leadership, character and service by the high school faculty,” Knutson stated. Knutson will then review the ratings of each student and bring the ratings to a five-teacher committee to review every rating. In the end, all applicants will receive a letter that states whether they were accepted this year.

Now the students accepted in NHS continue to work hard for their community. “We perform two service projects each year, one just before Christmas and one at the end of the school year. The service projects involve raising money for someone in need,” said Knutson about the community work involved with NHS. Students who tried for NHS this year will receive the results at the end of this week.

By Afton Johnson and Emily Stahl

Trojan Tribune Staff

Photo Courtesy of Harley Bauman

A mix of excitement and sadness filled the minds of the senior girls on Dance Explosion as they performed for the last time. “I was happy, but of course I was sad too because it was our last one,” said senior Angie Ewert while remembering her last dance. However, all five seniors–Angie Ewert, Payton Steen, Danielle Eldredge, Harley Bauman and Melinda Knuth–remember their last season fondly.

Eldredge has been a part of the West Central Dance Explosion all through high school. She is proud of all that the dance team has done and believes they’ve had a great year. Her favorite memory is having all the seniors over to Angie Ewert’s house to practice. “We blocked Staci Johnson’s car so she couldn’t leave and sent pictures to her,” Eldredge remembered. The things she will miss most about dance are her fellow dancers and being on a smaller team.

Steen has been with Dance Explosion for three years. She has no regrets about joining and is proud of what the team has done. “I have enjoyed it very much this year. We did a lot of cool dances!” Steen’s favorite dance was the country girl dance the team performed. She would love to continue dance after graduation, but is not sure if she will in college.

Ewert has also been on the team for three years. She started in her freshman year, and then continued on Dance Explosion in her junior and senior years. Ewert’s favorite memory was the year their coach, Mrs. Rhodes, was pregnant: “When Mrs. Rhodes would do something physical, McKenzie would freak out because Mrs. Rhodes was pregnant.” She is happy she joined this year, but claims learning to be a base for stunts was difficult to learn. Ewert will miss all the girls on the dance team when she graduates; however, she will not continue dancing through college.

Bauman has been on Dance Explosion for two years. “This is my second year. I was on the team my sophomore year, too.” She has enjoyed her time on the team, but feels like the season has been too short. Bauman is proud of what the group has done this year, claiming, “We have expanded the variety of dances we do.” She is glad that she joined Dance Explosion for her senior year, and she plans on trying out for the dance team at the School of Mines & Technology next year.

Knuth, the newest senior to join the team, has been on Dance Explosion for only one year. She enjoyed her year, exclaiming, “It has been so much fun!” Knuth is proud of what the team has done and is happy about their accomplishments. “We tried harder things than in past years, and we did the splits a lot. Stretching for your splits every other morning at 6:30 a.m. makes you appreciate when you can pull them off.” She will miss the excitement of learning new dances the most, but does not plan on continuing dance in college.

The Dance Explosion had a great year, which would never have happened without great senior leadership. The girls will be missed by their teammates and will miss their teammates alike. Each one has a fond memory of their senior year on the dance team that they can carry with them throughout their lives.