“Our school isn’t that much different from yours; we just have a little more of the good, the bad and the ugly,” Ron Vinduska, principal said.

The total number of kids at Seaman is around 1,250 and each class has about 250-300 kids in it. One grade almost equals our whole school! That would make it difficult to meet new friends and then have a good chance of those people being in your class.

“It was very intimidating because the school was so big,” Christa Hill, sophomore journalist, said. “At break everyone has their spot where they stand everyday and being a ‘new student’ I didn’t know what to do other than just stand there and wait to go back to class.”

“Going to Seaman made me realize how much I like Holton, walking through the hall ways was like walking through a crowd of hyenas,” Victoria Harshaw, sophomore journalist, said. “The rooms were all open; it made me feel like I was in middle school again.”

Besides the apparent fact of their school being a giant compared to Holton, we found many more differences. While our classes are alternated everyday, they have all classes every Monday and then the rest of the week they alternate days. The principal is very strict on NO cell phones. It’s either put away and shut off or taken away and put into the office where a parent must come pick it up and the student gets a detention. They have four different lunches for 25 minutes instead of just two. Another huge difference was how the rooms were built. In most halls the rooms would sit right next to each other, with just one measly wall separating them and no door or complete wall to close in the class. In most of the classes a student could just look over the wall and peek into the next class.

“It was really hard to concentrate because I could hear a louder teacher in the room next to me talking to his class,” Sam Riley, sophomore journalist, said. “Every time somebody walked by I would look up to see who it was, even though I hardly knew anyone from there.”

Seaman high school was different from Holton High School on the inside and also in the classes it contained as well.

One of the main differences was the large variety of opportunities students get to choose from. They have specialized classes like zoology, orchestra, pottery class, foreign languages like Chinese, French, Spanish, and a lot more. Talking to other students at lunch, we found that they have all the way up to Spanish 5, while our school only reaches to Spanish 2.

“I really liked how the kids had so many choices to choose from, that was probably my favorite part of the school,” Kylie Miller, sophomore journalist, said. “If I did go there it would be so overwhelming, but in a good way.”

One major course at Seaman is marching band. There are around 70 students in their Middle school band and they have 168 people in their high school marching band. In order to fit all of the middle school students in one room for band practice they have to bus them from the Middle school to the high school where they have a room big enough.

The Multimedia Department has a set studio where they have daily broadcasts telling students and teachers about the weather and upcoming activities in their school by television. Every class has a television so in the morning students can watch some of the kids in their school inform everyone what’s happening that day.

One thing that really stands out at Seaman was that they have a student- run bank right in their school. The bank was established in 1927. It is actually part of their business and documents class. There is only one other school in the area that has a bank in their school and they only have it because the former principal at Seaman high is now the principal at that school.

Seaman has more opportunities in the sports area also. They have all of the same sports as our school, except they have more to choose from such as soccer, swimming, tennis and even bowling!

When we were first thinking about writing this story we just wanted to visit a bigger school and figure out the difference between our school and theirs. After going through with it we ended up finding out what it’s like to be a new student, in a new school, not knowing anybody but each other. Overall, however, it was a great experience and we would all do it again.

“I don’t see these cuts ending for two or three years,” Principal John Ernst stated.

The first round of cuts were made last Monday at the school board meeting.  The list of cuts saved the district an estimated $383,000.  This list included non-renewing the contracts of 12 instructors at the special ed co op and one high school math instructor, Luke Lang.  Steve Bowser, school board president, explained that the board has the Reduction in Force (RIF) policy in place in case there are budgetary problems or they need to change the schedule.

“This policy takes into account tenure in the district, and if there are other places that teachers are qualified to teach,” Bowser said.  He explained that even if a teacher is qualified to teach at the high school level, that instructor might not be certified to teach at the middle school level.

During the 2008-2009 school year eight Kansas schools switched to a 4-day school week, and more districts are considering making this switch this year.  However, Karleskint was personally opposed to making this change.  “It is not an effective way to educate students,” he said.

Bowser pointed out other concerns with making this switch.  “You run into trouble with grade school children who have parents who are working and have to find day care for one day a week,” he explained.

Some other cuts that will affect high school students include changing the way that the medical careers class will be offered.  Next year if a student wants to take this class, it will be offered the second semester and the student will have to ride the bus down to Washburn Tech to take it.  Another possible change includes offering an interactive Advance Placement Calculus class in which students will learn from a teacher on a television screen.  The teacher will then come to work with the students in person once or twice a month.

“No it is not the most effective way, I would much rather have a teacher in the classroom every day,” Bowser said.  “But, this way is better than not offering it at all.”  Another topic that the school board brought up was changing from block scheduling to an eight day period.  The board decided to let the teachers vote and they voted to keep block scheduling.  Other changes at the high school level include eliminating a freshman or JV sporting event, having Alex Bartel, science teacher, teach half time at the middle school and half time at the high school, having all teachers instruct seven classes, instead of six, and cutting  $100,000 from the technology budget.

Although USD 336 is going through some tough times, we aren’t alone.

“If you watch the news and read the paper, we aren’t the only ones going through it.  It’s just not Holton, Kansas; it’s nuts,” Bowser said.   He also stated that the board is doing everything they can to keep as many people working as they can.

“Right now we are in the process of building a schedule and doing everything in our power to give the students the same class choices and chance to succeed as possible,” Ernst said.

“This is a great learning experience for students to realize the impact that having a child can have on their lives,” Amy Oldehoeft, FACS teacher, said.

Any student who took the parenting class will be caring for a fake child during school as well as at home.

“The students learn that their time is no longer their own and that they have to work every single part of their day around their child’s,” Oldehoeft, said.

Students who took the parenting class received random scenarios of how their baby was born, if they had a boy or girl, how much the baby weighed and if the father was present. Before students drew their scenarios they had to choose a boy and a girl name for their child.

“I think that the babies are a good idea and that they teach you a lot; you can’t do what you normally do after school because you have to have the baby with you,” Morgan Cashier, sophomore, said.

On Tuesday Feb. 2,  kids in grades 3-5 danced to “Party in the USA” by Miley Cyrus. They also shared two cheers with the crowd.

“My favorite part of the camp was being able to play with the kids, and seeing how much they enjoyed showing off what we taught them,” Mary Burns, cheer captain, said.

Same scenario except now it is Friday night. There are many more squirming kids in kindergarten through second grades. All are excited to become cheerleaders for several minutes during half time.

“The best part of the camp was getting to work with the little kids, it really brought me back to my youth,” Shannon Maxwell, dance captain, said.

On Friday night the Kindergarten through second graders danced to “Little Willie” and shared two cheers with the crowd. This year a total of 108 kids attended the Spirit Camp.

“Spirit camp has been going on for at least twenty years. It went really well this year. At first we thought we would have a small group because of the economy but it turned out we had just as many as last year,” Karen Beightel, dance sponsor, said.

This became evident Monday night when many parents offered to help pay for uniforms, field trips and volunteer their time to do whatever it takes to provide oppportunity for students in USD 336.

Many students are taking this message to heart as well. Carol Braum, media center specialist, said many students have donated books to the school library. She said that the library has always accepted donations, but this year, more have been coming in. So far 20-25 books have been donated to the library by students. In the past, books were mostly donated by faculty. Students say that it makes sense to donate.

“I read a book and I couldn’t read it twice,” Lea Bowers, freshman, said, “so I gave it to the library.”

One unexpected donation to USD 336 recently occurred after Karen Ford, English teacher, got in touch with Lew Mills, a former junior high math teacher of hers who had made an impact on her. He frequently had donated books and funds for special projects in the Topeka school system, and, after visiting Ford at the high school last year, extended her an offer to fund a special project she might want to do with her students next year.

“Mr. Mills and I had a great visit,” Ford said. “I was so surprised to open an envelope from him a few days later and find a check for $500 to help fund expenses for a class project. In these tough economic times, that can make a real difference and the money is welcome. Above all, though, it is the thoughtfulness behind a gift like that which matters most.”

Conner Strader, Keri Tanking, Christa Merriman, and Trenton Havercamp, freshmen;  and Samantha Riley, Rachelle Harmen, Jacob Hess, Shannon Maxwell, Victoria Harshaw, and Emily Zwonitzer, sophomores, qualified for state STAR events by placing at district last Wednesday.

Holton FCCLA hosted the district STAR events at the EUM church that day.

“I was little nervous to present, but seeing some of my friends from different schools was fun,” Emily Zwonitzer, sophomore, said.

Family, Career, Community, Leaders of America, FCCLA, is a National Organization that helps promote growth and leadership development through family and consumer sciences education.

The local Holton High School FCCLA group is currently working on their STAR (Students Taking Action with Recognition) events in preparation for the state competition. STAR events are competitive events in which members are recognized for proficiency and achievement in chapter and individual projects, leadership skills, and career preparation.

A STAR event night was held on Thursday, Feb. 4, in the HHS Library and first floor classrooms. Parents came and watched kids present their STAR events. After districts the ones who qualified for state continue to work on their STAR events.

Holton FCCLA held a special promotion of FCCLA during the week of Feb. 1-5 when the Holton Chapter sponsored FCCLA Week. During this week they had different activities each day promoting FCCLA.

Monday was “Find the FCCLA Emblem Day.”  Students searched around the school to find the hidden FCCLA emblem. Tuesday was “Best Cupid Impression Day.”  Students were asked to dress up like Cupid. Wednesday was “ Wear Red & White Day.” These colors are the National colors of FCCLA. Thursday was “FCCLA Trivia Day.” Students answered a question for a prize. Friday was “Crush Day,”  where girl students were given heart necklaces and were not allowed to talk to the boys. If a boy got a girl to talk to him, then she had to give him her heart. These activities took place the week prior to the actual National FCCLA week on February 7-12 due to students preparing for STAR events.

This past year I’ve heard a lot about the remodeling of Linscott Park here in Holton. Having visited Linscott Park in the past, I know that it isn’t anything near an adventure land of jungle gyms like some city parks I’ve seen, but it has the essentials such as slides and swings.

Understanding that it would be nice to have a glorious playground where all the children could play and have fun, I also believe that there are higher priorities than this.

As a student at the high school, a majority of discussion I hear is about budget cuts. Many programs contributing to education are scheduled to be cut.  Is raising thousands of dollars for a new playground really that important when the schools are cutting thousands of dollars out of their budgets to educate children? I think someone needs to prioritize a little better.

When I was younger I didn’t need a playground to have fun; I just let my mind run free. Youth are the future, and if I were an adult I’d rather have a well -educated individual running my country rather than the person who can do the best back-flip off the monkey bars.

Between cheerleading, play practice, scholars’ bowl, vocal, band, forensics, and being on the journalism staff, I hardly ever have a dull, free moment. I’m not alone though, it seems like everyone is always too busy.

We are constantly doing something. A lot of times, that’s homework. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t get ANY homework, (though it would be amazing), just that the teachers should evaluate how much homework we’re getting.

Giving out a paper at the end of class that’s going to take us two hours to do probably isn’t a great idea; we get a lot of homework from a lot of teachers. It definitely starts to pile up.

If we’re given class time to finish it, then it’s our own faults for not using our class time. And as students, we need to cherish that class time, and use it wisely. With the amount of things that we’re involved in, we don’t have the time to mess around during class and do five hours of homework that night.

As high schoolers, we need to work on our time management. We all love what we do too much to give anything up. And adults, parents, and teachers should recognize what we do, how much we do, how much we love it, and how we keep up.

While interested in adopting a child, Emily’s mother, Alecia, was dubious about having just one child from Haiti in her home. The family ended up adopting another boy named Blanco and brother and sister, Jackson and Woodlyn.

During the long adoption procedure, a church in Topeka asked to pray over the family. After the prayer, the congregation sang “Mighty to Save,” a hymn that fit the situation perfectly.

Four years after the whole process started, and two since the family had seen the four kids, a monstrous natural disaster suddenly hit. On January 12, 2010 Haiti was hit with a 7.0 earthquake, sending the lives of many into mass chaos. For the O’Byrne family, it put their trip to Haiti on hold.

“We were supposed to leave the Tuesday before, but due to paperwork issues we couldn’t,” Alecia said.

After the earthquake hit the family was very worried about where their children were, and if they were safe. A friend of the O’Byrne family was in Haiti at the time a mission trip. Right after the disaster hit he called home to his wife in Topeka and later that night she contacted Alecia and Tim.

The family friend had international calling available to him on his t-mobile phone and just knew in the back of  his mind that this was going to be a large phone bill, but well worth it. The cell phone lasted five days without being charged, and when they asked the phone company about the bill, they had no record of his calls.

“It was such a miracle he had a phone, and that the phone lasted as long as it did,” Alecia said. “The funny part was that as soon as he got back to the United States his cell phone died.”

With the earthquake’s sudden arrival the adoption was quickly pushed into high gear. The O’Byrne family was able to take home their newest children with in a matter of days and they were the first kids to get to leave Haiti.

“I then knew it was a miracle. God was working with us and he knew our family would give him praise,” Alecia adds.

While sitting in an early Sunday morning service at the First Baptist Church of Holton, all of the congregation was anxious to know about the family and if they were all safe. As the congregation began singing “Mighty to Save,” the O’Byrne family rushed in with all eleven of their family members with them. Their prayers had been answered.

Said Board President Steve Bowser, “Nothing is set and stone and we are open to any ideas to stretch our dollars.”

One of the top concerns of teachers and students is next year’s schedule. Some on the board would like to consider changing to a seven- period day to save money. However, the majority of the teachers and community present were still for block scheduling.

Jason Larison, HHS agriculture education teacher at Holton High School spoke in favor of the block scheduling, saying, “Block scheduling helps to put extra tools in the students’ toolboxes while they are still here at high school.”

These “tools” would be the opportunity to take additional courses under the block system that students would not be able to take without that eighth option.

Jordan Snepp, junior, spoke on behalf of many students, saying, “We aren’t as rushed on the block schedule; we learn better on the block schedule. If we would go to the seven- period day, we might not get the chance to realize what we want to do in our lives by taking electives.

“For example, after middle school I thought I wanted to go into the science field, but then on the eight-period day I was able to take an elective under Mr. Hernandez and found out that I really liked computers more. I would have wasted a whole year in college had I pursued the science field.”

A question posed by Tad Hernandez was, “As a school, how progressive of a district do we want Holton to be?” He said decisions should be made based on what is best for the students.

Patrons suggested that rather than cutting teachers and aides, the Board should look at the extracurricular and clubs that impact only some of the student body and not all. They also suggested possibly cutting coaching staff on the football team and combing HMS girls and boys basketball.

Superintendent Karleskint urged patrons and students who had strong feelings on the budget cuts to write a letter to their representatives and the governor.  Because email inboxes are often full, Karleskint said the personal touch of a handwritten letter is the best approach and to send a carbon copy to the governor on personal stationery.

Board member Todd Holaday said to make it clear to elected officials where you stand by stating your opinion “in black and white” and reminding them that they are elected officials.