Senior of the Month
JORDAN CLIFTON
November’s senior of the month is Jordan Clifton. She is the daughter of Todd and Chasity Clifton of London. She is employed at Goodwill in Marysville. She has been involved with the elementary tutoring program, Project MORE and also volunteers at animal shelters and nursing homes. She enjoys babysitting and helping close family friends care for their children. After graduation, she plans to attend college to major in clinical psychology, a field she has been passionate about for many years. “Don’t worry about petty things,” she said when asked what advice she has for her underclassmen. “Kids and teens worry about things that won’t matter later on in life. It may seem major right now, but it is not. Focus on the good in life. It goes by fast.”
(Photo submitted)
Wrestling at FHS becomes a varsity sport
By Michaela Writesel
Wrestling has become a varsity sport at Fairbanks and its coach, James Kasser, is taking charge in expanding it.
Kasser is trying to get new Panthers students to wrestle by making announcements, hanging posters in hallways and asking the current wrestlers to recruit others.
Kasser has done a lot in terms of fundraising to gain extra money for the team, including fundraisers at Jersey Mike’s Subs and having the wrestlers babysit while parents are out shopping.
The community is encouraged to support the wrestlers at their in-season meet at London High School Dec. 8.
National Honor Society recaps October events
By Marissa Fornadel
National Honor Society (NHS) kept its members busy during October.
The American Red Cross hosted a blood drive, and with the cooperation of NHS members, 15 pints were donated, eight of which by new donors. NHS member hope that when the Red Cross returns in January, more pints will be collected.
As for helping the community, members will participate in Sufficient Grace, a local book drive for children all across the county. The drive ends after Thanksgiving and the goal is to supply new books to support the literacy among younger kids.
As the holiday season approaches, NHS is prepared to help families in any way its members can.
Foreign exchange student hosted at Fairbanks
By Livvy Bellas
This school year, Fairbanks is hosting Anders Rege, a junior from Norway, and he said living in America has been “amazing.”
Originally from a small island with 1,500 people, Rege said he’s familiar with the small-town atmosphere of Milford Center. He has visited New York, Illinois and Missouri while in America and has enjoyed his adventures so far.
He is staying with the May family and is looking forward to celebrating the holidays in America, especially Thanksgiving, which he has never experienced before.
Rege said two of the largest differences from his homes in Norway and America have been the food and the geography. He is used to living in the mountains surrounded by ocean and having lots of seafood, so the flatlands of Ohio have been different for him.
He said it has also been a major adjustment not to be able to talk to his friends in Norway. Despite this, he has enjoyed meeting everyone at Fairbanks and has made many friends through the football team.
He is also looking forward to bowling and running in track this spring. He said he enjoys his classes at Fairbanks High School and thinks it’s a great school, and the teachers and students have been incredibly welcoming and nice.
Rege said he really likes the pride students have at Fairbanks, and the way school spirit is presented in America and Norway is different.
He says what really motivated him to be an exchange student was the opportunity to explore and try something different. He wanted to see what life was like in America and is enjoying the new community here at Fairbanks. Fairbanks is looking forward to hosting him and hopes he continues to have good experiences.
Student honored in scholarship program
By Alexis Murray
This year, Fairbanks High School had student Mason Smith be commended for “outstanding potential of academic success” in the National Merit scholarship program.
National Merit is a scholarship program with a nationwide reach. Students who wish to be considered are required to take the PSAT and reach a certain score in order to qualify.
Smith is an honor roll senior who maintains a 4.183 grade point average, and participates in soccer, football, basketball and baseball. He also serves as the president of Interact club.
He applied to the program because he believes it gives him an edge over the other applicants applying to his first-choice college, Duke University.
“It’s really cool to think about how a kid way out here in Fairbanks can be a part of something so amazing,” Smith said.
He recommends every student should apply to National Merit, as it gives them the potential to be a part of something great.
Bowling team trip planned
By Grace Koenig
Thanks to the boys and girls bowling team and the Lancaster FunBus Co., there will be an exciting trip to the Oglebay Winter Festival of Lights in West Virginia.
This event will raise money for the Fairbanks Panthers bowling team. Included with this trip there will be events happening on the evening of Dec. 15, such as the life-size Nativity scene and a tour through the Festival of Lights.
In order to join this event, the price is $45 per person. This includes admission and a guided tour. There will also be a dinner served at Mehlman’s Cafeteria before arriving in Oglebay, West Virginia, but this is not included in the fee.
What’s happening in the guidance department
By: Gracie Tomblin
One goal of Fairbanks High School is to help students figure out how to go through life the right way and come out of high school with the most knowledge possible.
Guidance counselor Lisa Studenmund helps students in all grades with anything they need, specifically things about high school, college and their future.
She helps take stress off of students by coming into classrooms to talk about various topics. She teaches about life, school and college skills, helping students search for a career, apply for colleges and scholarships and more.
Recently, Studenmund talked about what she has been working on with each grade.
For the freshman class, she has been working on study skills, test taking and time organization. These skills are all very helpful for new high school students, considering these are some of the core teachings that will help them in the future.
Studenmund stresses the importance of being successful in high school and how to do that. She has also figure out their career paths, be it college, the workforce, military or something else.
The sophomore class will be touring Tolles soon and recently had a presentation to help them decide if they would want to go there for their junior year. They have also been taking career assessments to try to discover their career interests.
The juniors have been talking to Studenmund about the difference between the ACT and the SAT and which is the best test for certain students to take. They have also been discussing if they want to attend college, or go a different direction.
Lastly, the senior class had the option to go to a college info night, and its members have been applying for jobs and/ or colleges and talking about the importance of applying for scholarships. Studenmund said the senior class will be talking about how to read a financial award letter.
She said she wants the best for the students and wants to see them succeed in high school and life after. She takes a lot of time to prepare lessons and talk to students to get the best for them.
Every class is working on a lot of things to better themselves for the future, along with the help of Studenmund.
FFA members keep busy
By Ayden Adams
Members of the Fairbanks FFA visited a dairy and swine operation at Fair Oaks Farm in Indiana for a bonus day of agriculture learning Oct. 23.
They learned how to castrate piglets. The next day, the FFA went to John Deere plant and got to learn more about the equipment that makes the industry work. Their final day was Oct. 25, and was also the first day of the 91st National FFA Convention.
Members had the opportunity to look at colleges or future employment at the trade show, as well as obtain FFA merchandise.
On Oct. 26, members got to listen to Mary Snapp, vice president of Microsoft. She discussed how it was important to be the “best version of you possible.” Also, that agriculture is one of the most important and evolving job careers.
The FFA started its annual fruit sale Oct. 17 and ended Nov. 9. The fruit sale is the group’s biggest fundraiser every year. Fruit is delivered Dec. 10 from Florida and California. The chapter sold almost 800 units of fruit.