The Black and Gold Issue 17 May 6, 2022

THE BLACK AND GOLD "WHAT A PAWFECT DAY!" MAY 6, 2022

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VOLUME I: ISSUE 17

THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWS SOURCE OF BUCHANAN COUNTY R-IV

Newspaper Staff Members:

Mekayla Boydston | Helaina Geoffroy | Jaxon Harris | Abigail Miller |Tricia Simpson

MIDDLERS BUST A MOVE WITH MR. J AT MIDDLE SCHOOL DANCE

BY AVA DONALDSON

On Friday, April 22, a middle school dance was held by Mr. Jenkins and Mrs. Matthews at De Kalb High School. Both 7th and 8th grade students attended.

Some students got prepared by going shopping, including Khloe Pflugradt. “I bought a dress from Altar’d State and did my makeup.” Also, Blake Norton went and, “got an outfit from St. Joe Boot.”

Blake also mentioned that his favorite part of the middle school dance was Mr. J showing off his killer moves. Mr. J busted out the Griddy. “But yeah, that’s probably going to haunt me,” Mr. J claimed. Mr. J really enjoyed dancing. In fact, that was his favorite part. 7th grader Hemi Donaldson also added, “Mr.J’s Griddy was amazing.”

Mr. J and Mrs. Matthews would like to thank all of the middle schoolers who attended the dance and they sincerely apologize for the fire alarm ending the dance.

Pictured: Mr. Jenkins Photo Credit: Ava Donaldson

SPANISH WORD OF THE WEEK

bailar Definition:

to dance Use it in a Sentence:

Mr. J bailo toda la noche.

JUNIOR WINS FIRST AT STATE ROBOTICS COMPETITION, HEADED TO NATIONALS

BY MILEY PHILLIPS

De Kalb Junior DJ Johnson won first at the state robotics and automation competition.

The competition was held on April 14th at the Hillyard Technical Center in St. Joseph.

There were two people that participated in DJ’s competition.

He had to make a robot pick up to get first place in State. Johnson said he felt “Pretty good” about the competition “because I got first.”

Pictured: DJ Johnson Photo Credit: Miley Phillips

Johnson’s win means he gets to compete at Nationals on June 20th in Atlanta, Georgia. His partner was Hunter Orr from Savannah. DJ says that he feels great about going to Nationals. He is going to build a “better robot” for Nationals to do even better.

DJ did really well in his competition.If you pass by him in the hallway, congratulate him and wish him luck.

MAY 6, 2022

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DE KALB DOES WELL AT STATE TRAP SHOOT COMPETITION BY: RYLIE BURDETTE

Mr. Medsker and the Trap Shoot team went to State competition in Osage Beach, Missouri on Saturday, April 30th. The five people that went to the Competition was Landon Williams, Brayton Sybert, Riley Pyles, Hunter Servaes, and Brody Knorr.

Brody Knorr shot a 95 out of 100 and shot 25 straight. Riley Pyles shot 84 out of 100 and shot 24 straight.

Brody Knorr said “I did well, I was happy with how i did.” Mr. Medsker said that he liked that “they get to go to a different event, a huge event with schools from all across the state.”

Overall, they think they did very well in this competition. So if you see them in the hallway, congratulate them on a great season.

Pictured: Riley Pyles, Landon Williams, Hunter Servaes, Brody Knorr Photo Credit: Rylie Burdette

Pictured: Mr.Medsker Photo Credit: Rylie Burdette

KYLE FUNK'S BOOK OF THE WEEK

BY TRICIA SIMPSON

Every Friday, at DHS, we have an SSR day in our English classes.

Each student is reading a book they chose. Kyle Funk chose the book I Am a Star, by Inge Auerbacher. Kyle is on page 100, and so far he is liking the book. Kyle recommends this book to other readers because "It's about the Holocaust and it's good." If you would like to know more about this book, you can find Kyle and ask him for more information. If you would like to read this book, you can check it out in the library.

MAY 6, 2022

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Spotlight on 12th Grade M

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MAY 6, 2022

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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT Caden Weinmann Caden Weinmann is a senior at De Kalb. He has been going to this school district since preschool. He has been involved in basketball and FFA for four years. He has played football for two years, and baseball for one year. Out of these activities, his favorite has been basketball because “It was just the thing that I liked the most.” For his four years of high school, his favorite class has been Personal Finance because “It’s easy.” Caden thinks the easiest part about being a senior is “Just knowing that high school is about over.” After high school is over, Caden wants to go to K-State and find a good job. He is going to miss talking to his friends and people he sees everyday. Caden’s advice for younger students is “Never give up on your hopes and dreams and enjoy every minute of high school.”

Hayden Generaux Hayden Generaux is a senior at De Kalb. He has been going to this school district since preschool. He has been involved in football, baseball, and basketball for three years. His favorite is “Baseball because it’s easy.” His favorite class has been history, also because “It’s easy.” Hayden doesn’t think there is really anything hard about being a senior because there are a lot less assignments than last year. Hayden’s plans for the future are to go to Missouri Western, and he is still deciding what he wants to do. Hayden is going to miss “Hanging out with my friends and talking to them.”

Drake Miller Drake Miller is a senior at De Kalb. He has been going to this school district since Kindergarten. During high school, Drake has been involved in basketball, football, baseball, and FFA. For the four years he’s done it, Drake has decided “Baseball is my favorite. It’s the best sport out there.” In high school, you have eight semesters. Out of all of these semesters, Drake’s favorite class has been “Wardlow’s classes because he’s a good teacher.”

During senior year, everything can seem so stressful from outside eyes, but Drake has some calming words for next year's seniors: “There’s not really anything hard. It’s easy. Just be smart.” Although the academic part can be easier, moving on can be hard. Drake wants to move on and become an electrician, but he is “Going to miss seeing my friends.”

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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT Rebbie Regan Rebbie Regan is a senior at De Kalb. She has been going to this school district since Kindergarten. During high school, Rebbie has been involved in basketball for four years, Softball for four years ,Track for a year, FFA for four years, NHS for two years, STUCO for two years, And FBLA for three years . For the four years She's been doing it , Rebbie has decided “Basketball is my favorite Because we had a great season.” In high school, you have eight semesters. Out of all of these semesters, Rebbies favorite class has been “Mrs.Hansbrough because i love her and she's a great teacher .” During senior year, everything can seem so stressful from outside eyes, but Rebbie has some calming words for next year's seniors: “Don't wish it away .” Although the academic part can be easier, moving on can be hard. Rebbie wants to move on to Northwest and become a Math Teacher, but she is “Going to miss seeing my friends everyday.”

Ashton Crockett Ashton Crockett is a senior at De Kalb. She has been going to this school district since Preschool. During high school, Ashton has been involved in basketball for four years, Softball for four years, FFA for four years, NHS for two years, And FBLA for Four years . For the four years She's been doing it , Ashton has decided “Softball is my favorite .” In high school, you have eight semesters. Out of all of these semesters, Ashtons favorite class has been “Chemistry because the teacher was good.” During senior year, everything can seem so stressful from outside eyes, but Ashton has some calming words for next year's seniors: “Don't wish the time away .” Although the academic part can be easier, moving on can be hard. Ashton wants to move on and become a dental hygienist , but she is “Going to miss being with my friends everyday.”

Macy Dittemore Macy Dittamore is a senior at De Kalb. She has been going to this school district since PreSchool. During high school, Macy has been involved in basketball for four years, Softball for four years ,Track for four years, FFA for four years, NHS for two years, And FBLA for Four years . For the four years She's been doing it , Macy has decided “Basketball games or FFA contests have been my favorite activities .” In high school, you have eight semesters. Out of all of these semesters, Macys favorite class has been “ Any of my Ag classes .” During senior year, everything can seem so stressful from outside eyes, but Macy has some calming words for next year's seniors: “Don't wish your life away and try your hardest on your work .” Although the academic part can be easier, moving on can be hard. Macy wants to move on to Northwest and her major is undecided but she's thinking education or Ag Business , but she is “Going to miss seeing all the people i grew up with everyday.”

MAY 6, 2022

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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT Janessa Bowen Janessa Bowen is a senior at De Kalb. She has been going to this school district since Kindergarten. Janessa has been in Drama for three years. She did Track, Softball, and Basketball during her middle school years. For her four years of high school, her favorite class has been Novels. Because “I get to read.” Janessa’s plans for the future are to start working. She is going to miss “sleeping, reading, and two of my teachers” most. Her advice for younger students is “Show up, bully Wardlow.”

Brenna Bowen Brenna Bowen is a senior at De Kalb. She has been going to this school district since kindergarten. During high school, Brenna has been involved in Cheerleading for one year, Softball for four years, Drama Club for two years, FBLA for three years, and NHS for one year. Out of these activities, her favorite has been Softball. Her favorite class has been Desktop Design because “The first half of the year we worked on designing. Now we are learning about budgeting and taxes because we are graduating. Brenna thinks the hardest part about being a senior is planning for graduation.

Brenna wants to go into the Air National Guard, get her training as a medic, and come back to pursue a career in healthcare. Brenna’s advice for younger students is to “make the most of it, take pictures, and cherish your memories with your friends.”

Rebekah Gunter Rebekah Gunter is a senior at De Kalb. She has been going to this school district since 4th grade. Rebekah has been in FBLA for four years, FFA for four years, Student Council for two years, NHS for two years, and Academic Team for two years. Out of these activities, her favorite has been FBLA. For her four years of high school, her favorite class has been Desktop Design because “Ms. Nelson is cool, and we are learning real-world stuff that I will use outside of school.” Rebekah thinks the hardest part about being a senior is “finding out the deadlines for scholarships and getting it done.” Rebekah’s plans for the future are to go to Missouri State University in Springfield and major in Marketing.

MAY 6, 2022

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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT Brandon Griffin Brandon Griffin is a senior at De Kalb high school he has been going to this school district since preschool. During his years here at De Kalb he has been involved in FFA for four years, Basketball for two years, and baseball for one year. Of all the classes Brandon has had he says his favorite has been “ Personal Finance because it has taught me very important things.” After school Brandon plans to get a job and go from there. He’s going to miss all of his high school teachers and for everyone who finds school stressful Brandon says “ Don’t stress.”

Carissa Martin Carissa Martin is a senior at De Kalb high school and has been going to this school district since kindergarten. During her high school years, Carissa has been involved in softball for four years, track for four years, basketball for three years and cheer for two. She says her favorite classes while being here were “ Any of Wardlow's classes.” Carissa plans on going to college after high school and she is going to miss playing sports throughout the school year. She says the easiest part of being a senior is “ You already know everything so most classes go by faster.” For younger students, she encourages you to “ Try out different sports even if you don’t think you’ll like them because you can always quit after freshman year.”

Carli Browning Carli Browing is a senior at De Kalb. She has been going to this school district since early preschool. She has been involved in cheer during high school. She says “ I enjoy cheer because of game days and bringing pride to the school and community.” Carli has enjoyed high school and she will definitely miss her friends. She says the easiest part of being a senior is “ Knowing all of your major classes are out of the way and you can focus on the easy ones.” Carli plans on going to Missouri Western to cheer, and she has some helpful advice for younger students “ Don’t take advantage of your time here and enjoy it while you can.”

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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT Austin Bramble Austin Bramble is a senior at De Kalb. He has been going to this school district since Kindergarten. During high school, Austin has been involved in Basketball, Football, and Baseball. For the four years he’s done it, Austin has decided “Football is probably my favorite.” In high school, you have eight semesters.

During senior year, Austin said the hardest part of senior year was his attendance, but he has said “just try your hardest to get your work done and keep your grades up.” After high school, Austin wants to move on and open his own auto body shop, but he is “going to miss football the most.”

Natalyn Killoren Natalyn is a senior at De Kalb High School. She has been going to school in this district since preschool. Natalyn has done many activities throughout school, Including Cheerleading from 7th to 12th grade, NHS, FFA, FBLA, and Yearbook. Her favorite activities have been “FFA because of all the field trips, and Cheer because of the Football games.” In high school there are so many classes that you have to take. Natalyn’s favorite subjects have been any class with her, “homegirl Hansbrough and any classes with Wardlow because he’s funny.” Natalyn thinks that the easiest part of being a senior is being able to get away with more. The hardest part for her has been “saying goodbye to everyone, and all the stress of filling out scholarship applications and getting all the work done.” Natalyn plans on going to K-State, becoming a vet, and opening her own veterinary practice. Also, she plans to have a couple of kids.

Looking back, Natalyn is going to miss all of her friends and all of the memories she has made here. Her advice for younger students is to “cherish the memories while they’re happening because high school goes by fast, and just live in the moment.”

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"Saying it was great does not give it enough justice."

- Mrs. Downing on the Muddy Paw's new Boba Lemonade

Quote of the week brought to you by:

Mrs. McGaughey

"It costs nothing to be a good human!"

MAY 6, 2022

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DEKALB'S FFA TEAM LISTED AS A SUPERIOR CHAPTER AT STATE

BY PRESLI PUNZO On April 21st and 22nd, De Kalb’s FFA teams attended State in Columbia, MO. The Meats team and the Floriculture team participated in the State Degree Convention session. Before attending State, the FFA team qualified at the district level and spent time preparing beforehand.

Sophomore Kalyn Hartman prepared by “studying everyday for the past few months and spending time looking at slide shows and doing tests.” They started practicing and studying in January and qualified at Districts in Early April.

The best part of Mr. Medsker’s experience at State was “watching students succeed after working so hard to do well.” Everyone who attended the State convention had a lot of fun participating in the competition. Senior Rebbie Reagan had a great time at the convention, but her favorite part was, “watching Dirty Dancing with Natalyn at 2 a.m.”

Both the Meats team and the Floriculture team received a II rating.

Senior, Rebekah Gunter, received the State FFA Degree. Congratulations to all the FFA members who participated in the State competition.

Photo Credits: Mr. Medsker

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THE BASEBALL CATCH-UP

BY JAXON HARRIS

Lunch Menu Monday, May 9 Chicken Nuggets Tuesday, May 10 Cheeseburger

Pictured: Drake Miller Photo Credit: Jaxon Harris

Pictured: Brandon Griffin Photo Credit: Jaxon Harris

The last three weeks of Baseball have been eventful.

The team has played against many good teams, coming out with a win against North Andrew.

They also lost a few games to West Nodaway with Nodaway-Holt, University Academy Charter with Ewing Marion Kauffman HS, Tarkio with Fairfax, Rockport and Osborn with Stewartsville.

Coach Wardlow, assistant Coach for the De Kalb Boys Baseball team, said that “the boys have been playing better than they were with batting.” He said that their batting was doing better and along with winning a game, Drake Miller and Hayden Generaux both hit a home run.

Wednesday, May 11 Chicken Patty

Thursday, May 12 Chicken Patty on Bun

Friday, May 13 Meat Lover's Pizza

Monday, May 16 Tacos

Tuesday, May 17 Popcorn Chicken

Senior players Drake Miller and Brandon Griffin have had an eventful few weeks. Drake Miller got a home run and scored a few points at the North Andrew game, which they also won.

Wednesday, May 18

Player Brandon Griffin has had a good couple of games as well. He also hit a few balls and scored.

Summer Break

Miller and Griffin both agreed that they think the team has been doing better but they need to keep getting better.

MAY 6, 2022

Italian Pizza

Thursday, May 19

Friday, May 20 Summer Break PAGE | 13