Tennis: Doubles team go on to state
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THE IOLA REGISTER Monday, May 12, 2014
Graduates step into real world By BOB JOHNSON The Iola Register
Mother’s Day was a little more special for Iola-area moms Sunday, as they watched 66 seniors receive Iola High School diplomas. The ceremony in the school’s gymnasium was done in an expeditious manner, with the last of the seniors having received diplomas within in 30 minutes. Adam Kauth, Tyler McIntosh, Ricky Michael and Bryan Mueller were recognized as valedictorians, each having accumulated 4.0 grade point averages throughout their high school careers. Quinton Morrison was just a tick back and was named salutatorian. Michael won the Rotary watch, on the basis of a tiebreaker, having the highest ACT score among the four valedictorians. Karen Gilpin, Rotary president, noted the Rotary watch was given the student who had the top aca-
demic record among male students from 1925 until 2011, when female students were added to the mix. Prior to 2011 the Iola Business and Professional Women’s Club recognized females at the top of their class academically. Michael Wilson, selected by his classmates to speak, thanked teachers, administrators, staff and Board of Education members, and said “all of us are here today because of you.” The class is smaller in numbers than those of past years, Wilson added, but contains “many talented students.” He compared the class to a skyscraper and, with the students having much of their lives ahead of them, “we’re just at the second floor.” After stepping out of alphabetical order to receive her diploma, Mackenzie Weseloh, president of the senior class, announced her classmates before each received a diploma, awarded by Tony Leavitt, BOE president.
In a tradition as old as the ceremony itself, Iola High seniors sent their mortar boards flying at the end of commencement Sunday afternoon. Another tradition, exercised by Scout Henry, is to move the tassel from the right to left side after receiving a diploma. The 2014 class had 66 graduates. REGISTER/ BOB JOHNSON
Taiwanese student enjoys perks of Iola By BOB JOHNSON The Iola Register
Brian Hu could feel like a fish out of water. He is 7,500 miles from his island home of Taiwan. Hu, 19, is a Rotary exchange student in Iola since September. He was to have spent his exchange year in Moore, Okla., but the tornado that ravaged the town in May changed his plans midstream. For several months Hu has been a guest in the home of Fred and Judy Works.
At top, hosts Jasmine Bannister, left, and Jordan Strickler perform a skit as part of the 49th annual Little Oscars ceremony at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center. At bottom left, Emma Piazza performs the Amy Winehouse hit, “Valerie.” At bottom right, Bobbi Sinclair sings “Mighty To Save,” a contemporary Christian music piece. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN
Little Oscars fete IHS thespians By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register
Iola High School feted the best and brightest moments of its memorable year of dramatic arts with the 49th annual Little Oscars celebration. There was much to applaud with the fall and spring productions — “Leaving Iowa” and “You’re a
Good Man, Charlie Brown” — and the recent coronation of Garrett Prall and Olivia Bannister as the Class 4A state forensics champions in improvised duet acting, the third straight such state title for IHS thespians. The resulting party filled the Bowlus Fine Arts Center auditorium with glitz and glamour rivaling anything found these days in Tinseltown.
Quote of the day Vol. 116, No. 138
The highlights: Senior Mickey Ingle brought home two Little Oscars, the Best Supporting Actress Award for her work as Sally in “Charlie Brown” and the Don Bain Showman of the Year Award, voted on by the IHS Players members to an outgoing senior. Junior Trilby Bannister also won two awards, the Susan S. Miller Award, as
The opportunity works both ways, Judy Works said, giving their son, Colby, a chance to have a brother again. Their older son, Dylan, is spending a year study- Brian Hu ing in New Zealand. Friday night and Saturday Hu was in Harrison, Ark., in a get-together for Rotary Youth Exchange parSee HU | Page A4
Kansas reconsiders permit for coal plant By JOHN HANNA Associated Press
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The state’s top environmental regulator is considering whether to clear the way again for a new coal-fired power plant in southwest Kansas, but environmentalists contend that Gov. Sam Brownback’s administration is taking short cuts to ensure that the $2.8 billion project is built.
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“Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.” — Buddha 75 Cents
Sunflower Electric Power Corp. needs a pollution-control permit from the state Department of Health and Environment for its proposed 895-megawatt plant outside Holcomb in Finney County, where the Haysbased utility already has another coal-fired plant. It obtained a permit in December 2010, but eight months ago, the Kansas Supreme Court ordered the department to revise it to impose tougher See COAL | Page A4
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