Scotus Central Catholic
http://issuu.com/scotusjournalism
Columbus, Nebraska 68601
Rock Bottom Volume 18
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Issue V
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March 6, 2018
Photo Courtesy Jacquie Smith
Rocks complete upset for state title By Matt Strecker Editor A new yellow banner will hang in the Dowd Activity Center, as the Shamrocks are the Class C1 girls state basketball champions for the fifth time in program history. The 2018 NSAA Girls State Basketball Championships kicked off championship Saturday with a nail biter. The Shamrocks defeated the Wahoo Bishop Neumann Cavaliers in the C1 championship game in dramatic fashion 40-37 in overtime.
“I used to watch the state finals on TV as a kid every year,” senior Maggie Feehan said. “I always wanted to get here, so it really is a dream come true.” The Shamrocks paved their way to Saturday’s game in dominating fashion as they rolled past fourth-seeded Wahoo High 49-32 and thrashed top-ranked Mitchell 43-26. Junior Bailey Lehr led the way against the Wahoo Warriors with 15 points, including 11 of 12 at the charity stripe. Feehan sparked the Shamrock offense as she scored 13 points in both contests. “I have no words for it. It was
just so amazing,” Feehan said. “We all put in so much time and love each other so much. We worked really hard and to finally win it is phenomenal.” In a rematch of an earlier Centennial Conference tournament loss to the Cavaliers, the Shamrocks came out swinging in their final meeting. Senior Shania Borchers was fouled scoring the first points of the game, but missed the free throw only to be rebounded by Lehr. She then kicked the ball out to senior Grace Wickham, whose father was the head coach of the last girls state championship team. Wickham
buried one of her two triples of the game from downtown. “I knew we needed to hit shots to win because we knew they were going to pack it in inside,” Wickham said. The Shamrocks found themselves in a hole early, however, as they ended the first quarter trailing 10-7. Senior and University of Nebraska-Kearney commit Aspen Jansa scored 6 of the Cavalier’s 10. The Cavaliers would keep their foot on the gas pedal, outrebounding the Shamrocks 16-7 and went to the locker room up 22-15 at the half. Senior Kendra Wiese and Neu-
mann’s Alyssa Rezac traded triples before time expired. “Throughout the season, our kids have been in different situations in games, and no matter what happens to them, they just keep playing,” Scotus head coach Jarrod Ridder said. “We just have all these kids that rallied and made plays. They just kept playing.” The Shamrocks picked up the defensive intensity in the second half, holding the Cavaliers to just 4 points in the third quarter of play. They entered the fourth quarter
See CHAMPS, Page 2
Technology the focus for STEAM By Abe Perault Staff Reporter
Faith Przymus/Rock Bottom Staff
Religion teacher Kelly Koranda stands by the portrait she made of Mother Teresa. Koranda majored in art and religion in college, and will be teaching Theology and Art with art teacher Clyde Ericson.
Courses put the “A” in STEAM By Faith Przymus Staff Reporter All students at Scotus are required to take religion classes and an art class. Starting next year, students will have the opportunity to expand the knowledge learned in these classes by taking new courses offered through the new STEAM curriculum. Theology and Art will be a new class that is offered next year taught by religion teacher Kelly Koranda, who majored in both art and religion, and art teacher Clyde Ericson. “[Theology and Art] will differ a lot in structure, in that it will be a mix of creating artwork and also learning more about the philosophical and theological concepts of beauty and art. Also, it is unique in that two teachers will be teaching it, and it is really propelled by more of a niche interest that we might not have time to talk about in a regular religion class, rather than covering a broader spectrum of content,” Koranda said.
Students who take Theology and Art will be given the chance to write an icon, create an illuminated manuscript, and participate in a student-driven project at the end of the course. The class will give students the opportunity to enhance their knowledge and love for religion and art simultaneously. “I personally get really excited when I see theological themes incorporated in different areas of culture, especially the arts. This could be through a secular song, a work of art, or a film. In theology class we learn a lot about different concepts of who God is, but to see them applied in different contexts can really strengthen our faith. It also will help students examine how they can use their talents as a way to evangelize,” Koranda said. Along with teaching Theology and Art, Ericson will also be teaching Graphic Design. After adding two new classes to his day, Ericson needed to make changes to the classes he is already teaching in order to fit them all in his schedule. Art IV will be moving in with Art III, but they will retain their own
separate curriculums. This change allows students to take Graphic Design and thus engage in a different aspect of art. “Graphic Design is more business oriented, and my hope is that the class will engage in projects that could be used for different functions in the school. There is more of an emphasis on design than a normal art class and less charcoal and paint,” Ericson said. Students who take Graphic Design will be able to make posters, photos, a business system, and a t-shirt. Ericson stated that technology that may be used throughout this course includes computer programs such as Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. He also hopes to use cameras, scanners, and screen printing equipment. “Graphic Design is largely about promoting something visually. The applicability of this skill is huge, ranging from being an entrepreneur and starting your own business to making t-shirts for your summer basketball team, maybe
See ART, Page 2
Scotus students heard some big news about the future of Scotus on Friday, February 2nd. They were told that in addition to the STEAM lab being opened next year, they would also be able to take five new courses. Tyler Swanson, a technology and computer business teacher at Scotus, is going to head up most of the new technology courses. Instead of teaching just a period of modern technology, that course will now be split up into three new courses along with returning courses of personal finance I and II, and computer business apps. The three new courses will be Computer Science, CAD (Computer Aided Design), and Video Production. “We wanted to get some more STEM type programs and wanted to get kids more involved in taking things. We can take modern tech and split it up, so we can have the video stuff and the CAD stuff. Now, if someone just wants to take one part of it, they can do that,” Swanson said.
These new classes are opening doors of opportunity for students to explore their interests in new feels, and they could possibly find a new career choice. “Maybe you didn’t even know what was going on with CAD, but you can take that class, and it becomes an interest and then you go into that field,” Swanson continued. “We just wanted to make sure that if you wanted to take a class, you could take it.” Students participating in these classes will have a variety of resources in their hands. The students in video production will have new high-quality cameras at their disposal, as well as green screens and Adobe software so they can edit their film work. Students participating in CAD will focus more on the designing structures and buildings with the use of programs like Sketchup. The kids in computer science will get a chance to study programing, or even create a video game while also learning about the ins and outs of the computers. “We don’t want to over use it, to the point where we’re letting the technology do their job, but we
See TECHNOLOGY, Page 2
Angie Rusher/Journalism Advisor
Sophomore Jacey Clarey works on a project for Computer Business Apps. Computer business Apps will be contunie to be avalible to take along with CAD and Computer Science.