the
Volume 2, Issue 4 February 21, 2020
ROCKET PRESS Your School. Your Magazine.
BE
BOLD! {adjective} “showing an ability to take risks; confident and courageous”
NEW year. New Decade.
What will you change in 2020? page 6 what’s hot in the new year? Page 8
‘20-’21 school calendar adopted page 4 Campbell reaches 1,000 points page 12
CONTENTS NEWS 4-district votes on school calendar
4-Band students earn multiple honors 5-sewage odor plagues high school
COVER
6-Why do we make new year resolution?
4
8-What’s hot
OPINION 10- college: a choice or not? 10-If there is ever a draft, count me in
CONTENTS--2
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Your School. Your Magazine. 12 SPORTS 11- Leck breaks school record 12- Elite Company
PHOTOS 14-rocket life
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David Leck becomes school’s top alltime wins leader in wrestling. EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
STAFF
LYDIA KIMBLE
ASSISTANT Editor CHARLEE CONROY STAFF WRITERS ETHAN WOODROME SYDNEY LAKOUS TAEGAN BELCHER SAM LARSON KIRSTEN-ANN SMITH Cover Design and layout LYDIA KIMBLE AND MR. BROWNING Photo Credits: Rocket Athletics
Koby Campbell scored his 1,000th point against El Dorado on Tuesday, January 8.
rocketpd17 RocketPd17 Rocket Productions
The Rocket Press is the official news magazine of Rose Hill High School that is published six times a year. The Rocket Press is a student publication, written and produced by students. Opinions expressed in The Rocket Press are of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the USD 394 Board of Education, the administration, the faculty or the adviser. CONTENTS--3
District votes on school calendar By Kirsten-Ann Smith, Reporter The Rose Hill School District recently voted on the 2020-2021 calendar, choosing between two different options. The one that was chosen, Calendar B, has the first day of school on Thursday, August 13. The first semester ends on Friday, Dec. 18, which gives students a 16-day break. The last day of school is Thursday, May 20. The USD 394 School Board accepted Calendar B at the board meeting on Monday, January 13. For Calendar A, school would have started on Wednesday August 12. The first semester would have ended on December 22 and given students only 12 days for Winter Break. The last day of school would have been Wednesday, May 19. Perhaps the biggest sticking point between the two calendars was teacher workdays. In Calendar B, the work days are at the beginning and the end of the semester, while Calendar A has work days scattered throughout the semester.. “The biggest reason I had for choosing Calendar A was that I use the day after the quarter to update all of my grades that I couldn’t get in during the week,” English teacher Stephanie Arbogast said. “This was very beneficial and allowed me the chance to work from home and get those grades fully updated.” On the other side, Social Studies teacher Josh Shirley selected Calendar B. “I thought both were great options and either could have been a great choice for our school year next year,” Shirley said. “But in the end, I felt that Calendar B represented what I was looking for around the holidays and the start of the school year.” NEWS--4
IMPORTANT DATES FOR THE 2020-2021 SCHOOL YEAR 1.) first day of school: august 12 2.) End of THE first 9 weeks: October 16 3.) thanksgiving break: november 25-27 4.) winter break: december 21- january 1 5.) end of THE third 9 weeks: march 12 6.) Spring break: march 15-19 7.) graduation: may 16 8.) last day of school: may 20
Sewage odor plagues high school By Sam Larson, Reporter For many years, Rose Hill High School has had issues with a sewage gas odor in the building. Every now and then, a stench plagues the school, in some parts more than others. Most students assume that the horrid smell is caused by a sewage back up. “The problem has been on and off for at least four years that I have been here,” said Director of Operations Todd Exley. “Although this year it has been significantly worse, so we have been trying to investigate with no success during that time.” According the Exley, the sewage backup has been happening for quite some time, but he has plans to change this.
“The issue is that we had an extension on a vent pipe that was not quite long enough with certain directions of wind that was too close to a return air intake,” Exley said. This makes the stench go through the vent pipes and return to the classrooms. “A simple fix was to extend the vent pipe out of range from the return air. We are also installing air back flow preventer on our vent pipes and floor drains,’’ Exley said. The odor went away briefly towards the end of first semester, but then returned abruptly early in January.
Band Students earn multiple honors By Kirsten-Ann Smith, Reporter
Five Rose Hill High School Band students auditioned for and won spots in the South Central District Honor Band in December at the District Convention. The five students were Sarah Baden (2nd, chair flute), Maya Isbel (10th, chair flute), Maggie Estagin (1st, chair bassoon), Isabel Miller (4th, chair trumpet), and Evan Brenzikofer (8th, chair trombone). They will now perform on stage at Century II at the Kansas Music Educators Convention, February 29. "Joining an honor band such as the WSU, really opens up a new mindset to how you can improve and become a better player,” said Devin Schaar. “Doing band also provides you with good opportunities to have fun, whether it be at a contest or playing at homecoming."
Also the Rocket Band participated in the Kansas State Concert Band Clinic in January. 24 through 26. Ten students were chosen to be taken to the clinic where there were also six other bands that participated. The seven students were Miller (trumpet), Estagin (bassoon), Audrey Stanton (alto sax), Robby McElroy (trumpet), Hannah Milligan (flute), Aden Lemasters (tuba), and Jillian Rockley (french horn). The Rocket Band will also be participating in the Wichita State High School Honor Band, which is held on February 7 and 8. Ten other students will be participating in this event, Brenzikofer, Aislin Burnison, Estagin, Jack Hensley, Brooklyn Layman, Miller, Schaar, Lily Shropshire, Hunter Sills and Stanton.
NEWS--5
Why do we make New Year’s Resolutions? By Sydney LaKous, Reporter
New Year’s Resolutions are something that 44 percent of Americans set out to do, according to finder.com. But where did New Year’s resolutions originate? According to history.com, they date back to 4,000 years, and were created by the Babylonians. They were also the first to hold recorded celebrations in honor of the new year, although they celebrated the new year in mid-March, when the crops were planted. During a massive 12-day religious festival known as Akitu, the Babylonians crowned a new king or reaffirmed their loyalty to the reigning king. They would make promises to the gods to pay all debts and return any objects that they had borrowed. These promises seem to be the basis of our New Year’s resolutions. They felt that they were being held accountable by the gods. Finder.com says that the top five categories that keep us to this holiday tradition relate to money, health, career, self-improvement and love. About 164 million Americans have set goals to learn something new, make a lifestyle change or set a personal goal. COVER--6
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COVER--7
Design By Taegan Belcher
Boys’ fashion
HOT
WHAT’S Girls’ Fashion COVER--8
HydroFlask
IN Air Forces
Vibrant Hair
AirPods
2020
COVER--9
College: a choice or not?
if there is a draft,
count me in
By Sam Larson, Reporter
By Ethan Woodrome, Reporter
For many years now, a student graduates high school and they are expected to attend college. After college, they are also expected to get a great job after that. But nowadays, is that completely necessary? Do you need to spend thousands of dollars just to go to school and then have to pay it off for decades after? I don’t think it has to be that way.
On Jan. 3 the United States of America fired missiles at Baghdad International Airport killing Iranian General, Qasem Soleimani.
School can be difficult for me. So why would I throw away thousands of dollars just to go to some place I don’t want to be? In certain jobs, I can see why college is necessary. For example, larger jobs that serve an important role in our government or country. I am not necessarily saying I hate the idea of college. I see why it can be useful for many young adults to learn new things about stuff they like to do, but I just don’t like how it is so expensive to attend college, and it is an expectation to go. You have to work hard to get your grades up just to get a scholarship or get accepted, then you and your family have to work even harder just to pay for tuition. If you can’t pay tuition in the beginning like most families, you have to get a loan, which you then spend the next 20 plus years paying off that loan. Nowadays, there are many jobs that can not only get you paid, but could pay for an entire family. For example, criminal detectives or investigators, Commercial pilots, power plant workers and countless other jobs you can do by yourself. There are also many Americans who are smart and hardworking that do not have the money to pay for college or the debt that comes with it. OPINION--10
Two days later the New York Times reported that many young people were scared that World War III might happen and many feared a draft. Though according to the Washington post the U.S.-Iran crisis has calmed down since then. People are scared that the U.S.A. may do something destructive in the Middle East that may make many countries in the world go against us. This could cause a giant crisis that might require a draft. Though before drafting there is a process that has to happen in the U.S. Active Duty, National Guard, and Reserves will be deployed first. Then Congress and the President will have to determine whether the crisis requires more troops than people who are volunteering. Congress and the President will then have to pass legislation for draft. If a war ever went out of control and a draft was required I would not care if I was forced to go. If I am injured or if I am 80 years old--I would volunteer to defend my country in it’s time of need. I will defend the people, the land, and the Constitution of the United States. Everybody deserves the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The First Amendment guarantees the right of free speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion. I will always be ready to fight for the U.S. and defend others freedoms.
Leck breaks school record Senior wrestler becomes school’s all-time wins leader
By Ethan Woodrome, Reporter
On Saturday, January 25 at the Eureka Invitational, senior wrestler David Leck became the all-time leader in wins. Of Leck’s 131 career victories, 83 were pins. Zac Sparr, who wrestled from 2006-2010, was the previous record holder at 130 wins. “I’ve had this goal for a very long time,” Leck said, “(I wanted to break the record) since the beginning of sophomore year. That’s when I started thinking I could beat the record.” This was not the only time Leck was on the record board. He was one of the Rockets’ state placers last season, coming in third. He has qualified for the state tournament all four years and has 30 wins seasons for the past two years. Leck has only wrestled since middle school. “The thing about David is he didn’t start wrestling as young as other wrestlers do, making his achievement even more amazing,” said head wrestling coach Darian Eshelman. “David has earned every win through hard work and sacrifice and just being a tough kid. We are super excited for him to reach this goal.”
RHHS Wrestling Wins Leaders
1) David Leck 131-28 2) Zac Sparr 130-16 3) Jeremy Terrell 120-19 4) Jake Wilson 120-25 5) Kyle Sackett 119-42
Sports--11
Elite company
Campbell second player in school history to reach 1,000 points By Charlee Conroy, Assistant Editor
is really cool.”
On Tuesday January 7, Koby Campbell, a senior at Rose Hill High School reached career points for his career by scoring 28 points against El Dorado. As of February 5, Campbell has scored 1,208 points.
Campbell has started for the varsity team since his freshman year in high school. He now holds the all-time record for varsity starts in Rockets history.
Clayton Dye, who played in the mid 90’s, is the only other player in school history to score 1,000 career points.
“He’s a good individual, a great leader for us and always is bringing his all and trying to make others better, which has been great for us the past four years,” Rose Hill basketball coach Josh Shirley said.
“It’s cool because it shows you that all the hard work that you put in was not just the last four years but even before has paid off,” Campbell said. “You know you finally get to go showcase what you have been working for on a big stage and to get that type of recognition
As of press time, Campbell has currently received four offers to play college basketball, but is waiting until spring to make any final decision.
Senior Koby Campbell scored his 1,000th point against El Dorado on Tuesday, January 7. Campbell scored 28 points in the Rockets 50-41 victory. Photo courtesy of Rocket Hoops Sports-- 12
Career Highlights 1) Beating Collegiate for the first time 2) Playing in sub-state final junior year 3) Scoring 41 points against Winfield this year 4) Three-time preseason tournament champions
“You know you finally get to go showcase what you have been working for on a big stage and to get that type of recognition is really cool.� -Koby Campbell sports-- 13
ROCKET
Lexie Rose drives to the basket against the Mulvane Wildcats.
Bryce Bischler, swims at the Wichita Heights Invitational. Several RHHS students in Chemistry II or Calculus went to Cowley COMMUNITY College to compete in math and science day.
PHOTOS--14
LIFE
Rose Hill High School hosted theIR anNual Wrestling tournAMeNt, with over 20 schools COMPETING ON February 7 and 8. P.J. Day during spirit week, with Natalie Walls, Sarah Foster and EvAn Brenzikofer.
King of Hearts winners Dylan Herrman and D’Sean Garcia. PHOTOS--15
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