NEWSPAPER - PAWPRINT Vol. 2 Issue1

October 2009

FOND FAREWELL

Q&A with “The Abston-ator”

By: Jenn Swan and Megan Adkins

Q- Why did you come to HHS?
For the challenge. When I came to Hannan I knew that the test scores were not the best. I knew that there were challenges dealing with safety and dealing with students overall performance and so I chose to come here because I like a challenge. I’m an athlete and a coach; I’ve always liked a challenge and it was the ultimate challenge.

Q- Do you regret coming to HHS?

Never. I wouldn’t trade the almost three years that I’ve had here for anything. It’s been a tremendous sacrifice to my personal children but professionally it’s been so enriching. It’s an occurrence that I know will never be repeated in my life and the things that I have been able to be a part of with this student body and with the community and this staff, it rarely happens. If you’re lucky it happens only once in your professional lifetime. And to see all those pieces come together to form a school of excellence, though we don’t have the title of it yet, it’s just been phenomenal. It’s been awesome and it’s been very humbling to me.

Q- Did being at HHS affect your life?

Tremendously both positively and negatively. It impacted my children because the job requires easily 70 hours a week, most likely in the early 80s. It wore me out. But on the flipside of that, the payoff, was the energy that I drew from the students as I saw their citizenship skills change as I saw their attitude towards school change. That was a payoff but it changed my life as well. Negatively -- I had to give time up with my own children and my own personal life but positively it paid off millions of dividends more than I ever invested

Q- How do you feel about leaving?
I have mixed emotions about leaving. I, if it were a perfect world, probably would retire from Hannan even though people know that I’m not a person that considers myself a “lifer” at a job. I’m a person who goes in and takes on a challenge and when I feel I’ve met the challenge then I exit which is what I’m doing here. If it were a perfect world and situations were different I would not be leaving Hannan, so it is with a heavy heart and split feelings that I leave. I wish I were not leaving in October. I’d prefer to be leaving when the senior class graduates. But the timing wasn’t so that I could do that.

Q- What are you going to miss most? Why?

The students. Then the staff. I’ll miss the students the most. Then the staff second. I have lots of staff members that are close friends of mine and a lot of students that I will miss getting to see them grow up and become what that they will become.

Q- One last thing to the senior class?
The senior class…I think the most important message I can leave for the senior class is that I watched a tremendous amount of maturity occur with them. That’s been a class that has struggled to be leaders of their own right. They’ve struggled with maturity issues, and being academically challenged, etc. They have come a long way. I was so impressed when they came back to school this year. They took leadership roles. They were leading the classes in cheering for the school. They bonded like a class and they’re true leaders. I’m very, very proud of the opportunity that they’ve taken a hold of their rightful place as leaders of the school. That’s my message to the senior class. Just keep doing the right things.
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Q&A with the Students

By: Shawn Kauffer, Kaitlyn Ellis,
Chelsea Ward, Joel Wiekle, and Tuesday Allen

Q- How do you feel about Ms. Abston?

Renetta Mayes-Discipline-wise, she’s okay.
Jasmine Hutchinson- She’s descent and a good principal.
Anonymous-Ms. Abston is a very good woman and has impacted this school in more ways

Q- Did Ms. Abston truly do well for Hannan?
RM- Yes, she reduced fighting in school
JH- I think she did.
Anonymous- In my personal opinion, yes she has. She has done a lot of good for all the students and teachers here at Hannan.

Q- Do you think she has cleaned up the drugs?
RM- Yes. She enforced her rules.
JH- Yes.
Anonymous-Yes, and when you did get into trouble with drugs, she helped you get cleaned up and back in school.
Q- How did she impact fighting in our schools?
RM-When she came, she immediately began to enforce consequences.
JH-She minimized the number of fights which is a plus.
Anonymous-The fighting has stopped completely in the upper grades, however the junior high hasn’t had the time to experience Ms. Abston’s punishments yet. It’s a little sad that she’s leaving.

Q- Before and After Ms. Abston?
RM-Before-There was fighting almost every day.
After-There were not as many fights.
JH-Before-Hannan was a lot worse; more fights and drugs.
After-There’s not as much fighting and there aren’t any drugs.

Q- How do you feel about Ms. Abston?
Jared Cobb- Peachy, she’s a very good person

Brittany Jenkins- She’s a great principal and person and she helped out HHS a lot and made it a better place.

Patrick Ward- I feel that she is a good person.

Q- Did Ms. Abston truly do well for HHS?

JC- She made it a safer environment.
Britt J- Most definitely she did.
PW- Yes, she influenced our school in a major positive way.

Q- Do you think she cleaned up drugs?

JC- Yeah she did.

Britt J- Oh Yeah, a whole lot.
PW- Yeah no more drugs at HHS.

Q- Did she impact fighting in our school?

JC- Yeah she did.

Britt J- A lot if it is gone now.

PW-She pretty much stopped it all.

Q- Do you feel Ms. Abston’s choices of disciplinary actions were effective?

Drake Grizzel-Of course
Anonymous-Yes, they were quite effective.


Q- Do you feel she has improved the student body with her decisions?
DG-Yes, there were fewer fights because of her.
Anonymous-Yes, she did.

Q- Do you feel Ms. Abston followed through with punishment?
DG- Every time.
Anonymous- Yes she did.

Q- Do you think her disciplinary actions were appropriate?
DG-Yes I do.
Anonymous- She did what had to be done.

Q- Do you think people respected her for her sternness?
DG-Yes they did
Anonymous-Yes, many people respected her.

Q- What kind of an impact do you think Ms. Abston made at HHS?
DG-She made the school a safer place.
Anonymous-The school won’t be the same without her.


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Smart Cats!!

By: Kaitlyn Ellis

This year, Hannan can stand proud. Last year’s 7th, 8th, and 11th graders met some outstanding percentages on the WESTEST scores. In mathematics, the 7th graders met a proficiency of 61 percent, the 8th graders-a proficiency of 47 percent, and the 11th graders, 57 percent. In reading the 7th graders met a proficiency of 78 percent, the 8th graders-a proficiency of 62 percent, and the 11th graders, 53 percent.

Let’s walk around with our heads held high and work hard to improve our scores again this year.

Volleyball

By: Megan Adkins

It has been an amazing season so far for the Varsity Lady Cats Volleyball team. The Lady Cats came out strong in their first game against Valley Fayette. They won all three matches by at least five points. The game was a moral boost for the Lady Cats. They lost five seniors last year leaving the team with six returning players. They were joined this year by two new players.

In their second game, the Lady Cats lost the first two matches against Huntington St. Joe but rallied back in the third match to take the win forcing Huntington to play a forth match. The Lady Cats lost the fourth match but they were not disappointed. The game started out with great distress as no one seemed to be working as a team. After a motivational speech from Coach Brenda Bowman, the team came back together and began to relax and work together. Of course, the lure of no bake cookies helped.

Football

By: Colton Campbell and Shawn Kauffer
Coach Interview By: Kaitlyn Ellis

What is Football? Football is A game played by two teams of 11 players each on a rectangular, 100-yard-long field with goal lines and goal posts at either end, the object being to gain possession of the ball and advance it in running or passing plays across the opponent's goal line or kick it through the air between the opponent's goal posts. (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/football). What it takes to play football at Hannan High School? It takes heart, determination, guts, friends, and family.

Hannan kicked off their 09 season against Valley Wetzel on August 29. They suffered a devastating loss to Valley Wetzel. This isn’t the way Hannan wanted to start off the season with their new coach Dave Barr. In the second week of Hannan’s 09 season they faced up against the ferocious Van Bulldogs. The Van Bulldogs handed Hannan their second loss of the season.

Kaitlyn: How much experience do you have in coaching football?

Coach Barr: “I have coached for…twenty one years, one year in college and twenty years in high schools.”

K: Do you believe Hannan’s football team is improving?

CB: “Sure, they improve every week.”

K: What do you expect to accomplish for Hannan’s football team in the near future?

CB: “1st thing, I’d like to get the players to be more competitive. We also need to get more players.

Class Officers
By: Jenn Swan

The elected officers at Hannan this year were elected in a new way. There were the regular nominations, and then instead of just voting, we held debates. Each of the candidates wrote a speech then made their speeches to their classes. This kicked off the new age in Hannan class officer elections for years to come.

In the seventh grade, President is Charles Mayes, Vice President is Adam Wilson, Secretary is Jessica Cornwell, and Treasurer is Samantha Young.

For the eighth grade, Brittany Samarco is President, Brianne Strickland is VP, Secretary is Ty Page, and Treasurer is Zac Killlingsworth.

In the ninth grade, President is Matthew Randolph. Vice-President is Drake Grizzell, Secretary is Emily Holley, Treasurer is Kaitlyn Hughes.

For the tenth grade, Casey Rowe is President, VP is Mason Dempsey, Secretary is Butchie Kidd, and Treasurer is Tabitha Plumley.

For the eleventh grade, President is Colton Campbell, VP is Dakota Campbell, Secretary is Tuesday Allen, and Treasurer is Cody Cupp.

In the twelfth grade, President is Pokey Warth, VP is Shawn Kauffer, Secretary is Kelsi McCarty, and Treasurer is Tommy Huffman.