FEBRUARY 2016

NORTH Polar Bear News

Proud to be a Polar Bear!

On Saturday, January 30th, the North High

Robotics Team, the Polar Technics,

participated in the John Deere League

Championship tournament in Johnston,

Iowa. They competed against 28 other

teams from Central Iowa, and went into

the contest seeded sixth after a very

successful league tournament season.

After 37 matches during the competition

(the team participated in 5 matches), they

were ranked 3rd. This ranking gave them

the opportunity to select two teams to join

them in the semi-finals. During the semi-

finals they played two out of three rounds

and came out on top! This moved them to

the final round. In the final round they were

matched against the number one seed of

the tournament. In the first match, they

won! The second match was a grueling

and very close match, but they lost. This

left one final match to determine the

winner of the tournament, and decide

which team earned a ticket to the state competition. At the beginning of the match it was

close...then disaster, Fluffy (our robot) disconnected. We lost and came in second. But

hey...second out of 29 is an amazing accomplishment, especially in robotics! This is my seventh

year coaching robotics, and it was definitely the most exciting, stressful, and rewarding tournament

I've had the pleasure of coaching.

Winning the tournament in robotics is not the only way to earn a spot for the state competition,

there are awards! As the awards were handed out the team felt confident they had an awesome

robot, and deserved a design award....and they got one! They earned the Rockwell-Collins

Innovate Award. This award bought them a ticket to the state competition on March 4-5!

Please congratulate the following students for doing a fantastic job during the robot season, and

wish them luck as they head for the state competition!

Trent Rover (Captain), Guy Payton, Reed Lam, Eric Niday, Ken Nguyen, Parker Swigert, Parker Jarrett

and Colby Jensen.

Special thanks to assistant coach DC Smith, and our build mentor Dale Herzburg....I couldn't have

done it without them!

Bryan Butcher, Head Robotics Coach

STATE

BOUND

FEBRUARY 2016

On Saturday, February 20th, ten North band students traveled to Perry, Iowa, to compete in the

Perry Band Olympics. It is similar to state small group contest: students perform solos or small group

pieces to receive a divisional rating (I, II, or III).

In addition to ratings, they also rank and award the top five entries in each category. There were

over 900 total entries, and several of the large suburban high schools were there (Ankeny, Ankeny

Centennial, Dowling, Urbandale, Valley), so the competition was very tough. I’m proud to say that

North students received top five placings in three categories:

Bridget Gervais got 5th place in the 11th/12th grade French Horn Solo Category

Marcos Hernandez got 5th place in the 11th/12th Tenor Saxophone Solo Category

The trio of Bridget Gervais (French Horn), Marcos Hernandez (Tenor Sax), and Heden

Perez (Bass Clarinet) got 1st place in the 11th/12th grade Trio Category

The ratings for our students were as follows:

Bridget Gervais, French Horn Solo – I

Marcos Hernandez, Tenor Sax Solo – I

Albert Rassavong, Flute Solo – I

Sammi Veigulis, Alto Sax Solo – II

Elizabeth Folkers, Trumpet Solo – III

Bridget Gervais (French Horn), Marcos Hernandez (Tenor Sax), and Heden Perez (Bass

Clarinet) – I

Duet of Angel Brown (Flute) and Penny Brumbaugh (Clarinet) – II

Trio: Marcos Hernandez (Bari Sax), Ian Penman (Marimba), & Jill Hanson (Xylophone) – II

Duet: Bridget Gervais (Marimba) and Ian Penman (Marimba) – II

Job well done!!! Congratulations!

Dave Brown, Band Director

North High School Band

Back Row L to R: Sammi Veigulis, Penny Brumbaugh, Albert Rassavong, Elizabeth Folkers, & Ian Penman. Front Row L to R: Angel Brown, Jill Hanson, Bridget Gervais & Marcos Hernandez. Not pictured: Heden Perez

FEBRUARY 2016

North's Varsity and Jr. Varsity Rifles teams competed in the Eastern United States Regional

Championships this past weekend in Camp Perry, Ohio. The Varsity squad pulled a 3-peat and won

the Championships for the 3rd straight year, team members are James Ellefson, Lexis Smith, Jessica

Ebersole and Zane Simonton. The Jr. Varsity squad also turned in an impressive performance to finish

in 2nd place, team members are JaDicela Chavez-Aguilar, Gerardo

Salinas, Nicole Masteller and Anya Young. North also took the top 4

individual placings as well, James Ellefson was the Regional

Champion, Lexis Smith won the Silver Medal and Jessica Ebersole

and Zane Simonton were Bronze Medalists, we let the 5th place spot

get away!!! Lexis Smith was also awarded her Distinguished Shooting

Badge, the highest award that a junior shooter can achieve.

Congratulations to these Cadets for a job well done and

representing North in an outstanding manner.

Gunnery Sergeant, Mike Gettler

Marine Instructor & Rifle Team Coach

MCJROTC

Varsity Squad Jr. Varsity Squad

Lexis Smith James Ellefson Jessica Ebersole

FEBRUARY 2016

Polar Bear Debate Tournament

North's Speech & Debate Team returns from

our Tournament in Fremont, NE., on

Saturday, January 23rd, with four ribbons

and two medals. It was exciting for our

members to place in their areas.

Congratulations to Muhammad “Talha”

Baig, Fatima Nazar, Trevor Collins, and Doris

Garcia! Team members Sheldon Oliver and

Maira Antonio Maya also displayed a great

effort on the team.

Rebekah Hall, Debate Coach &

Chris Cyran, Assistant Debate Coach

Feb. 2nd… Our Academic

Decathlon team's

performance at regionals

has allowed us to qualify for

the state competition!

Here are a few reasons to

be proud of North’s

Academic Decathlon

team:

As a team, we placed

3rd at the Central Iowa

Regional Competition! Our

overall score has placed us

in the top 12 large schools in

the state. We are qualified

to go to the state

competition in Spirit Lake on

March 4th and 5th.

We placed significantly higher than any other DMPS high school at regionals.

There were 14 individual ribbons awarded to North students for scoring in the top three in a

particular subject area for their division. Ribbon winners included: Krystal O’Morrow (Economics

and Music), Ian Penman (Economics, Science, Social Science, and Art), Taj Milton (Music), PJ

Clearman (Speech), and Rose Wallace-Smith (Economics, Language/Literature, Math, Music,

Science, and Art).

Two North Decathletes earned medals for being the top three overall students for their division.

Ian Penman earned the bronze medal for his division and Rose Wallace-Smith earned the gold

medal for her division.

Our team consists of a well-rounded group of students from all grade levels. We have been

pleased to see the upperclassmen grow and mentor the younger students.

Congratulations team!!!

Anna Brown, Academic Decathlon Coach

Mark Schmidt, Academic Decathlon Coach

Academic Decathlon

FEBRUARY 2016

February 17, 2016

North High’s Draven Wear has qualified for State

individually, with an average score of 245.5. The State

tournament is next Tuesday at Plaza Lanes here in Des

Moines. The girls bowling teams from both Lincoln and

Roosevelt high schools will be seeking a team title

at the 2016 State Co-Ed Bowling Tournament.

North Student Qualifies for State in Bowling

February 23, 2016

Draven bowled a 322 series today at the State Bowling Championships at Plaza Lanes.

Congratulations to Draven and Coach Lucht for an outstanding season.

FEBRUARY 2016

February 11th

Back in September Science

Bound students were given the

opportunity to compete in the district science fair. They had a few months to do their research and

create a presentation.

Thirteen students presented their research on February 11th, at the Science Center

and 3 placed and qualified for the state science fair at Iowa State University at

the end of March. We also swept all 3 places for the High School Physical Science

category!

High School Physical Science

1st Place: Abby Espinosa-Gonzalez Bellolio from North High School (The Conservation of

Energy through Combustion) ***Highest Score in the DMPS District

2nd Place: Jasmine Echeverria from North High School (Which Orange Juice has more

Vitamin C.)

3rd Place: Junice Sibley from North High School (Clean Get Away)

These students deserve a high-5 for all

the hard work they did and for all the

work they still have to do to get ready

for state!

Ms. Jessica Lambert &

Mr. Steve Benson

District Science Fair

STATE

BOUND

Abby Espinosa-Gonzalez Bellolio

FEBRUARY 2016

Staff Recognition

North High School's AP biology

teacher, Jean Schwendau, was

presented with the 2016 AP

Teacher of the Year Award by the

College Board. Mrs. Amber

Graeber, DMPS AP Coordinator,

nominated Ms. Jean Schwendau

for this award. She went to

Chicago to accept her award as

the College Board’s AP Teacher of

the Year for the 13-state Midwest

region comprised of Illinois, Indiana,

Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota,

Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota,

Ohio, South Dakota, West

Virginia and Wisconsin.

To see the full story visit our website:

north.dmschools.org

Congratulations Jean Schwendau on receiving such an honor!

Coach of the Year!

Bowling coach, Michael Lucht, was named All Conference Coach of

the Year! Mr. Lucht has been coaching bowling for 8 years now as well

as teaching math classes, AP Statistics

and working in the Technology Office

at North High School keeping all the

iPads and technology running

smoothly.

Congratulations Michael Lucht!

Teacher, Lisa Klein is applauded for her PE class. A

new physical education course taught by Lisa Klein

at North High School isn’t just about the body. Called

“The Psychology of Health and Fitness,” the course

focuses on growth over fixed results, and how facing

physical challenges on a track or in a pool can be

applied to facing academic challenges and growth

in the classroom.

To see the full story visit our website:

north.dmschools.org

Congratulations Lisa Klein!

PE Teacher Applauded

FEBRUARY 2016

NORTHSIDE NIGHT

MARCH 3RD

7:00 PM

On Thursday, March 3rd North High School will host “Northside Night” a vocal music concert involving

North, Harding, Goodrell, Findley, Madison, Cattell and Oak Park schools. This has become a wonderful

tradition in honor of national “Music In Our Schools Month.” I hope you will join us in the North High

Auditorium, March 3rd at 7:00 pm to celebrate the students and show your support for the fine arts!

Vanessa Brady, Choral Director

North High School

Auditorium

FEBRUARY 2016

North High School Parent-Teacher

Conferences are on Thursday, March 24th from

4:00 PM to 7:30 PM in the gym. Conferences are

a great time for you to be able to visit with

teachers about your students’ grades, progress

and areas for growth. Parents and teachers

working together can help the student reach their

potential. Please come and find out how your

student is progressing in their educational

experience. Light refreshments will be served.

Also scheduled for the same night is a FREE

dental screening. The I-Smile™ program

dental hygienists will be available from 4:00 to

7:00 PM in the library to provide dental

screenings, apply fluoride varnish and connect

you with a dental provider who accepts your

insurance. Every student screened will receive

a new toothbrush! Parent consent forms must

be signed. These are available in the school

office if you need it ahead of time or they will

be available at the dental screening.

Thursday, March 24th 4:00 to 7:30 P.M., Gym

FEBRUARY 2016

FEBRUARY 2016

Sweet-natured Alice

Sycamore falls for banker's son

Tony Kirby. But when she

invites her snooty prospective

in-laws to dinner to give their

blessing to the marriage,

Alice's peculiar extended

family -- including

philosophical grandfather

Martin Vanderhof, hapless

fledgling ballerina sister Essie

and fireworks enthusiast

father, Paul -- might be too

eccentric for the staid Kirbys.

February 8, 2016

NHS Theater students ROCKED State contest this past weekend

at Waukee! 8 of 10 groups received Superior ratings. 3 groups

(ensemble acting, musical theater and solo mime) even

received STRAIGHT SUPERIORS from all 3 judges! I am so proud

of the work they have accomplished. Thank you to Vanessa

Brady, Amy Rost and Joe Van Haecke for their hard work with

us as well.

February 9, 2016

A big congratulations to seniors Mayte Gomez-Cruz and Yanet

Velasquez on being nominated as non-performing (Honorable

Mention) at the All-State Theater Festival in Ames on Saturday,

Feb 20th! Their piece from “A Streetcar Named Desire” received

high praise from the judges and is well deserving of this honor.

This is the first time since 2008/2009 that NHS Theater has been

accepted to All-State in back to back years! Great work from

these kids!

Thank you for your continued support of the performing arts!

Mark Rixner

Theater Arts Director/Instructor

North High Theater Arts presents… You Can’t Take It With You

A comedy by Hart and Kaufman

April 14th—17th

Coming Soon . . .

North High Theater Arts

FEBRUARY 2016

PROM Saturday, April 23rd, 8:00—11:00 PM

At the Scottish Rite Temple Tickets: $30 each or $50 for two

Theme:

The Enchanted Forest

Post Prom Follows at

North High School 12:00-5:00 AM

FREE

For Juniors & Seniors.

Outside guests welcome with

completed form.

FEBRUARY 2016

March 11-18th: NO SCHOOL. Enjoy Spring Break!!! Classes resume on March 21st.

March 24th: P-T Conferences: The Parent-Teacher Conferences are on Thursday, March 24th from

4:00—7:30 PM in the gym. Light refreshments will be served. FREE dental screening is also available

in the library from 4:00—7:00 PM.

March 30th Testing: On Wednesday, March 30th is Iowa Assessment Testing. Students will need to

get a good night’s sleep, eat a hearty breakfast and come prepared to do their best.

April 14th-17th Play: “You Can’t Take It With You” comedy by Hart & Kaufman.

April 19th Testing: On Tuesday, April 19th, is ACT testing for 11th graders . This will be for the

morning only. Students in 9th, 10th & 12th grades do not have school.

April 20th: On Wednesday, April 20th, is a no school day for the 11th graders only. Students in 9th,

10th & 12th grades will need to report to school.

April 23rd: Prom: Prom is on Saturday, April 23rd from 8:00—11:00 PM at the Scottish Rite Temple

located at 519 Park Street, Des Moines, IA 50309. The theme is “Enchanted Forest.” Outside guests

are welcome but must have a completed and signed guest form on file to be admitted. Prom

tickets will go on sale April 4th. Dance guest forms are available in the school office.

April 24th: Post-Prom (follows Prom): For decades, North High has hosted a free, fun party

following Prom. The goal of the event is to have a safe, fun place for all of our students to be. The

Post Prom event is from 12:00 midnight to 5:00 AM.

We need your involvement so that this event can be a success!

Post Prom is for all North High juniors and seniors!

Even if a student does not attend Prom, they can attend Post Prom.

Post-Prom planning is underway but we could still use help in these areas.

We need parents/guardians to volunteer to cook food for our Post Prom.

We need parents/guardians to help us get donations for the evening.

We need parents/guardians to volunteer to work the Post Prom event on April 24th.

Please email Mr. Graeber at benjamin.graeber@dmschools.org or call him directly at 242-7222 if you

have questions. We really need your help to make this party great! We have laser tag, inflatable

games in the big gym, a mechanical bull to ride, free food for students, movies in the auditorium

and more!

Scholarships: There are many scholarships available to NHS seniors. If you would like more

information, check out the North High Counseling website at

www.dmnorthhighcounseling.weebly.com or have your student come into the counseling office

and see their counselor. Parents can also contact the counselors directly – here are their names:

Mrs. Julie Charikov (student last names A through K),

Email: julie.charikov@dmschools.org

Ms. Loretta Martzahl (student last names L through Z),

Email: loretta.martzahl@dmschools.org

May AP Testing: May 2-13 and May 18-20 is AP testing for students. An AP study session calendar is

attached on the next page.

May 27th: Class Day: Our annual class day for our seniors is Friday, May 27th at 8:30 AM. Parents

are encouraged and welcome to attend.

May 28th: Graduation!!!: The Commencement Ceremony for our Class of 2016 will be at the Drake

University Knapp Center on Saturday, May 28th at 9:00 AM.

Important information to know

Please note: ALL fees must be paid in full before you can

graduate! Please see the bookkeeper for a statement of your

current fees.

FEBRUARY 2016