We’ll step Off the Field to take a closer look at some of the Republic students who are competing in non-sports activities. Our report is brought to you by State Farm Agent Sarah Rader. Talk to her about how you can save money by combining your home and auto insurance.
Republic honored dozens of award-winning writers across all grade levels over the past two weeks. At the high school level, that included three Hall of Fame writing awards and one Scholastic Gold Medal. In all, about 160 students from middle school and high school won recognition in some kind of competition.
Ninth grader Samantha Determan won a Nonfiction Hall of Fame Award for her persuasive essay, UNCLOS: United Nations Convention on the Law and of the Sea. Her teacher is Deniece Yendes.
Tenth grader Emily Wheeler won a Long Poetry Hall of Fame Award for her narrative poem titled Thirteen. Her teacher is Kathy Scales.
Twelfth grader Whitney Hill’s descriptive writing titled Roses and Lavender won a First Place Writers’ Hall of Fame Award. Her teacher is Kristin Howard.
Tenth grader Alexis Weatherman entered her free verse poem, American Dreaming, in a writing competition sponsored by publisher Scholastic, and said she was “shocked” to find out she’s received a gold medal. Her piece is about the conflict in Syria and how she views it from the perspective of an American citizen “and understanding how much previlege that I had to live in this country, and how we don’t often acknowledge others, and the situation in Syria specifically.”
Weatherman said she thought her work was “too touchy of a subject” to win anything, so she never considered submitting before. “To see… a social issue win an award like that, I was just shocked that other people saw the value of what I did,” she said.
Weatherman said she hopes to continue to use writing as a persuasive tool, and plans to pursue politics and government. “I love politics, and that is reflected in my writing,” she said.
Weatherman’s teachers are Megan Reaves and Lisa Deckard.
The district also recognized more than 100 elementary students at a separate writer’s reception. Those students all received some recognition for their writing at regional, state, or national competitions.