Category Archives: Student Opportunities

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Student Council 2017-2018

Congratulations to the 2017-2018 Student Council members.

Seniors:

President: Jillian O’Hara

Vice-President: Alexa Schwerha

Secretary: Olivia Brant

Treasurer: Carsyn Hoppel

Representative: Emily King

 

Juniors:

President: Hannah Call

Vice-President: Angelina Ditri

Secretary: Madison Kendall

Treasurer: Grant Hall

Representative: Madeline Schreffler

 

Sophomores:
President: Mitchell Grady

Vice-President: Riley Britt

Secretary: Lauren McCarty

Treasurer: Emily Miller

Representative: Madison Cline

 

Next year’s freshmen will vote in the fall when they make the transition to the high school.

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Summi Decem Q&A

With there being around 13 to 12 days left of school, the business at Beaver Local has only just begun. This week, however, is a very special one to some students. On Thursday, the 18th, selected students in grades 7-12 will be attending the 54th annual Summi Decem awards that recognize them for their academic success throughout the year. To help those who don’t know what Summi Decem is or consists of, I’ve put together a sort of Q&A to explain some key points.

What is Summi Decem and what does it mean?

Summi Decem derives from the language of Latin and the phrase “Summi Decem” means “top ten,” therefore, the Summi Decem awards ceremony spotlights the top ten students in each graduating class, starting in the seventh grade. While the phrase may mean “top ten,” depending on the number of students that make the cut, there may be more or less than ten students per class.

How does one obtain the award?

Throughout the course of the year, students who, in the case of grades 7-8, maintain straight A’s for the year are most likely to qualify, and it is based on the grades of the first three nine weeks of the school year. In the high school level, though, students have to hold a GPA (grade point average) of a 3.9 or higher to qualify. While it may be based on first semester grades, it is cumulative, meaning that it can be based on the grades of the first semester plus grades of the second semester of the previous school year.

What does one receive at the awards ceremony?

Students in grade 7-10 receive a simple red and white certificate signed by their principle and the Beaver Local Education Association representative for that year. Students in grades 11-12, on the other hand, are presented with a placard, congratulating them on their achievement. Those who have been a full six-year member, however, have a red plate on their placard compared to the black plate of the rest of their graduating class.

Last year’s Seniors at the 2015-2016 Summi Decem Awards

 

How important is it to get Summi Decem each year?

While it may be rewarding to be recognized for all the hard work you put in to achieve this award, don’t fret if you don’t get it another year or ever again. You’ll be surprised at how many colleges and employers who actually do not know what Summi Decem is, therefore you won’t be getting any scholarships for it anytime soon.

As a student who is now a three-year member, I can say that it is very rewarding to be recognized and awarded for the hard work and dedication it takes to maintain such a high GPA. Looking back and remembering about the fits I threw because I didn’t want to go to my sister’s Summi Decem awards (as she was a six year member), because I thought it was pointless, but now I can say that it is actually worth going to as you get to watch your fellow classmates with smiles on their faces while they receive their award, knowing that somehow you all made it through the year with the GPA’s that you did.
Congratulations to all the 2016-2017 Summi Decem members! Here’s to a great end of the year and hopefully another Summi Decem to come next year.

Summi Decem award holders of the 2020 graduating class at the 2015-2016 ceremony

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LEO Club Mentoring Program

Leo stands for leadership, experience, opportunity. Leo club is a good way to get community service. There are multiple different programs in this club. At Beaver Local, they have Buddy Beaver Mentoring, and Precious Moments with Seniors. There are many more programs, but Mr. Barnes prefers some people to have a part in a certain program. However, in the elementary section of Beaver Local, they held a book fair for the kindergarteners. These books came from the book dues the Leo’s owed. Each Leo is required to bring at least two books in the beginning of the year.

In the Buddy Beaver Mentoring program you are like a big brother or sister to a kindergartner. “They always look forward to seeing you everyday,” said Bella Sweigard and Kiley Cook, both active members of the Leo Club. According to all the Leo’s that joined the bunt beaver program, it is fun and the kids always want you to come back to visit. Of course, a lot of the Leo’s are involved in other things, such as sports, so they can’t always come more than once a week. You stay after school from 2:30-3:30 and help the student or students. Sometimes you will help the teacher out with other tasks.

When you go to Precious Moments with seniors, you play board games, bingo, and do multiple different activities. Sometimes the seniors will color some pictures, and the Leo Club members will hang them up in the kindergarten section. “The seniors are always happy to see us again,” said Mr. Barnes the leader of the Leo’s. When the Leo’s go, they are socializing with the seniors and some seniors want to do different activities. It all depends on what the seniors want to do. The time for this program is from 1:00-3:00.

Each program is for a good cause. Each Leo who goes gets community service for the time being spent with the kindergartners, and seniors.The Leo’s are always doing good things for the community and to help others. Leo Club is a club in Beaver Local where anyone can join any time. All you have to do is go into the main office and look for a paper on the racks. Then stay after on Tuesday, or anytime that is good for you, and give Mr. Barnes the paper. Then you can start!

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YSU English Festival

Next week, the week of the 24-29, students in both the middle and high school levels will be participating in the 39th annual Youngstown State University English Festival. Students from schools in Mahoning, Trumbull, and Columbiana counties in Ohio, and Mercer and Lawrence counties in Pennsylvania, along with a few teacher chaperones, make the trip to YSU for this unique event. This year, the festival is held on Wednesday, April 26 for 10-12th grades and Thursday, April 27 for 7-9th grades. Each year, the Beaver Local School District takes a maximum of 30 students to the festival.

 

Even though the festival is not until the end of April, students participating still have a lot of work to do. Before anyone can take part, each grade level has a certain number of books that need to be read as well as quizzes that need to be taken. All books and their quizzes need to be completed two weeks prior to the festival. A week before the festival, a meeting will be held for all students going to YSU to pick up a map of the campus and their track letter, or schedule. Each “track” is designed to fulfill a student’s experience at the festival and, hopefully, be enjoyable for that student.

 

While each student’s schedule may be different, they are the same in some ways. All students begin the day together in Kilcawley Center for the “Welcome” speech. At about 11:30, students head to lunch and have around an hour to eat, socialize, or go to the bookstore. When the day is coming to an end, students meet back up with the rest of their classmates and chaperones for an awards ceremony in Kilcawley Center.

 

Awards that are given at the end of the day include not only those that are given for the activities students took part in that day but for the pre-festival activities. Pre-festival activities consist of the Candace Gay Memorial Essay Contest, English Festival Art Contest, and the Jeremy Salvner Memorial Music Contest. These pre-festival activities are not just contests, either. Each year, YSU invites guest speakers to talk to the students. This year’s speakers are authors E. Lockhart and Gene Luen Yang.
While English Festival may seem like a lot of work and boring, when you meet up with other schools on your designated day it is actually really fun and interesting. Not only do you get to compete for prizes and show off your writing skills, you get to meet new people and make new friends. Like my old English teacher used to say, don’t be afraid to make a fool of yourself because there’s a 99% chance that you will never see those people again.

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Beaver Local Hosts County Honors Band and Choir Performance

Pictured above are the Beaver Local Band and Choir

Thirty-five Beaver Local students will represent the school as the county band and choir comes to Beaver Local on Saturday, March 25. Fifteen Beaver Local band members made the cut to complete the 69 total members of the honors band. Our school has the most kids from any one school in the county representing the Beaver Local band and choir. Students from across the county spent their day at Beaver Local on Friday practicing their music. The actual performance is Saturday, March 25 at 2:00 at Beaver Local High School.

County Honors Band and Choir is a collaborative group of students from all across Columbiana County. They audition by performing a select piece of music in front of band directors and choir conductors for a seat. One of the main reasons our school is hosting this prestigious event is our brand new facilities. People from all across the county will come to see the Honors Band perform. This would not be possible without the guidance of Band Director Matt Newman and Choir Director Allison Hamilton.
Mr. Newman has done amazing work organizing and working to bring the county band to Beaver Local and show the county what Beaver Local has to offer. He has been Beaver Local’s Band director for a total of fifteen years, helping not only to fully represent Beaver Local’s pride in our school but also running the band as a respected program. He hopes to continue building Beaver Local’s band program to maintain the good our band is doing for our school and our community.

Mrs. Hamilton is known for her stunning choir performances and musicals. Her hard work and dedication is shown best by the wide array of students who participate in her program. She pulls out talent from all students who step into her classroom and onto her stage. Hosting the county choir concert gives Beaver Local a chance to show off the amazing music programs Mrs. Hamilton and Mr. Newman have built in our district.

Congratulations to the following students who were selected to participate in the county band and choir performances:

Hanna Fishback
Kendra Jackson
Kylie Kraus
Alex Gabbert
Roc Worth
Madeleine Schreffler
Ashlee Phares
Andrea Trotter
Konnor McCoy
Mikalya Shulas
Jeremy Balmenti
Traven Renner
Brandon Morgan
Alexis Cain
Lexi Merriman
Alec Post
Damien Emmert
Zak Pappas
Brady Duncan
Preston Crawford
Morgan Haddox
Kameron Griggs
Destiny Kay
Dean McPeek
Katrina Malcolm
Mike Guappone
Max McEndree
Hannah Braslawsce
Harley Smith
Grant Hall
Logan Kronstain
Hunter Moore
Jakub Tanner
Emma Palmer
David McCullough
Be sure to stop out to Beaver Local High School at 2:00 on Saturday, March 25 for the County Band and Choir Concert. It is sure to be an impressive show!
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Beaver Local’s Biggest Battle

Battle of the classes has been a competitive event at Beaver Local for many years now. Each grade level has their own team of representatives that participate in various strange and exciting games. The games are chosen by several teachers, and all students are able to sign up for the games. There has always been a small price to pay to see the Battle of the Classes each year, this year it will be one dollar, even participants. Class shirts are also being sold around the school by class representatives, most are 10 or 15 dollars. The games will take place March 23rd during sixth and seventh periods.

Each of the four classes must have representatives volunteer to take place in the events. No students can take place in more than one event, this is to prevent only several students participating. There are events for everyone though, most need about 4 people, and skin the snake requires eight participants. Some games require strength and speed, while others require strategy and technique.

There are two new games this year; skin the snake, and balloon buster. Other games that are being brought back are; drag race, tennis shoe relay race, baby bottle chug, dizzy bat, and the most popular of them all, the tug -O- war. Tug -O- war is worth the most points and is always the last and most competitive game. The other games are also important though, as each point is crucial before the final tally is taken. The winning class isn’t awarded with a trophy or prize, but bragging rights around the school.

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Prom 2k17

As the end of the school year approaches, so do many great events at Beaver Local. Among the many great events at our school, Prom is definitely at the top of the list. With the change last year of hosting prom right at the school, we are now moving back to the Stambaugh Auditorium in Youngstown this year. I met with Mrs. Speece, teacher and junior class advisor, to not only talk about this change but also on her hopes for prom this year.

With changing the location of prom yet again, many people are wondering why we made the move back to Youngstown. Speece said, “Going back to Youngstown is actually a little bit more pricey than having it at the school, but we are doing it for the students. We did compromise for the cost with small changes like taking school buses instead of charters. But our main goal is to make prom feel as special as we possibly can. We want to make a big difference between prom and the other dances.”. As excited as she is for prom, she also has mixed emotions. “As much as I loved the turnout and having prom at the school, having it away from the building is much less stressful not dealing with scheduling conflicts”.
With the theme for prom this year being “The Golden Age of Hollywood”, there is much to be excited about. The luxurious, romantic feeling they are going for should make for a very special night. “Buying a ticket to prom this year is like buying a ticket to the golden age” said Speece. Speece also managed to get a very impressive Dj for this year that everyone should be eager to see. The music and atmosphere aren’t the only things to be looking forward to this year. The menu this year has three delicious choices to suit anyone’s taste buds. You have your choice of steak, chicken teriyaki, or vegetarian pasta. Speece thinks this year will definitely be another huge turnout, as prom is by far Beaver Locals’ biggest event.
Prom this year should be an exciting and memorable event, as it always is, so you definitely don’t want to miss out. It will be on Friday, May 12th. If you are planning on bringing someone from another school, make sure you stop by the main office to get a permission form! Tickets are on sale until the 17th in Mrs. Speece’s room, so don’t forget to stop by!

 

 

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Rising Hope Raises Funds

Rising Hope Equine Center is hosting a fundraiser with The Pittsburgh Popcorn Company. Orders are due with payment by February 23 and will be delivered March 13. 

 

Rising Hope therapeutic center is in West Point Ohio, at Hoppel’s Arena with programs each June through July. Each session is different for everyone. Occasionally, Rising Hope does different fundraisers to help bring in money to facilitate activities for participants. Some of their fundraisers are Pittsburgh Popcorn sale, Hoppel Rodeo, and Princess Ball. Rising hope is currently doing their Pittsburgh Popcorn sale. Orders are due with payment by Februrary 23 and the popcorn will be delivered March 13. To order, contact Andrea Jarrett (email listed at the bottom of this page) or any other Rising Hope board member.  Hoppel Rodeo is from June 30th to July 1st. The Princess Ball is May 20th is at Beaver Local, and it is open to the community. Most of the money they make for these fundraisers goes toward Rising Hope Therapeutic Riding Center.

Rising Hope is a disability therapy center to help people with their disabilities.Patty Hoppel, equine specialist, and Andrea Jarrett, director at Rising Hope, noticed that there were not a lot of activities for their multi-handicap students for after school or during the summer. So, they wanted to give something to the families for their children to do something special while still working on learning goals and therapy goals. Many parents were interested, and the program blossomed. The parents loved the idea, and the children loved spending theme with the horses. Beaver Local students have been to get involved with Rising Hope as volunteers and participants. Even Beaver Local graduate and NFL player Derek Wolfe has been involved with Rising Hope Equine Center.

Mrs. Andrea Jarrett, who is a multiple disabilities teacher at Beaver Local, is also the director of Rising Hope. Some of the board members of Rising Hope are Patty Hoppel and Karen Sprouse, BL bus driver and cafeteria worker, Connie Smith, BL speech therapist, and Sue Stromp, BL ID teacher at, and Member of Outlaws with Attitude 4H club.

 

If you are interested in contributing to Rising Hope to help individuals with disabilities, please contact Andrea Jarret at andrea.jarrett@beaverlocal.org

 

To order, contact andrea.jarrett@beaverlocal.org

http://www.allreadable.com/02d8AqKE

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December’s Leo of the Month

Leo Member of the Month, Brandon Morgan

At the most recent Leo Club meeting (held February 2), freshman Brandon Morgan was named Leo of the Month for the month of December. Brandon is the type of guy to help you whenever you need it, so it’s no surprise that he enjoys helping out in his community. Out of the many projects that Leo Club has going on, Brandon is taking part in three of them: Buddy Beaver Mentoring, Precious Moments with Seniors, and the newest project, a free book fair for kindergarten students. The project that he has participated the most in, though, would be the Beaver Buddy Mentoring program.

The Beaver Buddy Mentoring program is where a Leo who has signed up to be a mentor gets their own kindergartener, or little buddy, to hang out with every Tuesday after school. When asked if he liked being a mentor for a kindergarten student, Brandon responded, “I absolutely love being a mentor for a kindergartener. Every time I walk into the kindergarten pod I get a smile on my face because I always hear the little kids having fun.” He also says that it feels good in his heart knowing that he’s helping a kindergartener out and potentially helping them make good choices. In fact, Brandon likes helping his kindergartener Alaina, who is in Mrs. Young’s class, out so much that he has started helping the rest of the class out as well.

After he graduates, Brandon wants to go to school and become a math teacher, but his work in the community will not cease as he plans on helping out as much as he can. When asked if he thinks being in Leo Club will help him in the future, he answered yes because “it’s helping me with my social skills as a person. The Leo Club is showing me to be myself and to never be afraid to do anything.” But it’s not just Leo Club teaching him these things. Brandon is also a proud member of the Beaver Local High School Rhythm in Red Show Choir and Concert Choir, both directed by Mrs. Alison Hamilton, and the chorus for the school’s 2017 production of “Grease,” also directed by Mrs. Hamilton alongside Mrs. Leslie Gabbert.

At the end of the day, Brandon is a hardworking young man who aspires to inspire others. Not only that, but he makes anyone he comes in contact with smile and laugh. With that being said, it seems very fitting to quote Mr. Barnes, Leo Club advisor, and say that Brandon is deserving of the title Leo of the Month.