Tag Archives: Features

April 13, 2012 · 1:30 am

The Truth Behind Kony ’12

by: JoAnna Gunnufsen

Staff Reporter

A new generation of activism

On March 5, the world was first introduced to the KONY 2012 campaign through a 30-minute video on YouTube. Since that first upload, the video has had more than 100 million views and has sparked controversy on all types of social media.

If you haven’t seen it already, the video, which was created by the non-profit organization Invisible Children, describes the acts of Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony. For the past 30 years, Kony has been kidnapping children and turning them into sex-slaves and soldiers for the Lord’s Resistance Army, or the LRA. Since 1986, Kony and the LRA have abducted more than 30,000 children in northern Uganda.

Kony’s actions were not gone unnoticed. In 2005 the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Joseph Kony and the other leaders of the LRA. The video urges viewers to “make Kony famous” by telling others about the violence he has caused in Africa and asking policymakers and celebrities to show their support of the effort.

When I first watched the video, I was skeptical. The film was well-made and obviously designed to stir up sentimental emotions in its viewers. In one of the scenes, Russell, creator of the film, tells his young, blonde-haired, bright-eyed son about what Kony is doing in Africa. His son seems surprised that someone as harmful as Kony could not be captured. Certainly, if a cute kid knows that Kony is doing wrong, we should try to put a stop to it. Don’t get me wrong; Kony’s actions are undoubtedly wrong. However, this kind of emotional appeal is deceptive and makes the cause seem less credible.

I decided that if I was going to support the KONY 2012 campaign, I needed to do my fair share of research. Apparently, the video distorted a few key facts about Joseph Kony and the LRA. The video failed to mention that Kony was no longer in Uganda. While Kony has not been captured, the LRA left Uganda for good at the start of 2006. The LRA has dwindled in numbers and strength, but they now carry out their attacks in the regions of northeastern Congo, South Sudan, and Central African Republic. The LRA reached its peak in 1999, with over 4,000 active troops in Uganda. However, the Ugandan government estimates that there are now only around 400 LRA fighters left.

The video portrays Joseph Kony as a new villain among the world’s most dangerous war criminals. The video begins with this sentence printed across the screen: “Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come.” If Kony has been working with the LRA for almost 30 years, why hasn’t Invisible Children been trying to stop him before now? Certainly, this video should have been released years ago.

On April 4, a second video was released by the same organization who created KONY 2012. “KONY 2012: Part II – Beyond Famous” has received a little over a million views, which is a mere one-tenth of the views of the original video. It’s not posted all over your Facebook newsfeed, and it has received little media attention. However, this video changed my entire perspective on the KONY 2012 campaign, and I ask that you watch it. The second video explains, with more depth, how Invisible Children is working to stop Kony and the LRA. It relies less on emotion and more on the true facts. Instead of looking at the campaign with criticism, I saw it for what it was. Invisible Children is not trying to find a single solution to a complex problem. They are simply trying to remind others of the inhumane violence that still occurs in the world. Whether it be in our own country or the heart of Africa, this kind of ruthless violence should not be tolerated.

Why don’t we admire this effort? It shows the capacity of our generation to fight for justice and equality. We are a new generation, willing to look past social and racial barriers to create positive change. However, the initial criticism of the campaign also shows our ability to research, investigate, and decide our own opinions about important issues.

On April 20, you have the choice to participate in KONY 2012’s “Cover the Night” event. Take a stance for something you believe in, and act on it.

STUDENTS SOUND OFF

“I’m glad that Invisible Children is making an effort to stop Joseph Kony.” - Lucy Robinson, 10th grade

 “There are more important issues to focus on, and we should have been trying to stop Kony a few years ago.” - Ashton Beightol, 11th grade

“I think the Youtube video is really cool, and I like that it shows awareness about what’s going on in other places besides our hometown.” - Lace Clark, 12th grade

“I hope to make a difference by getting a group of friends together to put up flyers on April 20th.” - Rohini Malkani, 11th grade

“The government has been trying to stop Kony for years. Americans are just now getting involved.” – Dylan Carpenter, 12th grade

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· 1:30 am

Warriors Take a Bow Presents Snow White

by: Morgan Guess

Staff Reporter

From the classroom to center stage, Oak Grove’s community-based classes continue to enchant the students and faculty that have the privilege of working with them. For the second year in a row, Warriors Take a Bow has had the opportunity to put on a play which they then performed in for their fellow peers and beloved families. This year they did a production of Snow White and the Eight Dwarves on March 22. The play was performed in the morning for all of the special education students at the primary and elementary schools and then in the evening for everyone else. The turn out was around 300-350 people who came to support – far more in attendance than last year’s play.

Prince Charming (Allen Jones) and Snow White (Amber Williams) perform “the kiss” scene in their recent performance of Snow White and the Eight Dwarves. / Photo by Raven Jones

The idea for Snow White was sparked at the end of last year’s play, The Wizard of Oz. Amber Williams, a student in the community-based class, requested that they do Snow White because the story is her favorite. The rest of the class thought it was a great idea because it gave all the special education students a chance to have a part and become involved. Williams’s dream has always been to play Snow White. “I love her, and I love her dress,” Williams said. After she was chosen to play Snow White, it wasn’t long before the other students chose their parts as well. Allen Jones, who played Prince Charming in the play, said, “Dancing with Snow White was my favorite!”

The students of the community-based classes worked a long and hard two months for the play to come together. “It’s a huge collaboration project; everyone helps,” teacher Stacey Todd said. There were a lot of people who helped make the production possible. According to teacher Carmen Swilley, who helped make the majority of the props, said that the hardest part for the students was learning their lines. “Once they memorized the lines, the hardest part was saying them loud enough,” Swilley said. Many general education students volunteered to help with the play. They dressed in all black to blend in with the stage curtain and stayed close behind the actors in case they needed to whisper lines to them or to help them stay in character. “Our stage hands really made the show,” Swilley said.

Since this is the second year they have put on a play, the special education teachers were able to improve from last year’s trials and errors and produce an excellent show. Todd said her favorite part about doing the play is watching everything come together. “There are so many people that helped make this possible: Ms. Swilley, Sydney Sanders, who is the Junior Civitan Club president, Ms. Hogue, and many, many more,” Todd said.

As far as next year’s play goes, “I keep thinking bigger,” Ms. Todd, who was recently named Lamar County Teacher of the Year, said. “I’m hoping next year to maybe do Aladdin or Robin Hood to give the play a male lead,” Todd said. The community can’t wait to see what surprises are in store for the classes’ play for next year.  Nothing can stop these kids from shooting for the stars. “Eventually we’ll be at the Saenger Theater,” Todd said.

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· 1:30 am

One Rev 2012

PEDAL FASTER
and get pumped about making a difference

One Revolution will be a day when students drive to the Optimist Park to gather together to walk or ride their bikes, scooters, battery powered golf carts, or any other non gas-poweredforms of transportation to school to bring awareness to the rising gas prices and pressing environmental issues. April 27th, Buy a T-shirt for $10, and participate in spirit day.

 

by: Allison Slusher

Staff Reporter

Teachers vs. Gas Prices

Gas prices affect everyone, including commuting teachers. After some teachers were questioned, they admitted that gas prices have affected their travel plans. While gas prices continue to rise, teachers are left with the price of gas becoming an unecessary burden. Some teachers have even claimed that the amount of money they pay commuting to school is just shy of their salary. Teachers, like many other U.S. citizens, are waiting to see a change in gas prices, but as summer approaches, they are left to manage with what they have until they know exactly what they will have to work with budget-wise this summer.

Students vs. Gas Prices

Teachers aren’t the only ones who are dealing with the current gas prices. According to a survey conducted by The Warrior Beat staff, 52% of student drivers surveyed at Oak Grove pay for their own gas. Some of those students even admitted to paying upwards of $180 on gas each month. However, 61% of students surveyed said they carpool with other drivers in order to cut down on the amount of gas they use.  As gas prices continue to rise, though, students said that they would consider changing their travel plans, if they haven’t already, to accommodate their gas budgets. One thing, however, is certain: students are eager to see if gas prices will continue to increase or if the prices could make a historical decrease as summertime approaches. For that, the students will simply have to be patient to receive their answers.

LCSD vs. Gas Prices

There is one group that cannot be forgotten when determining how gas prices truly affect the community. That group is the Lamar County School District. With 130 bus routes and about 5,500 students being transported, there is no doubt that fueling costs loom over the county budget. Since the beginning of the school year, the school district has purchased 20 loads of diesel with each load containing 7,500 gallons of fuel. This means that 20 loads with 7,500 gallons each over eight months comes to a grand total of 18,750 gallons of fuel a month. With an average cost of gas at $3.51 per gallon, the district budget for fuel comes to a total of $65,812 per month. This year, $369,000 have been set aside for fuel costs, making up 38.8% of the county’s Transportation and Maintenance budget and a little less than one percent of the county’s entire budget. As gas prices continue to rise, there is no doubt that the fuel budget will need to increase as well, causing our county officials to be left wondering how we can attempt to pay for this necessity without having to take away from other important funds in the district.

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March 2, 2012 · 12:30 pm

Eliminating the R word

by: Nan Buti

Staff Reporter

“I pledge and support the elimination of the derogatory use of the r-word from every day speech and promote the acceptance and inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities.” This pledge represents the Jr. Civitan club’s motives in the new campaign project of eliminating the r-word. The club has taken action to prevent students at school as well as citizens in the community from using the r-word in any negative case. “At OGHS, we respect all of our students. The Jr. Civitan club has worked hard this year to include students with disabilities into school-wide activities. As a club, we decided that we wanted to take that inclusion a step further. The word ‘retarded’ when used as a derogatory insult is hurtful to those with disabilities, even when it is not aimed at them. We want to make people aware of the harmfulness of this terminology,” said Stacey Todd, community-based teacher. The nationwide campaign “Spread the Word to End the Word” encourages people to visit its online site and pledge to avoid using the r-word. March 7, 2012 is the official National Pledge Day. The Jr. Civitan club will have students involved in this day by signing a banner and pledges during lunch. The Jr. Civitans will also hand out awareness supplies and will be selling armbands for $1 to wear spirit shirts on March 23, which is a home baseball game against Hattiesburg. To support the community’s Association for the Rights of Citizens with Developmental Disabilities (ARC), the Jr. Civitan club will donate proceeds from the sale of armbands. The Jr. Civitan club has done numerous deeds in aiding and contributing to the community’s special needs and programs. “The OGHS Jr. Civitan club was created as a way to allow students with and without disabilities to work alongside each other to serve our school and community. We have done several projects this year that benefitted the special education classes in our district, the ARC, and the Abbie Rogers Civitan Camp,” said Todd. This is the first school year the Jr. Civitan club has proposed the campaign, since this is the chartering year for the organization. The goal for this year is to persuade students at Oak Grove to pledge against using the r-word. Next year’s goal is to spread the movement to other schools and within the community.  “We hope to build on this annually and make a difference in our city,” said Todd. The Jr. Civitan club has been successful in turning commitments into actions. On October 5, 2010, President Obama signed S. 2781, Rosa’s Law.

This law requires the federal government to replace the term “mental retardation” with “intellectual disability” in federal education, health, and labor laws. The law is named after Rosa Marcellino who is nine years old and was born with Downs syndrome. Rosa’s mother, Nina Marcellino was moved to advocate stripping the r-word from legislation when Rosa was referred to as having “mental retardation” in her education plan in elementary school. Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski introduced the bill last November.
Rosa’s mother and other parents were successful in getting Maryland legislation passed in April 2009 that eliminated the r-word from that state’s legislation. Senator Mikulski modeled the federal bill on the Maryland law.

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· 12:30 pm

Student strives to make a difference at OGHS

by: Brittain Allgood

Staff Reporter

Senior Bailey Jones is hoping to leave a mark at Oak Grove High School through her Senior Exhibition of Achievement project. She has decided to begin a peer mentoring group particularly for new students. Jones has seen a struggle in our school for new kids who are just trying to fit in. “I know that if I were a new student, I would be completely intimidated by, not only the size of the school, but also the already well-established cliques that we are all fully aware of,” Jones said. It is not easy to switch schools and basically start all over, and it is especially not easy to jump into a new high school, where most of the students have grown up with the friends they already have.
The peer mentoring group will be beneficial to new students. Not only will they receive a tour of the school from a different perspective, but they will also receive a new friend. Rather than just getting a tour around the school from Mr. Folkes or any of the other principals or counselors and then simply thrown into the jungle that we call high school, the students will be able to have another student’s insight on how things work at Oak Grove. The members of the peer mentoring group will be able to tell the new students their opinions on teachers, what not to do in certain classes, Oak Grove traditions, things to do on weekends, and answer any further questions that they may have. These students would even be available to walk new students to their classes or sit with them at lunch. The main goal is for the new student to automatically feel welcome and start their first day at Oak Grove with a new friend and a positive outlook on high school.
Jones’s mentor, Mrs. Dot Palmer is a counselor at Oak Grove Primary and feels that this project could really benefit the high school: “I have not known Bailey very long, but in the amount of time that I have gotten to know her, I have been able to see a determined and responsible young lady. I know that this project means so much to her, and I know that it will not only impact others, but her as well.” In correlation with her project, Jones wrote her research paper on the effects of bullying and the psychological motivations behind it. She feels very passionate about this project because she has been in the same shoes as have many other new students. “I chose this project because I moved around a lot as a kid, and I know how it feels to be ‘the new girl’. I came to Oak Grove in the seventh grade, and it was tough back then. I can only imagine how hard it would be to be ‘the new kid’ as a high school student.”
Jones has not set a date for when the group will become official, but she has high hopes that this project will continue for years to come. She is also brainstorming the possibility of the group members, consisting of mainly seniors, juniors, and some sophomores, to have a day before each school year starts to show the upcoming freshmen around the campus and give them some useful tips. “High school is cruel, but my goal for the group is to help make the experience here at Oak Grove easier for the newcomers,” Jones said.

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February 3, 2012 · 1:49 pm

Mr. Conrad: More than a Maintenance Man

by: Amelia Passer

Direct morning traffic: Check. Fix Mrs. Hedgepeth’s Promethean board: Check. Disable fire alarm: Check. Change light bulb in the cafeteria: Check. These are just a few of the many responsibilities Mr. Conrad Preston has to accomplish day to day. For Preston, being the Warriors’ maintenance guy is not only a job but also a responsibility.
Preston is in charge of all maintenance required at the school. Whether air conditioning or lights – basically, anything electrical – Preston knows how to fix it. Because of all of his many responsibilities, Preston is on-call for repairs even after he goes home in the afternoons. Every morning from 7:45-8:15, he directs traffic, and then he’s on call for various tasks throughout the day. “Each day is different,” he said. “You can’t plan a day here. You never know what’s going to happen.”
We’ve all seen Preston roaming the halls or in classes, working his handy man skills. No matter what he’s doing, though, he’s doing it with a friendly smile. “He’s so professional that he never let’s what’s going on in his life affect his work,” Mrs. Shauna Hedgepeth said.
“He’s the type of person that does things without receiving credit. He does what he does because he loves it, not because of the money,” senior Chris Franovich said.
When Preston has even a minute of down time, he’s looking for something he can do. “Sometimes he’ll poke his head in my class, look around, and make sure there’s nothing he can help me with,” Hedgepeth said. “I’ve known Mr. Conrad since I started Oak Grove, and I can confidently say he is one of the most selfless people on campus.”
Born and raised in Sumrall, Preston started his job as the maintenance guy at Oak Grove in 1996 after finishing his job in the military working with maintenance. When he first began, he was at the primary school where he handled maintenance until he switched up to the high school in August 2008, after 12 years. Because of this, Preston has been able to see kids from when he worked at the Upper and Lower elementary schools grow up. This will be his fourth year at the high school, making the class of 2012 the first and only year that Preston will be with a class all 12 years. He says that’s his favorite part about Oak Grove: “It’s like I’ve followed them up here,” he said. It’s true – Preston knows everyone. Anytime he passes a student, he can’t stop without smiling or saying ‘hello’. “He’s one of the select few individuals that have been with us and watched us grow,” Franovich said.
Outside of his work at Oak Grove, Preston is a freelance photographer, one of his favorite hobbies. When he needs a break, he enjoys riding his motorcycle.
Whether working at Warrior territory, shooting pictures, or taking a ride, Preston is always smiling. The class of 2012 has been greatly impacted by Preston’s presence throughout their 13 years of school. To students he’s not only the maintenance guy but also someone who can always be counted on. “He wants everything to work for the kids, and it’s those little things that make my job easier,” Hedgepeth said. Since his first day on the job, Preston has been a huge asset to the faculty. Whether he is working on the light fixtures in the main hall or changing the air conditioner filters in classrooms, Preston will continue to enrich the lives of everyone at Oak Grove. Be a role model for the students: Check.

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December 9, 2011 · 12:00 pm

Beauties and Beau take stage

By: Julie Robinson
Staff Reporter

This year the choral department added a twist to their annual Beauty Revue fundraiser;

beauties and beaus, left to right: Christina Kemp, Hugh Ford, Vaeda Mann, Isaiah Spencer, April Carr, Nikolay Drake

the formally dressed ladies were escorted by handsome gentlemen from their grades. All of the ladies looked beautiful, but even they would agree that the boys were the stars of both Revues.

beauties and beaus, left to right: Caitlynn Broome, Garrett Himes, Amber Pineda, Colton McMurry, Sarah Rubelowsky, and John Lee

The Revues were at the OG Primary PAC, which was packed both nights. Christina Bostick emceed both nights, and the Golden Spirits choreographed and rehearsed a dance they taught the beaus to perform for the evening’s entertainment.The dancers

beauties and beaus, left to right: Brandon Atkins, Alli Kate Ross, Kayleigh Henry, Picasso Nelson, Erica Lewis, Bailey Weathers

were graceful despite their inexperienced counterparts.

Ninth grade Most Beautiful was Vaeda Mann, and the Beauties were Christina Kemp and April Carr. The ninth grade Most Handsome was Hugh Ford, and the Beaus were Nickolay Drake and Isaiah Spencer. The tenth grade Most Beautiful was Kayleigh Henry, and the Beauties were Erica Lewis and Alli Kate Ross. The tenth grade Most Handsome was Picasso Nelson, and the Beaus were Brandon Atkins and Bailey Weathers. The 11th grade Most Beautiful was Amber Pineda, and the Beauties were Sarah Rubelowsky and Caitlynn Broome. The 11th grade Most Handsome was Colton McMurry, and the Beaus were Garrett Himes and John Lee.

beauties and beaus, left to right: Brittain Allgood, Trey Garraway, Steven Swindle, Taylor Nace, Cort Brinson, Torie Nguyen

The 12th grade Most Beautiful was Taylor Nace, and the Beauties were Torie Nguyen and Brittain Allgood. The 12th grade Most Handsome was Steven Swindle, and the Beaus were Trey Garraway and Cort Brinson.

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November 4, 2011 · 12:00 pm

Choral department welcomes Dale to the stage

by: Laura Prehn

One thing that sets Oak Grove  apart from other schools in the  district is the number and  quality of the extracurriculars,  and no one knows this better  than the members  of the choral  department. Even non-choral  students enjoy hearing and  seeing the choir perform the  “Alma Mater” in the rotunda,  the “National Anthem” at  football  games, and the show  choir performance in the gym at  the end of the year. As a result,  all students are impacted by the installment of new choir director, Darren Dale,  and the new vision he has for the department.

Darren Dale is the youngest of five children, all of whom were involved in choir and show choir in high school. Watching his oldest sister perform with her high school  show choir for the first time sparked his love of music at age six. Dale attended Clinton High School and followed in the footsteps of his siblings by joining the Clinton  Attaché show choir. His favorite part of Attaché, he explained with a smile, was the trips. Dale’s first plane flight and first trip to Disney World both occurred while  traveling to show choir competitions. “It was a great opportunity to travel and see things that I otherwise may not have seen,” Dale said.

Dale went on to attend Mississippi Delta Community College and Mississippi College, where he majored in pre-dentistry for two years before switching his major to  marketing. He worked at a bank for a year after graduating college. Dale then returned to Mississippi College to pursue a degree in his original interest: music education.  Dale then accepted the position of choir director at Opelika High School, and, although he enjoyed the job, he struggled with the upkeep of the large and still growing  choral program. After five years, Director Darren Dale began looking for a new job opportunity.

But why would a director come all the way from Opelika, Alabama, to Hattiesburg, Mississippi? As fate would have it, Dale’s parents live next door to Principal Wayne Folkes’s sister in Clinton, Mississippi. So, he took the job at Oak Grove, eager for the challenge of creating another award-winning show choir. But the OGHS Centerstage! show choir is in for a few major changes. Dale has already announced that he plans to bump the group up a division for competition season. His biggest goal? To replicate his own high school show choir experience for the students at Oak Grove. “At my high school show choir, every single time we performed, I felt like I was completely ready. There were never any regrets. And, what the result was didn’t matter because we had reached our goal of putting on a successful show,” Dale said.

While Dale looks forward to facing off against what he calls “the big dogs” of the show choir world this February, the  students  themselves are nearly as eager as their director. After polling a few of the members to share their opinions of the bold new director, four-year member Markos Williams said, “I love Mr. Dale! He has a great sense of humor.” Carley Robertson, senior, is optimistic about her second and final year performing with Centerstage! “Even though it’s different for us, I love Mr. Dale and think we’ll have a good year,” she said confidently.

Dale’s first event as director of the Oak Grove choral department will be the Fall Show on December 8th and 9th at the Oak Grove Primary School PAC. The concert choir, show choir, and women’s choir will be featured at the concert.

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· 12:00 pm

Oak Grove opens arms to welcome international community

by: Austin Heusser

   What is life like as a foreign exchange student at Oak Grove? From all around the world, high schoolers have come together at the home of the Warriors; many come to experience a cultural difference, and others come to see what it’s like to go to school in America. While these exchange students gain valuable cultural knowledge, the rest of the student body receive an inside view on what it is like to be from a different country surrounded by different people.

  Exchange students walked into a welcoming atmosphere here at Oak Grove at the begining of the school year. When asked what her favorite thing about going to school in America was, Anais Lecoq, exchange student from Belgium noted, “I would have to say that my favorite thing about going to school here is how friendly the people are. In Belgium if you are new to a school, people don’t talk to you, but in America people try to be your friend; they approach you and make you feel welcome.” While these students are at the school, they get an inside view on what life is like in the United States. They get to go to school, have classes, hang out, and talk to people their own age from a different country.
In many countries such as Belgium, Brazil, the Netherlands, and Germany, students don’t have the freedom to choose their classes; rather, they are assigned core classes. These classes are usually very strict and difficult. Aside from the academic and cultural differences, the extracurricular activities of these countries are different from the United States. “One of the major differences between the schools in the United States and my school in Brazil is sports. In Brazil, sports are not part of school. Instead of playing sports at school, we join community leagues,” Caio Moura, soccer player from Brazil, said.  Transportation methods also differ. In the United States, juniors and seniors usually enjoy the freedom of driving their vehicles to school every morning; however, many teenagers in other countries do not enjoy the same luxury. “In Germany no one drives to school. You are not allowed to drive until you are 18. In addition, there are no school buses in Germany; instead, you either ride your bike to school or take public transportation,” Nils Hagenmueller, tenth grader from Germany, remarked.
So has this Blue Ribbon school truly lived up to the cultural experience expected? When asked what he thought of his experience here, Moura stated, “I really enjoy going to school in America. The people here are really nice and welcoming, and the school system offers its students many choices. I love going to school at Oak Grove. It has been a great educational and cultural experience.” The student body has truly shown the Star School spirit by accepting these foreign exchange students into their Warrior clan.

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September 4, 2009 · 12:35 pm

Price: from counselor to principal

By: Kent McCarty

Former counselor and new assistant principal Helen Price graduated from Oak Grove after many years as a star basketball player and cheerleader. As an adult she has held a variety of jobs in many fields. From her start as a certified dental assistant, Price eventually held jobs as a youth minister, baseball umpire, and Director of Region 11 Mental Health before going back to school to get her degree in education. “I was drawn into education by my time as Director of Region 11 Mental Health. That job put me in schools a lot, and I found I loved to work with children. So I went back to school and was then offered a great job at McComb,” Price said. After several years at McComb, she moved to Oak Grove, where for 6 years she’s counseled about 300 students with last names between letters A and C. Her vast array of occupations has made Price accustomed to change. So when former assistant principal John Taylor transferred to East Marion High School, Price jumped at the opportunity to fill the vacant spot.

Though the new job has been full of changes, it’s nothing Price can’t handle. “It’s very exciting in an overwhelming kind of way,” Price said. Perhaps the latest chapter in her adult life is made easier by the fact that she hasn’t totally left counseling behind. “In my new position, I’m over academics and counseling. So I not only get to work with a much larger group of students, but I also get to work with the teachers. It’s the best of both worlds.” One thing Price is looking forward to most, in fact, is the work she’ll get to do with teachers. “This is the first time I’ve been able to really work one-on-one with the teachers of our school. I’ll be getting involved with the makeup of their cirriculum over the

next year.”

As a hardworker, Price has set many goals she wants to accomplish during her first year as an administrator. One of

her primary goals involves the newly reorganized collaborative team meetings. “I want to play a big role in collaborative team meetings and help them be the best they can be. They do a lot to enhance student learning, and that’s something I’m determined to do this year,” Price said.

With the first month in her new job behind her, Price remains excited about the next year, and years to come. “I’m truly honored to serve Oak Grove. We have such a great reputation in academics and athletics, and we’re on top in so many ways. I’m blessed to be a part and be able to put my 2 cents in to try and make a difference in any possible way.

Her only complaint: “Parking lot duty isn’t my favorite, but it’s just something I’ll have to get used to!”

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