Caleb Carver, second from right, speaks with students in the Marshalltown High School 4-H Club during a meeting on September 12.

The Marshalltown High School 4-H Club has returned for the third year at the school.

Leading the program are Caleb Carver from Iowa State University, Grisel Chavez and Norma Dorado-Robles from Iowa State University Extension, Meredith Goldman and Scott Johannes from Marshalltown High School and Karina Hernandez of Mid-Iowa Community Action (and recently elected to the school board).

While open to all students, the club is made up of primarily Latino/Latina students.

Carver said the club has a few main focus areas including citizenship, college and career readiness and community service.

The club volunteers at various events and activities throughout the year. The club meets twice a month, one meeting being a regular classroom meeting and the other being a group activity or volunteer outing.

Grisel Chavez of Iowa State University Extension speaks to the group of MHS students.

Students crowd around Lenihan teacher Marki Allensworth on Friday as they donate in a penny war to help victims of Hurricane Harvey. Lenihan raised $1,000 this week for hurricane victims.

Lenihan Intermediate School students collected more than $1,000 as part of the penny war at the school to donate to a school in Houston affected by Hurricane Harvey.

Many of the students have seen the hurricane coverage on the news and wondered how they could help. That sparked the idea of a penny war between different classes in the school going against each other to see which one could raise the most money.

“It’s a good team-building and leadership activity and it’s fun,” said Lenihan teacher Kate Niedermann, one of the organizers of the project. “It also makes the hurricane more real to them.”

The money will be donated to Wilson Intermediate School in Houston, which is located in a school district that current Lenihan teacher Joan Furjanic worked at previously.

“My friend at Wilson said they have some students who have nothing left,” Furjanic said.

Lenihan teacher Brandon Goldman accepts some change for the effort.

Longtime Marshalltown High School activities director and cross country coach Tim Bell, second from left, receives a plaque in his honor at the dedication of a new shelter house at the Marshalltown Community College cross country course. Also pictured, from left, Marshalltown Schools Superintendent Dr. Theron Schutte, Tim’s wife, Deanna Bell and MHS staff member Eric Weeden, who was the project manager of the shelter house.

A new shelter house for cross country on the campus of Marshalltown Community College was dedicated in honor of Tim Bell on September 7, 2017. Bell is a legendary Bobcat coach and athletic director.

Bell worked for Marshalltown Schools for 35 years before retiring in 2013. He spent 12 years as a junior high health teacher, nine years as high school assistant principal, and 14 years as athletic director.

He coached boys cross country for 32 years, as well as 9th grade boys basketball, high school girls track and junior high track. Bell coached 541 different cross country runners in his 32 years as coach, which is the longest tenure of any head coach of any sport in MHS history.

Bell’s family as well as many of his former cross country runners attended the event as did many other members of the public. Also recognized at the event was MHS staff member Eric Weeden, who led the project, and the donors who contributed to get the shelter built.

For a video of the event, click here.

Tim Bell, seated next to his dad, Bob Bell, with several of Tim’s former Bobcat cross country runners.

The new shelter house

Woodbury Elementary School second grade students are writing letters to a school in Houston to show their support after the devastation of Hurricane Harvey. Pictured are Maritza Barajas, left, and Javier Tellez Mendoza.

Second grade students in classes taught by Olivia Romero and Lorena Patlan at Woodbury Elementary School are showing their support for elementary students in Houston displaced by Hurricane Harvey.

The students are writing letters of support to students at De Chaumes Elementary School in Houston, as Patlan has a social media connection to a teacher there. The schools have a unique connection as both are dual language schools teaching English and Spanish.

“Many of our students saw the hurricane destruction on the news and then we talked about what we could do,” Patlan said. “They are excited to write the letters.”

Patlan said there are other benefits to this project as well. She said it’s a way for the students to practice their writing in Spanish and also goes well with their lesson of being a leader and being kind.

The teachers said they will hold off on sending the letters as the students are not yet in school as clean up efforts continue in Houston.

Woodbury second graders Kevin Ibanez, left, and Allison Rodriguez write letters to students in Houston.

Marshalltown High School junior Alyssa Sirdoreus is pictured in the MHS art room with her three-award winning pottery pieces from the Iowa State Fair. 

Marshalltown High School junior Alyssa Sirdoreus took home three ribbons from the Iowa State Fair for her 4-H entries of pottery she created at the school.

Sirdoreus received a blue ribbon first place and two red ribbon second place achievements for her ceramic work at the state fair.

Sirdoreus qualified for the state fair after being awarded for her entries at the Central Iowa Fair. She didn’t know about her state results until she visited the 4-H building at the fair in Des Moines and saw for herself.

“It was really exciting,” Sirdoreus said of seeing her awards.

She has completed two pottery classes at MHS and she said MHS pottery teacher Kirk Niehouse is one of her favorites. She said he teaches much more than art.

“He’s been there when I’ve had questions about other classes or about college,” Sirdoreus said. “He’s always willing to take the time to help me.”

Mr. Niehouse said Alyssa works hard and deserves the recognition.

“Alyssa has done a wonderful job in pottery,” Niehouse said. “She has only spent two semesters learning about ceramics and she is already an award-winning potter. The MHS art department is very proud to have Alyssa in our program and she is a great example of the students we have in our art program.”

Marshalltown High School Associate Principal Deb Holsapple and teacher Peter Nieland display college pennants that will be displayed in the hallways at the school. The pennants are from schools attended by teachers and other staff and meant to get students thinking about higher education options.

Visitors will notice college pennants on display in hallways throughout Marshalltown Schools this fall.

The idea came from Superintendent Dr. Theron Schutte, who saw a similar display at a school in Memphis, Tenn. The schools are displaying banners of the colleges and universities attended by teachers and staff members at each building.

It’s a way for staff to show their school pride, but the primary reason is to inspire students to see their options in higher education.

“The idea was for kids to see on a daily basis where they could go,” Dr. Schutte said.

Marshalltown High School Associate Principal Deb Holsapple took a list of all the colleges and universities attended by Marshalltown Schools staff and contacted the higher education institutions to have them send the pennants. She received hundreds of them as a result of the request.

“We want to let our students know there are lots of options out there,” Holsapple said.

For a video on the project, click here.

Lenihan Intermediate School Principal Kyle Young lets everyone know that he’s a Cyclone by the display of college pennants in the school.

Pennants on display at Hoglan Elementary School.

Pennants on display at Lenihan Intermediate School.

Ashley Harris is pictured sampling some chicken at a night market in Taiwan this summer. The 2015 Marshalltown High School graduate participated in a study abroad program through Iowa State University in Taipei. She is a chemical engineering major at ISU.

Harris studies abroad in Taiwan

To say the summer of 2017 was an adventure for Ashley Harris would be an understatement. But the adventure is far from over.

The 2015 Marshalltown High School graduate travelled to Taiwan as part of a study abroad program through Iowa State University this summer.

She is a chemical engineering major at ISU and her studies during her two months in Taiwan focused on helping a professor at Tatung University in Taipei with biodiesel fuel research. A side benefit was being able to sharpen her Mandarin Chinese language skills, which is one of her minors at ISU.

“I really like that I was able to overlap my major and my minor,” Harris said.

While in Taiwan, she also was able to soak in the culture and called it an “eye-opening” experience all the way down to the bamboo mat she used as a mattress in her dormitory.

“I love being able to open myself up to new things,” Harris said. “Learning different customs is a growing experience for me.”

Sister Cities Program
It’s not her first time that far from home as she also was a part of the Sister Cities journey with others from Marshalltown to Minami Alps, Japan in 2011. That visit occurred the summer before her freshman year at MHS. She was able to see the host family she stayed with then again this summer as part of her trip.

“To be able to go abroad at such a young age, that’s a good kick start right away,” Harris said.

Her time at MHS
From the Extended Learning Program to engineering classes through Project Lead the Way at MHS, Harris said the high school experience prepared her well for college. It even led her to figure out her passion, thanks to the teaching of MHS chemistry teacher Stephen Frese.

“He really led me to chemical engineering and helped me enjoy it,” Harris said of Frese. “He worked us hard.”

Experiencing the diverse student population at MHS also prepared her to be around a wide range of cultures.
‘That was very cool for me to grow up with that diversity,” Harris said.

Through the high school’s dual credit opportunities, as part of a partnership with Marshalltown Community College, Harris was able to earn 33 college credits before graduating from MHS.

MHS Extended Learning Program teacher Susan Fritzell said Ashley took advantage of the opportunities offered in Marshalltown Schools to grow her learning and is highly motivated to learn.

“Because she loves to learn and take on challenges, she’s going to have a successful career,” Fritzell said.

Overall, Harris said she had “a lot of great experiences academically” in Marshalltown Schools and she also was a state qualifier in golf during her time as a Bobcat.

“I definitely appreciate the opportunity I was given in Marshalltown,” she said.

What’s next?
For this next school year, Harris is once again hopping on a plane and this time landing in Shanghai, China. She will take a full course load on the Mandarin language as part of a scholarship program through the Chinese Consulate in Chicago.

“It’s one of those opportunities I could not turn down,” she said.

After her school year in China, she then figures she will have two more years left at Iowa State in chemical engineering. With a chemical engineering degree in hand and her grasp of Mandarin, she said she looks forward to where that can take her after graduation.

Ashley Harris is pictured outside the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei , Taiwan.

Taipei, Taiwan at night as photographed by Ashley Harris.

Leading the Marshalltown High School Bobcat Marching Band as drum majors this year are junior Kassie Wilkins and senior Moises Garcia.

Leading the tradition-rich Marshalltown High School Bobcat Marching Band as drum majors this year are senior Moises Garcia and junior Kassie Wilkins.

“Both drum majors have done an excellent job filling their leadership roles,” said MHS Director of Instrumental Music Brett Umthun.  “Each was selected based on an application process and a conducting audition.  They both exhibit confidence, a willingness to learn and great enthusiasm for leading the marching band.”

Wilkins said it’s a lot of responsibility, but “it’s definitely fun.”

This year’s show has a Latin music theme in the Carnival realm, which Wilkins said is shaping up well.

“We had a really good start during band camp,” Wilkins said.

Garcia called the job of drum major “pretty intense” as he tries to maintain the balance of keeping the band motivated and having fun at the same time. He said he’s excited about the show’s theme this year.

“There’s a lot of Latin culture and that’s what I love,” Garcia said. “Since I’m Latino that’s close to home for me.”

Marshalltown High School Associate Principal Deb Holsapple congratulates senior Molly Bach during the academic letter awards night held at MHS on August 23. Students who achieved a 3.5 grade point average or better the past two semesters were honored at the ceremony.

Marshalltown High School students were recognized for academic achievement during the academic letter awards night at the school on August 23.

Current students who achieved a grade point average of 3.5 or above for both semesters last school year were honored. A total of 181 students achieved this honor who are current sophomores through seniors.

The event also featured remarks from MHS Principal Jacque Wyant and Marshalltown Schools Superintendent Dr. Theron Schutte.

Prior to the awards, MHS junior Phoebe Osgood recited a poem which she wrote with MHS teachers Jocelyn Frohwein and Naomi Musal.

Below is the poem Phoebe recited.

The journey

By Jocelyn Frohwein, Naomi Musal and Phoebe Osgood

You may remember the time when you were small,
The first few steps you took in the school’s hall…
You may only remember the long nights,
The need to retain information for those classes that deemed it necessary to learn all…
You may remember the conversations in the hall,
The times that you delivered the speech in front of all…

What I hope you remember is the times that you spent.
The time that you grew so many new connections your head hurt.
What I hope you remember is the learning that happened.
The time that you deeply thought about the concepts in your classrooms and it clicked into place.
What I hope you remember is how you gained.
The time when the fact or problem that was out of reach was now within your hands to be molded and manipulated in new and exciting ways.

As you look to the new year and everything that you have before you….

Remember those long nights of studying and deep discussions about class… bring clarity.
Remember those meaningful conversations in the halls…bring memories.
Remember those struggles in the past that helped bring you here today.
Remember that this journey is only just starting and today is your day.

Congratulations on your Academic Achievements

A new cross country shelter house is under construction at the Marshalltown Community College cross country course. The shelter will be dedicated to former Marshalltown High School cross country coach Tim Bell at 3:30 p.m. on September 7 prior to a high school cross country meet.

The new cross country shelter house which honors longtime Marshalltown High School athletic director and cross country coach Tim Bell will be dedicated at 3:30 p.m. on September 7 at the Marshalltown Community College cross country course. All are welcome to attend. The dedication will be held prior to the 44^th annual Bobcat Cross Country Invitational, which starts at 4:30 p.m.

Tim Bell

Bell worked for Marshalltown Schools for 35 years before retiring in 2013. He spent 12 years as a junior high health teacher, nine years as high school assistant principal, and 14 years as athletic director.

He coached boys cross country for 32 years, as well as 9th grade boys basketball, high school girls track and junior high track. Bell coached 541 different cross country runners in his 32 years as coach, which is the longest tenure of any head coach of any sport in MHS history.

He is also a former MHS athlete and said he loved being a Bobcat in school and still considers himself a Bobcat.

“I had very special student athletes throughout the years,” Bell said. “My family is first and foremost, yet I still call all of my runners my boys.”

There will be a plaque at the shelter house when construction is complete signifying its dedication to Bell. Several people and companies donated to the project to make it a reality.