As many of you are aware, the Mustang Post has gone through massive change between this year and the last. Along with factors mentioned below, we also have a new journalism instructor with several new students joining the program. However, despite the challenges that come with such a program refresh, our success has clearly outweighed the difficulties.
With the help of Mr. Lang, we have an all-new website with flexibility that allows us to make quick edits, transforming how quickly we can react for necessary changes to both the websites and articles. The page looks great to boot! Secondly, we have moved our focus to PDF digital prints in order to give the utmost professional feeling experience to any reader on a digital device, with the continued option to read through the web-site directly. This flexibility has been fantastic for our own editing and creativity alike and will continue to allow us to make the best content possible.
Finally, we have monumental growth to our social media, particularly our Instagram account, growing well over a thousand followers in just one school year. Especially with the help of our student body, this is one of our most notable platforms, and certainly one I enjoy viewing. Although we have had to adjust and adapt over this school year, the Mustang Post and its associate programs continue to thrive now more than ever.
We thank you for a fantastic school year and cannot wait to start producing video journalism content yet again!
Near the end of women’s history month, the graphic design and history classes here at Sheyenne have collaborated to create a wall of “Women Who Rock!” to highlight the amazing accomplishments women have done throughout history. In a time where things are still not equal for both men and women in America, as well as in other parts of the world, it is important to take the time to acknowledge women who have taken a stand to make the world a more equitable and fair place.
The classes and teachers involved in this group project are Photography and Graphic Design teacher Mrs. Baxter and AP Euro and US History teacher Ms. Ott.
Ms. Ott, as a teacher involved in this project, said that “Women Who Rock!” was important to her because she “wanted to include more diverse representation in [her] classroom.” Before Ms. Ott reached out to Ms. Baxter “the wall started out as black and white basic pictures of these women in American and European history” the content to which she teaches. To include a bit more “jazz” to the wall Mrs. Ott thought it would be a great idea to reach out to Ms. Baxter and her Graphic design class for assistance.
Ms. Ott notes in her interview that “Ms. Baxter and her students were the ones who did all the great work” as she continued to go on about the creative liberty they took with this project.
Ms. Baxter, Sheyenne’s graphic design teacher, states, “The focus on the project is to design historical posters about women who have made significant impacts on society” and this project was largely focused on being “informative [and] capture the viewer’s attention for a short amount of time.” In addition, beyond the research involved in the project students also relied on ”using Adobe InDesign, [and] their past knowledge and skills of Illustrator and Photoshop.” Therefore, this project, while collaborative between departments, was also a reflection of the students’ acquired skills throughout their time in Ms. Baxter’s class where they developed their page layout and technological skills while achieving substantiated research.
Regarding the collaboration with Ms. Ott, Ms. Baxter states, “The process of working with Ms. Ott went smoothly and well. Ms. Baxter hopes to “collaborate with another class or teacher [to] give my all my students as much real-life experience as possible.” Those real-life experiences for the Graphics 1 students focus on “ working with a client” which is “especially important in the graphic design and photography field since the norm is being in frequent communication with a customer.”
Concerning her individual involvement in the project, Ms. Baxter states, “[she] was the middle woman” and “chose [her] Graphics 1 class as the students to create these posters.” During this process the students were allowed a lot of creative freedom “The facts about these women could be designed however the student wished”. Even with this freedom Ms. Baxter maintained that their goal “was to communicate information, but also [create] something that would grab the viewer’s attention to make them pause and really observe it.” This is why Ms. Baxter required that the students “needed to include a photo of the person, their birth and death lifespan, as well as 3-5 facts about them that changed or impacted society.
Overall, the collaborative effort between these two departments at Sheyenne certainly worked well. Not only did this project provide a great learning opportunity for the Graphic Design students who were involved. but now every student and staff member can acknowledge the significant work of these accomplished women. Sheyenne should be proud to have teachers such as Ms. Baxter and Ms. Ott, who are determined to shine a light on the underrepresented sex in this country.
There are many things to celebrate about our senior 2022 class at Sheyenne High School. They have worked hard to become the people who they are today and will go into their future with lasting memories from their time at Sheyenne. Sricharan Kotala, Sherry Yan, and Michael Nhial are some of the outstanding seniors who have made a great impact at Sheyenne.
Sricharan Kotala is on the Sheyenne Speech Team, Sheyenne Student Council, National Honor Society, Sheyenne Debate, Student Congress, Swimming, Track, Cross Country, and the president of HOSA. After high school, Sricharan plans to attend the University of Minnesota Twin Cities to study Sports Medicine or Orthopedics. His favorite quote to live by is “Just Do It.”
Sherry Yan is a member of the Sheyenne Speech Team, Student Congress, Student Council, Sheyenne Chamber Orchestra, and The National Honor Society Volunteering. Sherry also participates in Dance, Piano, Violin, Guitar, and takes Chinese lessons. After High School, she plans to attend a college in California to pursue a career in Computer Science (HCI) with a minor in liberal arts. Sherry’s favorite quote is “Be you. Do you. For you.”
Senior Michael Nhial is a leader and inspiration to many of his peers. He is on the National Honor Society and dominates on the court while playing basketball for Sheyenne. Mike was named “Senior Athlete of the Year” in the Eastern Dakota Conference (EDC). Once he graduates, Mike would like to attend college to play basketball. He would also like to be accepted into a pre-med program. Mike’s favorite quote to live by is “Be the best at everything you do.”
When you think of science, many think of genetics, evolution, or even how sound travels. Mr. Klaman, a biology and physical science teacher, has been educating students on these things for 22 years.
Prior to his time at Sheyenne, Klaman attended Dickinson State University for a year and later transferred to North Dakota State University (NDSU) where he completed his studies.
Before becoming a teacher, Mr. Klaman was interested in chemical engineering, but then chose a different path towards civil engineering. He made another switch to exercise science before finally landing on teaching.
With his experience in exercise science, Mr. Klaman used his athletic training degree at Cheney Middle School to help their athletic program.
If Mr. Klaman was not teaching, his dream job would be a food cart vendor. His reasoning behind this includes being able to travel around the city to see new places every week.
Mr. Klaman, his wife, and three daughters.
His love for traveling does not only involve being a theoretical food cart vendor. Mr. Klaman has visited many places, his favorites being New York City, Guatemala, and Banff, Canada.
Some of his other favorite things are reading, card games, and spending time with family at the lake. He describes his ideal day as a bright, sunny day on the water with a breeze light enough to cool the 85-degree air but still perfect for time on the boat. As the day winds down, it would be wrapped up with a campfire and some hotdogs to roast.
After a long season of competing the Sheyenne Debate team was able to get second place at state last month, its highest ranking thus far and officially giving them a sweepstakes award. The road to their success this year could have been predicted by their strength this season.
Davies Debate Tournament
At their first meet at the Davies Debate Tournament, the Sheyenne Debate team saw in Lincoln-Douglas Division 1 Aubrey Phillips winning 2nd place and in Public Forum Division 2 Hosna Dawlaty and Vidyaa Lav winning 2nd place.
“Honestly its the people I get to spend time with that makes debate worth it”- Vidyaa Lav
Bismarck Legacy Debate Tournament
Next at their second meet at Bismarck Legacy High School, the team had a champion and a runner-up, with Keona Munowenyu winning 2nd place in Lincoln Douglas Division 1 and Morgan Downs winning 1st place in Lincoln Douglas Debate Division 2.
Grand Forks Debate Tournament
Again this team showed promise at the Grand Forks Debate Tournament with Jacquelyn and Tatum taking 5th place in Public Forum Division 2, Hosna and Vidyaa taking 3rd in Public Forum Division 2, and lastly Sadie taking 3rd place in Lincoln Douglas Division 1.
“I would recommend debate to others because it’s fun, it’s not difficult and the people make it enjoyable.” -Sadie Bovkoon
Fargo South Debate Tournament
The progress continued at the first two-day tournament at Fargo South High school with the team taking two championships away from the tournament. Hosna and Vidyaa took first in Public Forum Division 2, Morgan took first in Lincoln Douglas Division 2!
Sheyenne Debate Tournament
To end off the first half of the season before the resolutions for January and February were released the Sheyenne Debate team hosted their tournament. Placing in their events were Eli and Ella in Public Forum Division 2 getting 2nd place and Sadie in Lincoln Douglas Division 1 winning 2nd
The topics debated in the January through February portion of the season changed to the following subjects. For Lincoln Douglas the topic resolution debated was now “The appropriation of outer space by private entities is unjust” and for Public Forum the resolution debated was now “The United States federal government should legalize all illicit drugs.” These topics are what these debaters would debate during the State tournament and National Qualifiers.
Fargo North Debate Tournament
Starting strong with these new topics at the Fargo North Debate Tournament in Public Forum Division 2 Reagan and Jonah took 1st place and in the same division, Hosna and Vidyaa won 3rd place. Lincoln Douglas Division 1 also saw another champion with Sadie winning 1st!
“I enjoy debate because it allows me to speak on current and relevant topics with people who are just as passionate as I am.” – Reagan Koppelman
Davies Debate Tournament
Next at the second to last regular debate tournament before state the Sheyenne Debate team proved to be successful at the Davies Debate Tournament. In Lincoln Douglas Division 1 Keona won 1st and was tournament champion, in Public Forum Division 2 three teams placed with Reagan and Jonah taking 5th place, Eli and Ella taking 4th place, and Hosna and Vidyaa taking 2nd.
“I like debate because it allows me to discus topics that matter and may occur in our world” – Lucas Ramsey
National Qualifier Tournament
Before the last regular-season tournament before state, Hosna Dawlaty and Vidyaa Lav nationally qualified in Public Forum Debate at National Qualifiers! This makes history for the Sheyenne Debate team since this is the first time Sheyenne students have nationally qualified in this event.
Horace Debate Tournament
Lastly, at the Horace Debate Tournament Keona won 3rd place in Lincoln Douglas Division 1. Jacquelyn and Tatum were tournament champions in Public Forum Division 2. Hosna and Vidyaa won 2nd in Public Forum Division 2. Eli and Ella won 3rd in Public Forum Division 2. Reagan and Jonah won 4th in Public Forum Division 2. Morgan won 1st place in Lincoln Douglas Division 2
“I like debate because I like to argue, work on my writing skills, and I like hanging out with the people” -Ella Nora Hayes
State Debate Tournament
Finally, at the State Debate Tournament hosted by the Davies Debate team, Sheyenne had 6 quarter-finalists, 1 semi-finalist, and 2 finalists. Hosna and Vidyaa won Public Forum Division 2 at this tournament and became tournament champions. These stats helped contribute to the Sheyenne Debate team taking second at the State Debate tournament which is the highest-ranking this team has ever received.
Overall this team did a tremendous job this season and the future looks bright for the Sheyenne Debate team which is headed by the dedicated coaches Nathan Kurtti and Stephanie Radle.
There are many things to celebrate about our senior 2022 class at Sheyenne High School. They have worked hard to become the people who they are today and will go into their future with lasting memories from their time at Sheyenne. Grace Widjaja, Keona Munowenyu, and Christine Nwaigwe are some of the outstanding seniors who have made a great impact at Sheyenne.
Grace Widjaja is president of the Student Council, captain of the Sheyenne Speech Team, principal violist in the pit orchestra for “Bright Star,” principal violist for the Fargo Moorhead Area Youth Symphony, and member of the National Honor Society. Grace is also a kindergarten youth group leader, math tutor for 4th and 5th graders, and gives viola lessons on the side. After high school, Grace hopes to attend a four-year university in the Northeast to study Molecular Biology and Biochemistry with a minor in Music Performance on the Viola. One of Grace’s favorite mantras is “Be unapologetically you!”
Keona Munowenyu is in Student Congress, Sheyenne Debate, Student Council, and the National Honor Society. Throughout her high school career, Keona has won a championship title and national qualification for Student Congress. She is also a champion in Debate in the Public Forum Division. She has been to the National Speech and Debate Tournament twice to compete on the North Dakota World Schools Debate Team during her sophomore and junior year. Keona is now officially a state qualifier for Speech in poetry and humorous duo. Once Keona graduates, her plan is to land a job in Los Angeles at a production studio, like Warner Brothers or Universal Studios. Her life dream is to create her own production company to create major motion picture films. Keona intends to go to Columbia College in Chicago to major in Film and Television with a possible minor in marketing or journalism. Her favorite quote to live by is “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, compassion, humor and style” -Maya Angelou.
Christine Nwaigwe is part of the National Honor Society, Sheyenne Student Council, Student Ambassadors, Diverse Cultures Club, Student Congress and French Club. Christine is also on the Sheyenne Track and Field Team. Once she graduates, Christine wants to become an Economist or an Economic Consultant on Policy Making. She hopes to attend Williams College in Massachusetts or Brown University in Rhode Island. Christine’s favorite quote is “Life teaches you a lesson every day, if you are attentive enough in the class of life”-Invajy.
The Mustang Post 