Lucia Orlandi – Providence Academy Word

May 3, 2016October 11, 2016

Celebrating siblings at PA

Not too long ago, teenagers across the country scrolled through their Instagram feeds and saw picture after picture of sister and brother appreciation posts, in honor of National Siblings Day on April 10.

Although it may be a little cumbersome to see dozens of pictures of everyone’s family, the cute diapered babies, and the families on vacation; everyone can agree that any excuse to take a little time to appreciate one’s siblings is good.

Providence Academy is home to many big families and tiny ones. No matter the number of kids squeezed into the car for a family road trip, siblings share a special bond and countless priceless memories.

PA gym teacher Mr. Chris Fussy and religion and history teacher Mr. Kevin Keiser both come from big families. Fussy has six siblings while Mr. Keiser has seven.

With all these siblings, both teachers are chock full of fun memories as well as advice for handling the tricky and rewarding relationships brothers and sisters bring.

Both Mr. Fussy and Mr. Keiser think its important to make an effort to keep your sibling relationship strong as you grow up because as Mr. Fussy says, “[siblings] will be some of the best friends you have when you grow up.”

Mr. Keiser agrees, emphasizing the importance of “not sweating the small stuff”.

He also says that, “if you make your siblings your number one priority they will always be there for you throughout life.”

Friendships will come and go, but only siblings will be there to laugh over the ridiculous stories accumulated throughout childhood.

Or sometimes it’s the smallest moments that make the best memories. Mr. Fussy remembers the times spent playing baseball with all of his brothers and sisters with the most fondness.

Even if it takes an Instagram trend to remind one to think of their siblings, it’s well worth it.

April 5, 2016May 4, 2016

The Track Exposed: The Dome Stops Where the Track Starts

Undisputedly, the new dome has done amazing things for Providence Academy athletics.

It has provided gym classes a chance to move around in a bigger area, the baseball team a space for preseason practice and aspiring athletes a place where they can practice any time despite fickle Minnesota weather.

However, many were surprised when the new dome extended only so far as to the beginning of the track, leaving it uncovered. Though the extension would have brought an additional expense, some runners agree that the extension would have provided the track with added benefits.

Sprinter Juliet White ‘18, wishes the track had a covering because, “ I would come on weekends to run and practice”. She continued to say that the track, “really does need to be covered because of harsh and unpredictable Minnesota weather.”

Avid runner and long distance coach Rachel Fogle said, “there is definitely a benefit to having the track covered. The benefit would be the use of the track with its correct markings, distance, and surface. I am sure keeping the track surface out of the snow would help maintain the surface as well.”

This will have an effect on holding meets as well. Snow and ice have cancelled meets in the past, due to the damaging state they leave the track in.

Fogle said, “it would be nice to have it covered as I would be able to host track events earlier in the season – it is not possible to host an event with the dome up the way it is now. In past seasons we have had to cancel many track meets due to snow and ice still being present on the track.”

Though this appears as a seemingly negative thing for some, it does have a silver lining.

Hailey Carter said, “although I love meets, having one cancelled can be a pleasant surprise and a little bit of a relief knowing that I can go home early and have a break from running.”

Whether or not the dome covers the track will be no hindrance on the performances of all the runners.

February 3, 2016March 1, 2016

A Look Into the Glass Menagerie

Between the fall play and spring musical lies the Upper School One Act, a much anticipated part of Upper School theater.

The one act, a unique component of theater here at Providence Academy, remains unknown to many of the upper schoolers. Stage managers Sidney Kirchoff ‘18 and Essie Broich ‘18 explain exactly how the one act works. The rules of a one act differ from those of the play and musical.

Kirchhoff explained, “for the one act there can only be 20 people total, including cast and crew. This year we have about four actors total and the rest crew. It also has to be under 35 minutes, that’s the hard part.”

PA has met these criteria all the past performances of one acts. A challenge, because an entire play must condense into only one act, typical plays being three acts long. Kirchoff cites this as the most difficult part of putting on a one act.

“Time is definitely the trickiest part about a one act,” she explained. “You don’t have much time for transitions and set changes and you have to make sure it doesn’t go not even one minute over 35 minutes. If it does you are disqualified.”

This year, the Upper School performs “The Glass Menagerie”, a “classic play, set in the 1940’s about a family drama” according to Broich. She said that because of the play’s classic nature, “it has more meaning behind it.”

Kirchoff said, “the play this year is slightly dark, but I really like it.”

An exciting aspect of the one act is the competition it brings with it. Along with performances in front of family and students at PA, the one act enters into a competition with the Minnesota State High School League.

Broich explained, “for the competition, we basically take a play and shorten it and then perform it against five other schools.”

Last year, the Upper School one act “The Crucible” made it all the way to state. Hopefully “The Glass Menagerie” will do just as well.

February 2, 2016March 1, 2016

Providence student athletes to Division I

For many seniors, their future remains undetermined.

Their college acceptance and rejection letters sent out in March, leaves them lingering in a period of limbo.

However, a couple of talented seniors know exactly where they’re headed. Feb. 3, National Signing Day, marks the day when athletes sign on to their prospective colleges.

Here at PA, senior Raelyn Spears ’16 has already signed off to play golf, and Henry Van Dellen ’16 will soon sign to play football.

Both of these seniors had a long process before finally settling on the school of their choice.

Before deciding on, North Dakota State University, Van Dellen said he kept busy, “college searching and working on my football recruitment.”

A talented quarterback here at PA, Van Dellen will continue his football career in Fargo, N.D.

He said he talks to the coaches “pretty much on a weekly basis” and “the relationships I’m gonna form with my teammates,” excites him.

Spears signed with Elon University last year after keeping a focused college search.

She said, “when I was searching for a college I was looking for a school in the southeast with a strong golf team. I eventually chose Elon because I liked the golf facility, program, coach, and teammates.”

Searching for a college, especially one for a particular sport, presents itself as quite a challenge. Because of this, Spears decided to keep her college search focused and narrowed in on what she really wants.

She said, “When I was searching for a college I was looking for a school in the southeast with a strong golf team.”

Elon University, located in North Carolina, will take Spears very far away from home.

Despite the distance, she said she looks forward to, “playing tournaments at a higher level and gaining playing experience to help me with my golf career.”

Aside from the challenge from athletics, other things excite signing students.

Spears said, “I also am excited to play with new teammates and getting to meet new people while playing in college tournaments.”

PA is proud to represent many talented athletes, Van Dellen and Spears representing many, many more. Prouder still is PA to send off these two to go pursue the sport that they love in a new college environment.

January 8, 2016February 2, 2016

Finals: helpful or harmful?

Providence Academy students just came home from a relaxing Christmas spent with family and friends.

Immediately prior to this holiday break, students spent hours in the gym taking semester exams, the dreaded finals.

Finals, a required part of PA academic life, hold an important part for students. Students have finals for all six core classes, excluding electives.

They cause tension and anxiety for all high school students resulting in what Sarah Maguire ‘17 called, “stress, lack of sleep and extreme addiction to coffee.”

As stressful as finals can be, both teachers and students still agree on the ways finals can benefit.

For teachers, finals serve as a way to have one final assessment that gauges how well a student understands the material.

Mr. Edward Hester, a history teacher, said that finals provide a way for him to, “view how well I am doing as a teacher and to get a good sense of how well my individual students truly understand the material I’ve taught over the semester.”

David Kramer ’18 believes finals benefit students in the same way and make students, “well aware of what they know and don’t know, which has all been based on the choices they’ve made and the work they’ve put in throughout the semester.”

He also thinks they provide a good way to “prepare students for the exam setting in college” and “are a last-chance grade saver for most people.”

Despite all these reasons, students still disagree on if the positive effects outweigh the negative effects or if finals are simply not worth all the trouble.

Sarah Maguire ‘17 agreed with the former and said, “the good outweighs the bad because overall, finals benefit students more than they harm them,” crediting the review that finals provide, as their main benefit.

The views of juniors Brock Lahr ‘17 and Clay Gardner ‘17 differ with those of Maguire’s. Both believe that the little good finals bring does not compare to the stress they cause.

Lahr said, “finals stress me out a ton and most of my studying as well as most everyone’s studying is cramming, so you don’t even retain any of the information, going against the goal of finals, to review.”

Gardner agreed and said, “I think finals would be more beneficial if they were taken in your three lowest classes, or if you have an ‘A’ in the class, you are exempt from that final. That would definitely lessen the stress, and people would perform better overall.”

A lot of conflict exists concerning finals, whether or not they actually help students or if alternatives might provide a better solution, but since there seems to be no solution, at least in the present, a wish of “good luck” is all that one can hope for.