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Friday, November 20, 2009 9:41 PM CST
OUR VIEW: Young people shine in many venues
By the JG/T-C Editorial Board
The pages of the Journal Gazette/Times-Courier are filled routinely with the activities and accomplishments of our area students.
But recently, it seems that our young people have excelled on both the state and national stages —and beyond.
Recent newspaper articles show that our students...
... excel in music:
-Neoga High School student vocalist Jacob Dow was one of only 10 people from across the United States chosen to compete in a talent search competition in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Dow sang Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me to the Moon” to qualify for the contest.
- The Pride of the Green Wave Marching Band at Mattoon High School and the Wildcat Marching Band at Mattoon Middle School each won grand champion trophies at recent marching band competitions.
They excel in athletics:
- The Cumberland High School Lady Pirates volleyball team won third place in the IHSA Class 1A state tournament a second straight year, ending this season with a record of 30-3.
- Several local runners performed well at the IHSA state cross country meet. Mattoon junior Joe Calio placed 53rd and Charleston freshman Riley McInerney placed 81st in Class 2A. Shelbyville/Stewardson-Strasburg sophomore Katelyn Duckett earned 10th place and Sullivan/Okaw Valley sophomore Cameron Harvey placed 77th in Class 1A.
- The previously unbeaten Casey-Westfield High School football team earned a trip to the IHSA Class 2A Elite Eight football playoff game, narrowly missing the semifinals after being defeated by Marshall 14-13.
And they excel in arts and academics:
- The Charleston High School speech team continued its achievements by placing in several recent competitions, oftentimes walking away as the champions.
- Oakland High School senior Caitlyn Strader’s poem, “A Night of Fun,” received first placed among hundreds of submissions in the 2008-09 Illinois Teachers of English Poetry Competition.
n Mattoon High School senior Hannah Covington was named the Best of Show winner in the Lake Land College Foundation 2009 Art Heritage show, beating not only other students, but professional and amateur artists, as well. In addition, Covington recently learned her entry won first place in the National Rural Education Association Foundation Essay Contest. She wrote about her predictions for the future of MHS over the next 25 years.
- The Sullivan High School FFA Chapter placed first in the National FFA Parliamentary Procedure Career Development Event in Indianapolis. The Sullivan team represented Illinois in the competition and defeated 44 other teams nationally. Team members are Jared Ferguson, Katy Hogan, Mark McKown, Cheyenne Phelps, Dalton Shasteen and Ashley Sinkler.
There undoubtedly are others we are overlooking at the moment. These news stories illustrate what we already knew — we have bright and talented young people here in East Central Illinois.
We look forward to reporting on the accomplishments of these students, and others, in the years ahead.
— JG/T-C Editorial Board
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medic57 wrote on Nov 22, 2009 3:28 AM:
It's always nice to hear about the local young people doing so great, they will, afterall, be running OUR futures before to long.. Congrats. "