MHS Carnival by Ty Stonehouse

                            MHS Carnival

Mooresville High School is holding a carnival that is centered towards students and children that have certain mental and physical disabilities. The fair, in the past, has been very successful and the kids absolutely loved it. Last year, the fair was held for the first time and had a wonderful turnout.

For parents, the fair provided a safe place for their children to enjoy the social environment, and at the same time hold happiness and excitement for them. There are even more benefits for the children’s parents. The fair provides many booths and stops along the way to show parents designs, and helpful necessities to create a better environment for their children at home. 

Mooresville High School’s special needs teacher, Melissa Bell, loved the way the fair went last year and the environment it created for not only her students but others as well. 

“I love that we are able to give parents a one-stop-shop for great prices, and at the same time letting their kids have a positive environment to have fun,” Bell said.

“My students had a blast last year and felt like they finally had a place to come and be social while at the same time, having an enjoyable, and positive environment,” Bell said.

The fair will be held on March 11, 2023, at Mooresville High School from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Photo Submitted by Alicia Richhart

Information for Seniors and Early Graduates by Olivia Denny

          Information for Seniors and Early Graduates               

    Students that are eager to graduate high school early may not know the different benefits and the downsides that come along with it. There are so many different scholarships for early grads specifically. One of these is the Mitch Daniels scholarship. This scholarship is open to applicants on August 31st following graduation. The scholarship is $4000 and is open to all graduates with minimum core 40. 
     “Really think about a plan before you decide to graduate early. Ask questions and talk to your counselor,” MHS guidance counselor, Iams said. 
   Seniors like Will Coram have been hunting scholarships and applying to colleges left and right.
    “The best way to get scholarships is to find websites, fastweb.com will match you with schools based on your description, and your interests.” Coram said.
“One way to find scholarships for places you really want to go is through small organizations that are unique. Some of these are the Community Foundation, the Morgan County Foundation and if you bank at Indiana Members Credit Union, there's a scholarship through that. Honestly when applying for scholarships you have to focus on the ones you actually have a chance of getting and doing scholarships for the individual school you want to go to,” Coram said. 

    Juniors that are graduating early meet with the seniors for big informational meetings. They purchase their cap and gown just as the seniors do, and when seniors get called down as a class early grads also attend. They can attend all the senior events like the senior picnic for example. There are so many scholarships to apply for and so many opportunities to succeed as both a senior and an early graduate. 

Cafeteria's Insight on Nutrition by Shelby McCoy

  Cafeteria's Insight on Nutrition

 Quiet classrooms are a terrible place to have a stomachache. About 74% of kids in the United States go to school hungry every day. Thanks to the willing people who take part in providing protein packed meals, cafeteria staff at the Mooresville High School have made it just one step closer to eliminating student hunger. 

   Deena Knight, manager of the cafeteria, shared that they must follow state guidelines to provide all students with the nutrients they need. They offer fruits, vegetables, protein, grain and dairy, which are essential main food groups that kids should be supplied with. The food isn’t just provided though, it’s served. They make foods that are not only nutritious but delicious. 

“Students cannot focus if their stomachs hurt, because they’re hungry,” Knight said.

Tina Phillips, cafeteria staff member, says that it is essential for students to get the proper vitamins in the meals they eat when they come to school every day. They are open for meal suggestions as well as feedback. Students’ opinions about the school food are listened to and are taken into consideration. 

“If it weren’t for the kids, we would not be here, and they are one of the reasons I enjoy working here,” Phillips said.

The staff has agreed that they are always open to improvement and feedback. If students have a certain meal idea that abides state guidelines, the cafe staff are surely able to look into it. Although some may see it as repetitive, the menu gives students a great variety to choose from. Tina Phillips, as mentioned above, came up with an upcoming idea of pizza burgers every Thursday. 

The nutrition of students at Mooresville High School is very important to the cafeteria staff. Their main priorities are its students, and they can assure that the food is tasty and follows the regulations.

Photo by Shelby McCoy

Boys Volleyball Team Rumors by Ty Stonehouse

                Boys Volleyball Team Rumors

 The rumors of Mooresville High Schools’ boys' volleyball team have been around since the first day of school. The rumors haven’t stopped, and they continue to thrive. So, it comes down to the question of is there really going to be a boys volleyball team. 

“Boys Volleyball is a Spring sport, so it would be after Boys Varsity Basketball in the middle of March,” Marsha Greene said, the secretary athletic director of Mooresville High School.  

“The season would last until the school year eventually comes to an end,” Greene said. According to Greene they are optimistic about the creation of the team. 

“All we need is for students to show interest in the sport. We only have one student so far that expressed their interests,” Greene said. 

Greene also went on to say that the athletic department is still working on the possibilities of gaining a coach for the team. 

Greene also said that they just really need more boys who would express themselves and say that they would definitely want this to happen.

For anyone who is currently enrolled in Mooresville High School and is interested in the boys' volleyball program, please go to the athletic office close to the auditorium to express your interests.

Photo by Jada Schoolcraft

Rachel Harshman Profile by Suzanna Paul

            Rachel Harshman Profile

Rachel Harshman is a Junior at Mooresville High School. There are many high expectations for how well she is going to do this year. She is a high achiever and she’s expecting to hit the 1,000 point mark this season or next season. 

“I definitely think I’ve taken more of a leadership role this year because of the seniors that graduated last year.” Harshman said.

Her role as a player this year has also taken quite a bit of a shift. Harshman has become more of a versatile player and all around has been trying to evolve the team in all aspects. 

Harshman has high expectations for the rest of the season for not only herself, but for the entire team.

“I think we’re going to do well the rest of the season, we’re starting to come together as a team and I think that’ll take us pretty far.” Harshman said.

The Varsity Girls Basketball team’s coach is Mark Hurt. He has been coaching Harshman for three years in high school and also during a youth camp over summer. He’s been a coach in general for 38 years and specifically in Mooresville 25 years. He talks about Harshman pretty positively.

“Rachel loves the game of basketball and works hard.” Hurt said.

                                                                 Photo by Ella Davis

Water Fitness - Shelby McCoy

Mooresville’s Class for Water Fitness

Ever thought about swimming during class? Well, that’s what Mooresville High School's alternative elective has to offer. The Water Fitness class teaches on stability, health, and mindfulness to students who would rather be in the water than the gym.

  Aaron Taylor, a student in the class, has exclaimed that being there has taught him dedication, determination, and it’s rewarding.. This class offers students the opportunity of receiving a certification through swimming to become a lifeguard. It has also brought him closer to his friend Elias Crayton.  

“I’m glad I was given the opportunity to join this class.” Taylor said, sophomore.

  Elias Crayton, friend of Aaron and proud member of the water fitness class added that it was definitely worth joining. He finds it easy and enjoys his time there. Since he joined, he’s found a certain fulfillment and somewhere to place all of his energy. 

“Swimming is exhilarating, and to have the chance to swim as an elective is a great reward.” Crayton said, senior.

Joe White, teacher of the Water Fitness class and well respected coach, says the overall goal of this program is to obtain peak physical conditioning in aquatics. Whether it be for sports, extra practice, or just learning the basics in general, students are able to work on their swimming abilities during class. Some kids may struggle with swimming, and this class helps to achieve a steady pavement to success. 

“It takes zero talent to produce 100% perfect effort.” White said.

  The Water Fitness class offers students great benefits to whoever chooses to join.

Photo by Shelby McCoy

Book Rental Fund in Indiana - Olivia Denny

             Book Rental Fund in Indiana

Indiana is one of the few states that doesn’t offer free book rentals in America. Only 7 states still charge for book rentals. Book rentals per student is usually around the $225 mark and this includes Chromebook rental fees. For families with multiple children, this could become a burden they cannot financially take on. The fund being passed would be a total of 160 million dollars towards funding Indiana families. This fund still has to be passed by the legislature.

When the phrase “free education” is said, it never actually means free education. Think about how much goes into education directly out of families' pockets every year. The tuition fees, the book rental fees, lunch money, money for field trips, school pictures, yearbooks, AP classes, the list goes on. While a lot of these fees are not 100% necessary, most families still pay them. 

These bills start adding up, especially for lower income families. There is assistance available, but only for the families that meet the certain requirements. The percentage of students that meet the requirements at Mooresville overall is 39.5%, and the percentage in the high school is 30.9%. The families meeting the requirements for reduced textbooks still don’t receive completely free books in some cases. If these families cannot pay the remainder of the fee, schools have to work with attorneys. In one county alone, the total remaining fees were $455,917. 

Kids are expensive. Most parents are doing their best to get by and provide their children with certain luxuries. If book rentals were no longer something families had to worry about, so much weight would be lifted off the shoulders of middle to low class households. 

“It would be one less stress for the parent when the fees are due, "Mooresville High School treasurer Nena Brock said. "You also have other charges, pictures, a lot of activities, if they could do away with book fees that would be less stress on parents and guardians.” 

While financially this could benefit people, there are downsides to this as well. School corporations could start waiting until textbooks are extremely out of date to replace them. A textbook becomes difficult and inconvenient to utilize if it's old and tattered. This could lead to a lack of textbooks as they become useless as they get older. Even if this fund gets approved by the legislature, this doesn’t mean corporations won't still be frugal with money. This means that schools could receive cheaper books that cover less educational topics. 

There is a possibility that schools might be limited to the textbooks they can buy and the longevity of these books. Even if that becomes the case, pros and cons have to be weighed. Governor Holcomb strives to focus a lot of the budget on the improvement of K-12 spending the teacher pay. In the Mooresville school district, there are 1,410 students enrolled. Not accounting for the students receiving free or reduced books, this is around $280,500 every year in book rentals. So much could be done for the families in Indiana. Let's start by checking one of the expenses off the list.

Mooresville Pushes on in a Tough Battle - Ty Stonehouse

         Mooresville Pushes on in a Tough Battle

During the boys' varsity basketball game, Mooresville had an extremely tough and challenging battle against the Christel House Eagles. The team overall played a fantastic game with the Eagles keeping Mooresville’s defense ready to go throughout the whole game.

The player who stood out the most when it came to offense for the Pioneers was definitely Wesely Reeves. Reeves altogether had accounted for over 22% of the Pioneers points. 

“We were playing with a lot of energy and we really needed more, and more practice,” senior Reeves said. 

On the other hand, the Pioneer defense was battling throughout the game as well. Nick Patterson helped the team drastically defensively. Patterson ultimately had over 29% of the team's rebounds, which in the end helped paved the way to the victory for the Pioneers. 

“It was my first game back, senior night, I wanted to do my best and keep the win at the end of the day,” Patterson said. 

“Something I could improve on is my leadership skills, and our team as a whole could improve on our communication skills, and we’d be fine. I’m aggressive and I've always been aggressive.” Patterson said.

The head coach of the varsity basketball team, Shabaz Khaliq, even had a few comments to say about the team’s overall performance.

“I was happy that our guys were able to gain the win on senior night. Our team is finally becoming whole, after dealing with injuries, so we are looking forward to working together once again. We want to make sure that we stay focused on the little things that will lead us to success.” Khaliq said.

Next, the boys' varsity basketball team will face Columbus North at Columbus North High School. The boys' varsity basketball will play at 7:30pm.

Photo by Ty Stonehouse

Winter Homecoming Overview - Suzanna Paul

       Winter Homecoming Overview

Who? 

• All students currently enrolled at MHS are allowed to go to the dance.

• Students are allowed to bring guests from other schools.

• All guests must be approved by the office.

What?

• The Winter Homecoming Dance of 2023.

• The theme of the dance this year is disco.

• The outfits are either semi formal or simply a disco outfit.

• Tickets are $10.

• Tickets are nonrefundable.

Where?

• Tickets are going to be sold before school at the bookstore before school and at lunch.

• The actual dance will be held in the cafeteria.

When?

• January 28th from 7-10 p.m is the actual dance time.

• Tickets will be sold from January 17 to January 25.

• The guest forms are available now and are due January 20.

• Celebrate our Winter accomplishments.

• The girls' game is on January 27 at 6 p.m. and the boys’ varsity game follows at 7:30 p.m.

What about spirit week?

• The dress up dates are January 23 to January 27.

• Monday: Adam Sandler

• Tuesday: Marvel vs. DC

• Wednesday: Bikers vs. Surfers

• Thursday: Dress Up As Your Teacher

• Friday: 70s Or in Your 70’s

Photo by Libby Young