On February 20, 2020, Mr. Symonds’ Criminal Justice class had a fake murder they had to figure out. Mr. Symonds had purchased a subscription to solve a murder. The class used three blocks to come to a conclusion. The box included multiple pieces of evidence to finish the case. The class worked together to find the murderer!

The University of Iowa has notified the CAM CSD that one of our alumni, Mackenzie Cross, and a current student at the University of Iowa, was recently selected to be profiled in the University of Iowa Office of the Vice President for Research’s annual Dare to Discover banner campaign. This campaign spotlights U of I undergraduate students who are engaged in diverse and groundbreaking research and scholarly activities. She is among 52 student researchers featured in the 2020 campaign and is featured on a banner hanging in downtown Iowa City. Congratulations Mackenzie!!!

The CAM Digital Media Class is starting another project! You have a chance to get in on the ground floor of CAM Aerial Imaging. We have found a great way to use our amazing drone. We now have four commercially licensed drone pilots and we are very anxious to get started. CAM Aerial Imaging specializes in aerial photography of all kinds. From farms to businesses, we can meet all of your needs. We will be advertising in many local businesses, and we encourage you to fill out an order form that will be located at many businesses in Massena, Anita, Atlantic, and Griswold. We will have an example of our product on display at the Massena Livestock Auction in Massena. Contact the CAM High school at (712)-762-3231. You can also go to the CAM Cougar Website www.camcougars.org to find the flier.

Here at CAM Aerial Imaging, we offer an affordable and high-quality project. You have the choice to print your picture on vinyl or paper, with three sizes to choose from, along with two types of wood frames. We also encourage you to add your family or farm name engraved on your frame, to truly customize your photo. We will be advertising in many local businesses, by having order forms available for you to take and complete. We encourage you to fill out an order form and send it to the CAM High School. We will get in touch with you to set up a time to take the picture with our drone. The CAM Digital Media class works hard to cater to your needs, and we will not stop until you’re satisfied. If you have any questions, please contact Cade Ticknor, Lane Spieker, Ethan Fast, Cavan Murphy or Mrs. Miller at the high school. You may download an order form from the CAM Cougar Website. www.camcougars.org. The link is on the right sidebar called CAM Aerial Imaging. You may print, complete, and send it in. Thank you for your business!!!

On Friday, February 14th, students in Mr. Todd’s chemistry class were able to perform an experiment in class. First, the students had to balance the equation for the reaction. Then, Peyton Jessen and Hunter Frost assisted Mr. Todd with the reaction. They took a beaker filled with hydrochloric acid and taped a balloon to the top, filled with zinc. After that, they tipped the balloon up, releasing the zinc into the hydrochloric acid. This caused it to bubble and heat up, filling the balloon up with gas. After that, the students went outside to pop the balloon with a torch, causing a miniature explosion. We look forward to seeing more science experiments!

Although Valentine’s Day is coming up soon on February 14th, a lot of people still don’t know the history of it. It actually traces back to the Roman holiday Lupercalia, in which women were paired with men by lottery, and celebrating fertility and the coming of spring. The traditional Valentine’s day, however, started being celebrated much later. Who Saint Valentine actually was is shrouded in mystery. One story says that when Emperor Claudius II of Rome outlawed marriage for young men in the belief it would make them better soldiers, Saint Valentine defied him, performing secret marriages for young lovers, which eventually led to him being sentenced to death. Another story suggests he may have been killed for helping Christians escape harsh Roman prisons, falling in love with a young girl while there, possibly the jailor’s daughter, and sending the first ‘Valentine’ to her.

Mrs. Grubbs is another unsung hero at CAM High School. Mrs. Grubbs is married to her husband Myron and the two of them have three grown daughters and six grandchildren. Some things Mrs. Grubbs enjoys in her free time are caring for her flower garden, cooking and baking, biking and attending her grandkids’ activities. She also enjoys going to her nephews' activities. After high school she went to work at the nursing home in Anita, and held many other jobs until her girls were born. She then became a stay at home mom. After her youngest daughter was in school she continued with several different jobs before an opportunity to become a para opened up at Adair Casey High School. Mrs. Grubbs worked there for sixteen years and then came to the CAM high school and has been here ever since. This will be her twentieth year as a para. Her favorite part of being a para is “seeing how students can accomplish things when putting forth the effort.” You can see that she truly cares for her students. Thank you, Mrs. Grubbs, for all your hard work!

There were a few corrections that needed to be made from the prior publication of Mrs. Grubbs spotlight. Thank you!

On Wednesday, January 15th, the CAM Sports Club donated 12 stopwatches, ten water bottles along with two water bottle carriers, five roller sticks, three sprinter sticks, three resistant bands, three foam rollers, and massage balls to Coach Russell. These items will be used for both cross country and track. Thank you to the CAM Sports Club for continuing to support all CAM athletics!

Mrs. Brown is another unsung hero at CAM high school. She has been married to her husband Bret, for 36 years. Deb and her husband are parents to six sons and four grandchildren. She has worked at CAM for about 10 years and also spent some time working at Nodaway Valley. A couple of her favorite things she has enjoyed while at CAM are working with students to help them reach their academic goals and coaching Cross Country. Geometry is one of her favorite classes to be in because she learns a little bit each time. She enjoys working with the teachers, paras, and other staff at CAM. She can tell they truly care about their students. Thank you Mrs Brown for all of your hard work!

Mr. Warntjes and the Construction class consisting of Ethan Steffensen, Dietrich Herzberg, Ben Tibken, Ethan Fast, Jacob Holste, and Nate Hensley are currently reconstructing the woodshop bathroom. The idea of the class was to give the bathroom a completely new look. The task will consist of taking out walls, redoing the ceiling, heating the room and even getting new toilets and faucets. The class has been working on this since the beginning of the year and plans to finish it before the class of 2020 graduates.

On Monday, December 16th, 2019, Ms. Marin, along with 30 of her Spanish students, held a Spanish Potluck. It took place in the high school commons, with help from the kitchen. When asked how the idea came about, Ms. Marin said that she was looking for a cultural activity that would interest the students. Naturally, food is a big interest among the students, so after a couple years of having this idea, it was able to happen. All the students were able to work with a partner, and they were in charge of bringing some type of food. Along with all the students and Ms. Marin, there were some of the CAM Staff and some parents there to enjoy the food. There was a variety of foods there, such as, churros, enchiladas, mexican chicken, cuban sandwiches, tarta tres leche, miguelitos, pan de calatrava, pan con tomate, spanish omelet, flan, sopa paraguaya, empanadas, and gallo pinto. Cuban sandwiches were the favorite food, but Ms. Marin stated, “I’d like to think my Spanish omelet did well also.” Ms. Marin would like to add, “It was a really fun experience, and I appreciate everyone who volunteered and put their time into making things, because it was a busy time of year with Christmas break coming up. I'm happy that everyone enjoyed it, and I think everyone had fun. 10/10 would do it again.”

This week, our unsung hero spotlight will be covering Lindsay Jahde. Lindsay is the Business Manager and Board Secretary/Treasurer at the CAM High School. Lindsay’s favorite part about her job is just coming to the school. She explained, “The atmosphere of being around the kids is great.” To start her day, she always checks her email and phone messages, but everyday is different depending on the week and time of the month. Lindsay graduated from Adair-Casey High School, but didn’t continue her education even though she says it is important. She previously worked as the city clerk for the city of Anita, and prior to that she worked at Brocker Karns and Karns Insurance. She also worked at Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield. She always wanted to be a teacher and thought this would be a fun atmosphere as well, as she has a background in payroll and accounts payable. Her favorite memories from her job are listening to Travis and Tami’s discussions in the summertime.

On Thursday, November 14th, CAM’s head football coach announced his resignation of his coaching job. He announced his resignation to his team while they were watching the Audubon vs Remsen St. Mary’s game. Coach Wollum was the head coach of the CAM football team for 15 years. “I was kind of surprised at first, but we all understood and want to thank him for everything he has done,” quoted senior safety, Jacob Holste. Coach Wollum had a lifetime 83-65 record as head coach. Coach Joe Wollum will still be coaching girls’ basketball and golf as well as remaining the Activities Director. The players and community want to thank Coach Wollum for everything he’s done for the football program!

Our unsung hero this week is CAM’s counselor, Mrs. Blair. Her husband’s name is Greg, who works in computer sales. She also has two children: Madeline, who works as a middle school math teacher, and Patrick, who works as a computer programmer. She also has a son-in-law, Kris, who is a park manager, and a chocolate lab named Libby. In her free time, Mrs. Blair enjoys photography, being outdoors, hiking, watching movies, and writing. After getting her high school diploma from Batavia, NY, Mrs. Blair received her Bachelor’s Degree from the State University of New York College at Brockport. Later, she received her Master’s Degree in Counseling from Buena Vista University. After holding several long-term sub counseling jobs, she found herself at CAM, where her favorite part of her job is making connections with not only the students but also with the staff members. When asked where she thought she would be ten years ago, she replied, “I only had half of my masters, but I was working at Living History Farms in Urbandale, so I thought I would go into the non-profit historical field or something like that.” At CAM, she is hosting several groups, like the yoga club, NHS, and she hopes to look into other types of groups as a resource for students to handle their stress and anxiety, which she feels is a big issue at CAM. We’re thankful for everything Mrs. Blair does for our school system and we’re looking forward to the groups she plans on making in the future.

Paige Farrell is the current secretary at the CAM High School. She started her career this school year and already has a lot to say. Before CAM she lived in northern Iowa and was completing her degree. After her husband, Mr. Farrell received a promising interview at CAM, they moved to our area. Mrs. Farrell held a customer service job for a while, then noticed the secretary position opened at the school. She knew she had to apply. She said registration and parent-teacher conferences were her most memorable times because she loved meeting everyone. The things she looks forward to daily are lunch when she gets to interact with the students and when a student comes to her for an issue. She loves problem-solving and helping the students. She is excited to be in our community and hopes for many years to come. Mrs. Farrell completes a lot of important tasks for CAM. Thank you for your dedication!

On November 11th, 2019, CAM High School and North Elementary hosted a Veterans Day program. The program started with the posting of the flags followed by the “Star Spangled Banner”. Everyone recited the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by seniors Emily Lee and Ethan Fast giving a speech to honor the Veterans. Elementary students were involved in events such as folding the flag, singing patriotic songs, and narrating the program. Fifth in Harmony, accompanied by Ms. Rudolph, sang “American Everyday”. High school students participated in different ways such as singing “Thank You Soldiers” and playing the National Anthem. DJ Whitlatch was a guest speaker and spoke about what it meant to be a veteran. To wrap up the ceremony Faith Nath played TAPS. A special thanks to Mr. Symonds and Mrs. Stokley for organizing the event. We thank all Veterans for their service.

This new issue of the CAM Spy presents another unsung hero here at the High School, Tami Williamson! Tami’s husband, Rusty, was a custodian at the CAM North Elementary for 10 years. Her oldest son, Austin, has worked at Elite Octane for a year and a half after recently moving back from Florida. Her youngest son, Tanner, graduated from CAM last year, and works for Camblin’s Heating & Plumbing. Tami has worked in the district for seven exciting years, making the end of this year the start of her eighth. Before CAM, Tami used to work at AgriDrain for one year, as well as working at the Anita Nursing Home at the same time! Tami explains that the best thing about CAM is being able to work with a lot of people who actually care about the well-being of the students in the school. Tami’s favorite meal to cook is homemade pizza, and she believes that the top three favorite meals the students like are mandarin chicken and rice, salisbury steak, and the aforementioned pizza. Tami makes on average, 10 different meals a week, 40 a month, and roughly about 280 meals a year, not including the summer lunch program. Thank you for your hard work Tami!

Today’s SPY interview covers Peyton Jessen, as he tells us about his Small Business class, and what they do. He details that he and his class will be helping the community by aiding small businesses around town, though they hope to branch off into Atlantic. Their class also obtained a newer vinyl printing machine, which he says is much easier to operate and use than the older one. When asked about the class, he explains that it all boils down to learning about making a profit, talking to important people, and being an entrepreneur. Good luck with the class, Peyton!

On Friday, October 4th, Kolby Nelsen, Connor McKee, Allison Spieker, and Whitney Holaday went to the CAM North Elementary to teach the fifth-grade class about communication and getting to know each other. They taught this skill by having the students ask each other questions about their lives to strengthen their bond as a class. Allison Spieker said, “The kids never stopped interacting, but they had fun and learned a lot!”

On May 8th, CAM students visited one of the most innovative zoos in animal repopulation and breeding. The Henry Doorly Zoo is known for its breeding programs of animals which include the Snow Leopard, Giraffes, Orangutans, Lemurs and many more. The students got the opportunity to see the many new exhibits the zoo has opened and some that will open soon. The zoo is an important piece of animal management to preserve many endangered species, that have been put in danger due to man’s mismanagement of our environment. It is important to teach our students that the preservation of wildlife will be important in the future as some of the discoveries that are made can impact our lives.

The CAM Animal Science I and II classes visited a very different type of feed mill and cattle feeding operation on May 7^th. The Drake family started new Balance Commodities located in Nodaway, Iowa in 2002 at a time when the ethanol industry was just getting started and a variety of corn by-products were being produced. The company started using and developing feeding programs using the by-product to prove they could be a viable alternative to traditional grains. The company started to produce a common feed product for cattle called Co-mix, which uses a number of different by-products in the manufacturing. The company has grown to a 5000 head feedlot and a large broker of by-products used in the animal industry. Our students got a first-hand tour of the feed mill, two different feedlots, and handling facilities. The people were very encouraging about the possibilities of working in agriculture and in livestock production. The students had a chance to see that a business or a career can be right around the corner.

The CAM Natural Resources class, along with members of the CAM Shooting Team helped put on a huge regional event in the world of hunting dogs. One of our former instructors from CAM schools, Mr. Downer, is one of the dog owners that competes at regional and national contests. The event is the Super Retriever Series and other events are held all over the central part of the U.S. from Texas to Minnesota. Mr. Downer was one of the people who brought the series to the Outdoor Classroom this past weekend. It started May 3rd and ended on May 5th. CAM students played a big part as they helped place the birds for the dog trials all three days. The students had an opportunity to meet world-class trainers and see some of the world-class dogs perform. This was a great chance for our school to show support for our CAM School community and others.

On April 26th, the Anatomy and Physiology class traveled to the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City. The reason the class traveled that distance for a field trip was that Mrs. Thomas has good connections in the university and gave the class opportunities that they won’t get from anywhere else. Because of that, the class had a field trip they would always remember. They got up bright and early at 5 am to travel their way. Once arriving on campus their first session was with a perfusionist. A perfusionist is someone who operates a cardiopulmonary bypass machine during cardiac surgery. They got to see a human dummy with the machine hooked up to them. The students learned a lot about the machine and how it works. After that, they went to a lab where they specialize in Zebrafish. The students in the lab specifically studied melanoma. Due to the fish’s cells, they can experiment with cancer and try solutions. There were telescopes and fish that they could observe. Finally, they headed to the anatomy professor which is the person Mrs. Thomas is really close with. The students got taught a small lesson about the heart and then were brought into the cadaver lab. “We walked in the room and there were just cadavers laid out everywhere with sheets covering them. It was really cool.” Ally Lung commented. They went into a side room and were greeted with human brains, hearts, and a human face. There was so much information they had to ingest. The Anatomy and Physiology class had a lot of fun and want to thank Mrs. Thomas for giving them the opportunity to visit the University of Iowa.

Tanner Williamson was offered an apprenticeship with Camblin Plumbing and Heating in Atlantic, Iowa, which will be starting on May 28th! Beginning in the Fall, Tanner will be starting his classes. His classes will consist of 10 hour classes, once a week. He got the opportunity to do this apprenticeship through his internship. He learned what materials he would need to install a new furnace, water heater, or various other equipment that needed to be fixed.

The Seniors agreed to go to the Henry Doorly Zoo for their skip day on May 1st this year. Each year the senior class gets to decide where they would like to go for senior skip day. At 8:30 am the class set out to visit the zoo where they were able to walk around and look at all the exciting animals. One of the highlights of the trip was seeing the 17-day old giraffe. They returned home by 3:30. The 2019 Senior class had a great time!

Hats off to the Consumer and Clothing class taught by Mrs. Johnson. Halie Gigerich and Anna Riker worked with Mrs. Johnson to create a beautiful liner, ruffle, and bow for this picnic basket used in a wedding proposal over last weekend! They also made beautiful napkins to match for the blessed occasion. It was a picnic basket owned by Blake Miller’s grandmother, Sharol Steinbeck of Griswold, and Blake wanted to use it for his wedding proposal to Melanie Elkhorn last Sunday. Mrs. Johnson offered to work with her students to make it “beautiful.” They did a fantastic job and it was a beautiful addition to the proposal. Thank you, Mrs. Johnson, Halie, and Anna!

On April 2nd, the Anatomy and Physiology class dissected rabbits. They prepared themselves with close-toed shoes, hair in a ponytail and gloves. Their first task was to skin the rabbits, where Toby Schmidt and Andrew Holste did a fantastic job. After that, they explored the rabbit's organs. They had a challenge to remove the brain and spinal cord intact for extra credit. The students gave their best effort but did not succeed. After a week of discovering the rabbit, they moved on to dissecting a shark. The shark smelled worse than the rabbit and caused a lot of reactions. Most of the students experienced watering eyes, sore throat, and a runny nose. They explored the shark but could take the fumes for so long. That dissection lasted only a day. All the students enjoyed taking a break from regular classes to dissect some animals.

On Wednesday March 27, the Food Science class toured Milk Unlimited in Atlantic, Iowa. The tour was given by Christy Cunningham of Milk Unlimited. The tour started with an overview of the milking parlor and the farm’s operation. Christy gave a detailed description of the operations that the dairy concluded and where the milk is sold. She also described the nutritional value of consuming dairy products. After the overview the group visited the facilities. Students had the chance to see how the milking machine worked by placing their fingers in the inflations and feeling the gentle vacuum placed on the udders during the milking process. The group also had an opportunity to see where the milk was collected and stored in tankers during the milking process. Christy also gave them a tour of the facility where the animals are housed and fed while they are a part of the milking operation. Throughout the tour we learned a lot about milk and how it is good for you. It was a very educational trip and fun to see. While touring the cows living area we got the opportunity to pet the cattle.

The CAM School District runs on an hourly calendar instead of a day calendar for the entire year. The district is required to have 1,080 hours of school each year. As of February 19th, we have missed 59 hours so we have to make up 21.5 hours or a little over 3 days with students. We missed school on the 25th of February as well, so we have a few more hours to make up. Teachers still operate on a 190 contract, so teachers have 5 days basically to make up. There is also a proposition in the legislature that students are required to make up a certain amount of “snow days”, but after those days are surpassed, the rest will be forgiven, and the students will not have to make those days up. Keep reading the CAM SPY to find out more on this proposition in the upcoming future! You know what all the students are hoping for!!!!

We all know about Valentine’s Day. It’s the day where you give your spouse or special someone a box of chocolates, flowers, a Valentine's Day card, and sometimes a ring or other jewelry. More than 62% of Americans celebrate Valentine's day every year. Valentine’s Day originates back to Roman times. It was a festival held in mid-February called Lupercalia. Later the Christian church chose mid-February for Saint Valentine's day in order to Christianized the celebration. Pope Gelasius declared February 14th, as a day for honoring the soft-hearted Valentines at the end of the 5th century. Then in the 1300’s it became affiliated with love and romance. The first Valentine’s love letters began in the 15th century; then in the 17th century, Valentine's day started to catch on in the U.S. The first massed produced Valentine’s Day cards were made in the 1840s. An estimate of 6 million couples gets engaged on February 14th each year. We, The CAM Directive Writing class, hope you have a great Valentines Day!

On Friday, February 1st, senior night was held for the winter sports. The seniors and their parents were recognized between the girls and boys basketball games. The senior girls participating in basketball this season are Madison Gettler, Paige McAfee, RoAnn Perry, KateLynn Scar, and Shelby Stephenson. The senior boys are DeShawn Carr, Isaac Bower, Darien Burnison, Matthew Harris, Eric Plagman, and Teaguen Sothman. The senior dancers are Haley Becker, Halie Giegerich, Alexis Karns, Paige McAfee, KateLynn Scar, Shelby Stephenson, and Blaire Wendt. Our senior cheerleaders include Halie Giegerich and Savanna Valeika. Our senior wrestlers are Sam Martin and Mitchell Williamson who were recognized on January 17th at a dual with Glenwood and Clarinda. We wish them the best of luck and success in the future.

The FCA, or the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, at CAM High School currently has 20 student members. At the beginning of this year, they started with only 5 members. There are now two seniors, one junior, twelve sophomores, and five freshmen. They are planning to send some students to the Pella Sports Camp during the summer. They’re currently raising money through the concession stand during the basketball games and are coming up with other ideas as well. The FCA is possibly expanding to the middle school for the younger kids. FCA holds meetings during school on Thursdays and usually meet in the music room during the first seminar. Jeff Hoover, the CAM Schools FCA advisor, says he sees improvement in all of the members of FCA. What are the improvements you might ask? He indicated they are committed to the school and everyday activities as well as sports. He also said they improved in how kind and caring they are to others. They have a new goal for the Veterans Christmas next year that is significantly higher than last year. They have a Facebook page with a bunch of pictures and information about their activities. If you want to go check it out, it is CAM FCA.

The CAM Community School District is implementing a brand new math curriculum to all of the schools in the district. The company is called CPM and is based out of San Francisco, California. The program emphasizes teamwork and exploration of math for a deeper understanding of content. By using CPM, the students are able to utilize online textbooks for easy access to content without the burden of carrying heavy books around all day. One of the main differences between the old curriculum and the new one is the new program introduces new concepts and gradually builds upon what was previously taught versus performing a high number of problems for memorization. Rather than going through the motions of doing equations, students are getting a better understanding of why and how the math is supposed to work. This program is a 6-12 curriculum with a similar feeder program called Bridges that is geared for elementary learning, but utilizes similar techniques in order to optimize the learning of the students. The students and teachers are excited to bring into service the new program this year.

On October 30th, the CAM North Lollipop Preschool went trick or treating in the CAM High School classrooms! The children were able to get candy from the one and only, Corey The Cougar! On October 31st, the CAM South Lollipop Preschool trick or treated through the Middle School and Elementary classrooms! All of the students had a great time and enjoyed receiving candy from the staff! After the students got candy, they had their own “classroom parties”. The whole day, for the students, parents, and staff, was a success!

On Friday, October 19th, 51 students in grades 9-12 went to SWCC in Creston for CTE Day. “CTE” stands Career Technical Education. There were eight career clusters for the students to choose from to learn more about what the college has to offer for them. The different clusters are as follows: agriculture, automotive repair technology and collision repair, carpentry & building trades, electrical technology, health sciences, industrial technology, information technology systems networking, and welding. The students chose which cluster they wanted to learn more about before they went to SWCC. The day went from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM with breakout groups in the students’ prospective clusters. They learned more about their career of choice, through activities that challenged the students to get outside their comfort zone and think about important issues involving the career. Matt St. John was a lucky recipient of a $250 scholarship.

On October 16, a group of young women went to Iowa State University to participate in the 2018 Young Women in Business conference, which is put on by the Collegiate Women of Business. The conference started off with a keynote speaker, Miriam De Dios Woodward, who was a CEO for “Coopera”, and as of October 15, 2018, she is the new CEO for PolicyWorks. Miriam talked about her struggles growing up and how all the odds were against her becoming a successful Latina business woman by the age of 30. She talked about how she remembered as a child watching tv shows and never seeing any business woman that she could look up to, so she strived to be that woman for younger generations of girls. Also, she used to be fascinated by the business people who wore suits, but later realized that it takes more than a business suit to make it in Corporate America. All of the girls who attended the conference went to different sessions, each teaching them something new about all the aspects of business and how to make it in a world where the odds are against them becoming leaders. Less than 5% of women are VP’s or CEO’s of companies across America, but as Miriam said, “With a drive to succeed and a passion for learning and growing, anything is possible.”

On Friday, October 5th, Matthew Harris traveled to the Super Bowl in Atlantic where he competed in Special Olympics Bowling. Before he left for his big day, the entire CAM High School held a pep rally to encourage Matthew. He had been practicing once or twice a week in either Atlantic or Stuart to help him prepare for competition. Before each round of bowling, the athletes would say the Special Olympic Motto, “Let me win, but if I can not win, let me be brave in the attempt.” After bowling two games against other athletes with similar ability, Matthew was awarded a third place ribbon! He had many family members and teachers there cheering him on, along with Liz Tobak, Matthew’s coach. Matthew had a great time and is looking forward to the next sport, basketball!

On Wednesday, October 12, KJAN staff, Jim Field and Chris Parks, paid a visit to Mrs. Miller’s Digital Media class. KJAN has entered into a business partnership with the Digital Media class to work with them to provide live streaming of our home sporting events during this upcoming winter season. They will provide equipment, training, and technical assistance to our students, so they will be able to video the game as well as provide play-by-play coverage. A link will be found on the KJAN website for the community to access, to view the game live, with our students providing the play-by-play coverage. This is an exciting time for our students at CAM. The Digital Media class will be working hard to master this skill and to provide the service to our listening area. The Digital Media Class also has a number of other business partners in the area that they are working with. Along with projects outside of the school, the class is providing digital announcements to the staff and students, as well as posting them on Twitter (CAM Cougar Channel) and Facebook (Cam Cougar Channel). There are many more projects to come and we are looking forward to working with many area businesses. Watch for more press coverage as we continue to grow!

Last week Mr. Symonds, the high school history and government teacher, conducted the Iowa Youth Straw Poll Survey. The students voted for the Governor, House District 3 Representative, and whether or not they will register to vote when they turn 18. There was 97 students who participated. Mr. Symonds said, “It was a great exercise for the students and it was interesting to see the results.” Mr. Symonds’ Government class counted the votes and the winner for Governor was Kim Reynolds and the winner for the House District 3 Representative was David Young.

On Friday, November 16th, a few students of the Ag Business class set out at 7:30 am, heading for Chicago, Illinois. This group of seven included: Sidney Aupperle, Haley Becker, Isabel Kinzie, Savanna Valeika, Blaire Wendt, Grace Hansen as a chaperone, and Mr. Miller. After they arrived to their hotel in Rosemont and got settled in, they headed to the “Windy City” by train. Since the 45 minute train ride got them to Chicago at a later time than expected, the group of seven decided to have a more relaxed evening to walk around downtown and explore, after they ate at Uno Pizzeria. Up bright and early on Saturday morning, their plan was to visit the Museum of Science and Industry. While at the museum, they were able to see and learn about the U-505 which was a German submarine. They also played with robots, walked through a mirror maze, and learned about the different stages of a pregnancy. Overall, the group had a great time at the museum and had a fun time playing with the exhibits. Next was the Navy Pier where they ate at Bubba Gumps Shrimp. After they were done eating, Mr. Miller had a surprise to show the group outside. The surprise was the city skyline all lit up. On Sunday the 18th, they had a full day. First the group went to The Field Museum. This museum didn’t grab their attention as much, but they learned tons of information about dinosaurs and animals from different countries. They were able to have access into an exclusive part of the museum where they had dug up tombs and mummies. Their second stop of the day was the John G. Shedd Aquarium. One of the group’s favorite things there was watching the dolphin show.Monday was the biggest day of the trip. The students toured the Chicago Board of Trade and were able to walk around on the trading floor along with Tommy Spawly and Rocco. They learned all about the buying and trading of options and futures. The last thing on their agenda was to go up the Willis Tower. Although it was foggy, it was still a cool experience to be “on top of the world” in the highest tower in Chicago. After the tower, it was free game. With their city passes, there was one other thing on there that they got to visit, the Adler Planetarium. There, they saw and learned about different planets and watched a short film about constellations and the stories behind some of them. The group of seven also visited “the Bean” and walked down Michigan Avenue to conclude their trip. Overall, the six girls and Mr. Miller had a fantastic trip in Chicago and left with lots of memories, inside jokes, and brains that are now overfilled with valuable information.

FCA, also known as Fellowship of Christian Athletes, is still looking for donations of travel sized shampoo, conditioner, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and razors. They are also asking for stocking hats, gloves, candy, and anything else people would like to donate. Items will be delivered to the Southwest Iowa Nebraska VA Hospital located in Omaha. They are collecting items up until December 18th. There is a box outside of the high school office where items are being collected.

CAM's Digital Media class made their live-streaming debut on Friday, November 30th, at the Boyer Valley basketball game. Eyon Steffensen and Tanner Williamson took to the microphone with their play-by-play coverage for both games. JoAnn Brahms was our video camera operator along with troubleshooting a few technical problems during the girls game. The link on the KJAN website was not functioning properly during the girls game but came to life for our boys game. The Digital Media class designed a banner on the front panel, introducing the group as the CAM Digital Network, which is the overall program name for the class and the projects they are working on for the school and the community. They have a Facebook page, Twitter handle, and a YouTube channel, call called CAM Cougar Channel. Our digital announcements are on Facebook and Twitter, on Tuesdays and Thursday. Check us out! To view these home, live-streamed games in the future, simply go to the following link to watch our CAM athletes playing “live”. This is a great opportunity for friends, relatives, or those who are unable to attend the game for any reason, to watch the game on their computer or phone. Go to: http://www.kjan.com/?cat=29 and click on the CAM Cougar Channel. The Digital Media Class is on the "Move!" Much more to come!!

On December 7, 2018, a small group from the CAM Digital Media class traveled with Mrs. Miller and Joni Ehm, to Treynor for the Cooperative Leadership Conference put on by the Greenhills AEA. The group of students included Andrew Holste, Jeremy Kopp, Blaire Wendt, and Josie Williamson. Andrew, Josie, and Jeremy interviewed many teachers and principals from various school districts in the area while Blaire recorded the live interviews. The staff members were asked questions about the four-day conference and included remaining questions they had about cooperative leadership. Peter Dewitt was the keynote speaker during the four-day conference and shared his interest in cooperative leadership with the conference participants. Andrew had the opportunity to interview Mr. Dewitt as time was wrapping up.