Mountaineer Moments

Editor: Grace Corey

Fox recounts high school experiences, prepares to take next step

By Darrah Dickinson

The moment we’ve all been waiting for is fast approaching. Since many of us were five years old, we’ve been working towards this goal: graduation. As we open the door to a whole new world, saying goodbye, knowing there are so many unforgettable things we leave behind, is bittersweet. Soon, all we will be left with is memories; as we continue on, it’s important to hang on to all the things that made you who you are when you walk across that stage.

Of course, high school is also the worst place on planet Earth in the eyes of…well, everyone. Nobody is here for the petty teens and overwhelming workload. It goes without saying that leaving comes with a brilliant air of relief. Senior Miriam Fox says, “One thing I definitely won’t miss from [high school] is the cussing and occasional caressing in the hallways.” In her next chapter, she’s not only hoping for none of that, but “less gossiping, too!”

There is much that won’t be missed, but it’s important to realize that high school is the time for trial and error. All the things you hate become lessons that are learned and kept with a person for the rest of their lives. Fox recounts a time when she struggled with a single assignment for two months before she finally caved and asked for help. Finishing the assignment took less than a week once she found someone with new ideas to hold her accountable. Her lesson is, “Don’t wallow in your stress and exhaustion by yourself: ask someone with experience to help you through!”

Each of us will win some and lose some at every stage in life. Everyone can recount a moment when they were on top of the world, and another where they could find themselves at the bottom of a very deep hole with no hope of resurfacing…metaphorically, of course. There’s much Fox is proud of, such as succeeding in AP Biology as a freshman and doing the same in AP Chemistry and College Algebra at the same time, as well as winning Best Auxillary with her color guard team.

Rain or snow, Fox practices her flag work with her eyes on the prize: excellence. submitted photo

As a member of FFA, she also saw a lot of victories. She shares, “In FFA, I recently walked a stage in front of near 10,000 people for taking fourth out of 193 individuals in a Nursery and Landscaping contest. Earlier this week, I led a group of 100-plus youth in speaking with Governor Parson and other important people at the State Capitol.”

On the flip side, she found herself conforming to anxious feelings every semester. During lunch, she always takes a seat at a table where she isn’t fully comfortable. “I thought about changing tables or jumping in and simply changing the topic of conversation,” she says. “Yet I struggled to make a move to the point where I would often come home and cry with frustration!” Moments of great pride and great anger are staples for everyone during these formative years. The trick is to embrace it all and make the best out of every moment.

As high school winds to a close, seniors have to walk away from the thing that made up their entire life for the last thirteen years. It’s no secret that this is a difficult transition. When asked about how she’s feeling, Fox says, “I feel excited! I’m hyped! I don’t think of graduation as an ending, but as a new beginning. High school was exhausting and exhilarating, but I know bigger and better things are yet to come!”

So what are the “bigger and better things?” Fox dreams big, hoping to make a career as an agricultural entrepreneur or engineer. Further on, she hopes to “raise a large family and to run a small farm.” Before all that, however, she aims for personal development, such as growing her friend group and improving her social skills.

Fox shares her knowledge with younger students, hoping to cultivate the love for FFA in them that she has nurtured since her freshman year. submitted photo

As the seniors pack up and move on, there are several people who are just getting started. High school can be scary and intimidating, but at the end of the day, it is what you make it. The most critical tool you have is going to be your mindset; keep your head up, even when you find yourself at the bottom of your hole, and you’ll be just fine.

Finally, Fox offers some parting words of advice: “Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone! Try new things, make new friends. Failure equals growth and experience and eventually success!”

Hannaford, Heckman await hard-earned retirement

By Jacob Witmer

Ms. Hannaford shows off her pearly whites. photo by Tanya Hannaford

Tanya Hannaford, an English teacher here at Mount Vernon High School, has been working here for "27 wonderful years" and has enjoyed almost all those years and most of the students. Even in bad years, there were great moments.

Ms. Hannaford believes that school is built more for some students than for others and that school systems should be reformed to better meet the academic needs of all students. She isn’t calling out MVHS specifically, but rather all schools. In her opinion, Dr. Ladd has done a great job at trying to make that a reality through all the years he's been here.

Her most memorable moments are always courtesy of the class clowns. "On April Fools Day, there were a couple of boys in the little outcove of my room waiting for me so that they could spook me," and it worked; that day changed her feelings about April 1. "Those same boys were trying to set a timer in my room to have it go off and scare me but they twisted it the wrong way and it broke." It goes without saying that this ruined the timer and the prank.

Ms. Hannaford’s favorite subject to teach was English, especially when she taught Shakespeare. She loved making his plays accessible to kids who didn’t think they would like it or that it wasn’t for them, only to see them end up enjoying it much more than they expected.

Journalism is great because "it has a built-in audience for your writing, [whereas] in other [classes], it feels like it goes to your teacher and nothing else happens. With journalism, there are consumers of your writing. You get to see that all [come] full circle."

Ms. Hannaford will move onto a much bigger school Missouri State University this time instructing and guiding student teachers. She will check on them and make sure they’re on track for what they need as they finish up school in the hopes that they can become teachers themselves. Even when she's not teaching, she's helping us students by providing insight to future educators. She will be missed and loved by many, but sent off with an abundance of well-wishes. She will miss us, and gets a little weepy every once in a while, but she thinks it’s the right choice. Ms. Hannaford says to all the students, "be gentle to yourselves."

Thanks to Josie Myer, Riley Gipson, Evie Jones, and Izzy Rutherford, The Green and White Review was able to learn all about another retiree: Brad Heckman. Almost everyone who was interviewed said Mr. Heckman helped them overcome their fear of playing in front of people and grow their overall confidence in their playing ability. A comedic and facetious guy, he's also great at wood work and makes batons for other directors. Every student that goes into music education receives a custom baton from him.

He loves dogs and has two that he always talks about. He can be tough on the band students, but that’s what makes them so successful. Heckman is a very capable leader and he always tries to do what's best for the band.

Mr. Heckman's two doggos Lucy (left) and George (right).photo by Brad Heckman

Mr. Heckman stands proudly with 2022 senior band students (including his son Ryan, at left of Heckman), holding a gift the group made for him. submitted photo

Mr. Heckman is very passionate about what he loves, both in and out of school, including crafting batons. Upon retiring, he plans to continue making batons, honing his craft and enjoying the work.

He's very organized, and he’s very understanding of students’ tiny errors. If they forget their instruments or some other mishap occurs, he is excellent at adapting and problem-solving. His main instrument is the alto saxophone. As he continues onto this next chapter, the band kids send all of their support and hope to see him thrive in his retirement.

Scavenger hunt highlights importance of technology

By Nana Giorgidze

For the past couple of weeks, Ms. Jessee’s Computer Science class had the opportunity to do a few fun activities outside of their usual classwork. Innovative learning in classrooms should always be encouraged, and Ms. Jessee did just that: to spark the students’ creativity and provide practical skills that are beneficial to them in the future, the Computer Science class held a QR code scavenger hunt for its students. The hunt involved creating QR codes that were linked to hidden clues around the school, and the students had to solve the riddles to find the codes.

Ms. Jesse holds up her own QR code. photo by Nana Giorgidze

When asked about their experience, junior Keira Monroe said that she enjoyed solving the riddles to find the codes. She added that she learned how to create QR codes, which is a practical skill that she could use later in her life.

“Being able to use the technology that's available to us is very important, especially as it becomes more and more prominent in everything around the world,” says Monroe.

Another student, sophomore Alyssa Collins, said that the activity was a great break from their regular coding classes, and she appreciated the critical thinking it required. “This type of activity most likely benefited the students' ability to receive constructive criticism and useful feedback from their fellow peers, which would be quite helpful in real-world situations they might encounter in the future,” says Collins. She also emphasized that QR codes have the potential to be an important tool since anyone with a device can make and scan them.

For this project, Ms. Jessee explained that the primary purpose of the assignment was to give students real-life experience creating QR codes and learning how to link them to various things. In her class, students work with programming, but they also have many other opportunities: “In the Computer Science class, we work with robots, fly drones, and the goal is that students will be able to program either to run a list of their commands. As the students are learning the coding language, they get the opportunity to design a game, make a dance party, and create/design various other apps,” says Ms. Jessee. The QR code scavenger hunt was something that provided a break from programming.

Sophomore Alyssa Collins hangs up a scavenger hunt clue. photo by Nana Giorgidze

Students attempt to scan the code and solve the clues. photo by Nana Giorgidze

“The scavenger hunt was interesting. The students were all engaged and excited. The outcome was mixed and a learning curve for future scavenger hunts. Since this was a new assignment, there were ups and downs!” explains Ms. Jessee. For instance, some clues were not specific enough or too hard. However, the students enjoyed the freedom of setting up the hunt and watching others solve their riddles. Ms. Jessee believed that the scavenger hunt was beneficial for the students because it required them to create a plan, think logically and be creative. We hope teachers can take an example of such activities and incorporate them into their classrooms.

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