February Success
by Kyle McGowan, Superintendent
February 23, 2010
This time of year includes closure to several activities. Congratulations go out to County Spelling Bee champions who are coached by Mary Unger. Crete swept the first three places in the 7th & 8th grade division: 1st place: Madeleine Brand-LaBarge, 2nd place Caleb Ristvedt and 3rd place Cassity Youssef. Keelin Schlosser and Chelsea Arnold placed second and third respectively in the 5th and 6th grade division. Caleb proceeded to win the district spelling bee and will join Madeleine representing the area at the State Spelling Bee held at Creighton University on March 13th.
All three of the high school Robotics teams have qualified for the Tournament of the Americas to be held in March. Head coach, Mike Smith is assisted by Kathy Koerner; they have been very successful with a team of 26 students.
Doane recently hosted an annual History Day competition. Miranda Sinkule’s presentation on, “The Red Cross; An Innovative Life Saver” finished 2nd and allows her to move on to the state competition held at Wesleyan in April.
Congratulations to the Crete cheerleaders as they received their highest place finish at the Nebraska State Cheer and Dance Championship held in Grand Island this past weekend. The wrestling team also had a great season and finished 8th at State with five qualifiers.
Conference and District Speech competitions are taking place. District boys and girls basketball tournaments are around the corner. National FFA week begins and the Crete Quiz Bowl team is preparing for conference competition. Schools do offer many activities for students. Students who participate in extra-curricular activities must stay academically eligible. Research demonstrates, as does our own local experience, students who are involved in these extra activities tend to perform better in the classroom than peers who are not involved. I believe activities are an extension of learning in the classroom which helps develop a well-rounded individual and a productive citizen.
