French Exchange -- Carlie DeBack

If my name seems familiar it is probably because you know my mother Mrs. DeBack the Graphic Production teacher here at HUHS. On Thursday, October 16, 2014, 17 French exchange students arrived at Hartford. You may have seen them or heard about them running around. These students come from a town in the South of France called, Carpentras, where we have a sister school. The students were greeted by their hosts after school on Thursday,  one of which being me. My French student, Cholé, was very excited to arrive and finally meet me in person after emailing each other for weeks. The conversation are going well; many of the French students have been learning English since around age 8, but they are also teaching our students many things about French culture and pronunciation of words. The students are here for two weeks, which are very full of activities, but still find time to come to class with us a couple of days. 

The students are not only attending class with their hosts, but also visiting several places around Wisconsin, like Milwaukee, Madison and even Hartford. They attended the Hartford vs. Slinger game and many of them are going to Fright Fest this weekend. They will surely return home with many new stories to share with their friends and family. 

Meet Carlie!

Carlie, a sophomore, is our final blogger this year.  Carlie has wandered the hallways of HUHS since she was little, as her mother is a TEE teacher at the school.  She is the oldest of four children, so she is paving her own way at HUHS.  While Carlie will tell you that she likes to read, write, and draw, she says that either Math or Graphics is her favorite class.

Just like our other bloggers, Carlie is involved in various activities at HUHS.  She is a member of the Swim Team, Skills USA, and Track and Field.  She has become quite accomplished in both Swim and Skills USA.  Her relay team recently broke the 200 free relay school and pool record; she and her team or looking to compete at the State level.  Carlie is not a stranger to such a high level of competition.  She qualified and competed at the National event for Skills USA this past summer in the category of pin design

One of Carlie's passions is photography and you will find her around school, on the field or court capturing many exciting moments at HUHS.  Creativity abounds in Carlie, and she is currently learning to play the guitar.

Nearing the End -- Andy Childs

As the fall is starting to come to us in Hartford, the rest of the senior class and I have a busy schedule to tend to. Whether you’re in multiple AP classes or you’re simply enjoying the ride of senior year, there is always something to be involved in around the school.

Currently, as a member of student council, I am spent most of my time after school working on the decorations for the homecoming dance this year, “Safari Samba.” This last Wednesday, in fact, my group of council workers and I began to trace and paint the panels (or large paintings on the stage) for the dance. I hope that all of you enjoyed the dance and can appreciate the constant hard work of Student council!

On another note, many seniors have already or are beginning to apply to colleges for freshmen year. It seems very far off to me, but I just submitted my application to the University of Wisconsin Madison for next fall! I, and many others in my situation, can only wait patiently for a reply. I constantly need to remind myself that I will still be alive if I don’t make it in.

By this point in the year, I have gotten to know my teachers very well! Unfortunately, they have also gotten to know me… creating the decision for some to steer clear. Either way I have “enjoyed” reading a book entitled Ethan Frome this last week in my AP literature class and have recently started studying limits in AP Calculus.  But in all seriousness the book wasn't that bad.

I would like to thank Mrs. Parker for giving me the opportunity to speak for the senior class and I look forward to this next year sharing current events. 

Meet Andy!

Andy, our senior blogger, is already setting his sites on next year. Currently wading through college applications, Andy's first choice is UW-Madison, where is sister Allison is in her junior year.  This year his schedule includes four AP classes, his favorite being AP Economics, and he hopes to study finance in the future.

Andy has been a member of Varsity tennis since his freshman year. However, last year he explored a few of the other co-curricular offerings at HUHS, joining both Student Council and Model UN.  He had a tremendous impact on Student Council garnering one of the "Rookie of the Year" awards during the 2013-2014 school year.

While school takes up a great deal of his time, Andy likes to spend the free time being outdoors, playing tennis and fishing when he gets the chance.  He is also able to squeeze a part time job into the mix  Andy lives in the southern part of the HUHS district, so he has the added joy of a 20 minute drive to and from school.

Be sure to follow Andy's witty take on the road to graduation, as member of the class of 2015.

A Brand New Year, Brand New School -- Aysiah Jaeke

Hi. I am Aysiah Jaeke, a freshman at HUHS. Although school just started,  I am already incredibly busy. Being part of different activities such as Student Council, the musical, and golf has made my schedule crazy, but it has also made my transition into high school a lot easier.

 On the first day of school, I was a bit nervous. I am really glad that I went to Freshman Jumpstart and Freshman Orientation because it really helped me find all my

classes and get there on time. It was kind of hard to adjust to kids in the hallway because there are so many people, but I can now say that I have successfully made through my month without being tripped or getting lost.

In the first couple weeks of school, I have already gotten tons of homework. After golf practice, I have to go home and start working on assignments right away. Although during resource I may want to talk with my friends, I have found that it works better if I focus on homework. Resource is such a helpful period because I can work with different classmates or go to teachers for help. I have also learned that high school teachers are no scarier than middle school ones. My teachers all seem to genuinely care about my success and are ready to help me wherever I need it.

One of my favorite classes so far this year is biomedical sciences. The class includes high school students of all different grade levels, which is cool because I can meet people other than freshmen. So far, we have been working on a crime scene investigation. It’s really cool to do labs that are similar to things that some people actually do for a job and to learn more about crime scene investigators. I love the hands-on aspect of everything here at the high school.

So far, my year has been going great, and I hope that it will continue to be like this for the rest of my four years at Hartford Union High School. 

Meet Aysiah!

Our freshman blogger, Aysiah, has some pretty big shoes to fill, for her older sister Elisha has set the bar high, but Aysiah is definitely up for the challenge.  In a short few weeks, she has found her way around the building and is feeling at home as the school year moves on.  Aysiah comes to HUHS from Central Middle School, and is a second generation Oriole, as both her parents attended HUHS.

Wasting no time in getting involved, Aysiah is a member of Student Council, she is a part of the musical, and a part of the golf team.  Aysiah is a member of the Treble Choir, and she also enjoys playing the violin as well.  Theater is in her blood; she has been a part of 14 productions with various local theater and dance groups, garnering one of the leads during middle school.

While she engages the left side of her brain often, she admits that science is her favorite class and is looking forward to the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) BioMed class.  Science is intriguing to her because there is always something new to learn.  Already, the class has piqued her interest with the crime scene investigation scenario.  For Aysiah, it was fascinating to see all the elements of science that goes into an investigation.

Joining the Student Council at HUHS was a logical progression for Aysiah, as she was the president of her middle school council.  She is looking forward to getting involved in the HUHS community through Student Council and is excited to be working on the Homecoming events for 2014.

Make it Great -- Aaron Nytes

It's the beginning of a new school year! Time for the "beginning-of-the-year-jitters", and procrastination to start kicking. My name is Aaron Nytes. Yes, brother of the outgoing Jackie Nytes and the outspoken Ian Nytes. I am very active around the school, and I, as well, am excited for the new year. 

We all have that feeling of excitement, but the sad truth is, eventually, that will be set aside as feelings of despair and anxiety start to kick in. It won't be long until we are all counting down the months, days, and the *tick*tick*tick* seconds.  As we get piled on with homework and essays and responsibilities and... Umm... More essays; we will all begin to hate school again, as we did last year, and the year before. But, I ask of you, while you are already starting to look forward to the summer,why not try and make this year great. It's a year you will never get back. "The glory days" they call it. Why don't we try to make them glory-filled? Why don't we make it the best we can be? Try enjoying free learning, as the next step will most likely not be free. As a pessimistic-optimistic would say, we have to be here anyway, why not make it great? Enjoy the beginning of the school year.