News Briefs for Sep. 17 – Sep. 30

Avani Rai, Editor-in-Chief • Sep 30, 2022

SkillsUSA National champion recognized at School Board meeting

Katelyn Olson (’24) was recognized at Unit 5’s September Board meeting for earning a gold medal in the Medical Terminology event at the National SkillsUSA competition.

Olson was the one of three Illinois high school students to earn gold in their event at the 58th annual SkillsUSA competition, the world’s largest showcase of skilled trades.

Olson placed second in the event at State as a part of the BACC SkillsUSA chapter, qualifying her to compete in June’s National competition held in Atlanta, Georgia.

Storm damage to Community athletics facilities

Severe storms and record winds caused thousands of dollars of damage to Community’s outdoor athletic facilities on Sep. 19.

Among the damage were the soccer field bleachers, the softball field’s visitor dugout, and the tennis bleachers. In addition, the storm uprooted trees, damaged fencing, and ripped the pole vault mats from their moorings.

Students fundraise for Community Health Care Clinic

Students donated $224.69 to the Community Health Care Clinic, a Normal non-profit providing free healthcare for McLean County’s low-income and uninsured residents, the week of Sep. 19.

Mr. Dave Feeney’s AP Literature and Composition, which raised $102.65, was recognized as the 3rd-hour class with the most donations during the week-long competition.

The fundraiser was led by Lauren Cutler (’23) and Shloka Ravinuthala (’24) through the Youth Global Citizen program.

Community hosts Key Club’s Central District conference

Key Club’s Central District Board held their annual Fall Leadership Rally at Community Sunday, Sept. 25. The event served to foster greater leadership and networking among the District’s local officers.

District Editor Riya Prasade (’23) and Lieutenant Governor Vanessa Ng (’25) joined other area District officers conducting local officer trainings, team-building activities and service program workshops for the attendees.

Speech team selected

16 veteran competitors and six new team members, including five underclassmen, were named to Community’s Speech team after two tryouts.

Auditions for returning members were held Sep. 1, and tryouts for interested new students were conducted on Sep. 19.

Due to the inability to fill the head coach position, Ms. Jackie Zeman, after stepping down from the role last season, returned as Head Speech coach, assisted by Ms. Eden Henri, a Pepper Ridge Elementary teacher.

National Honors Society officers elected

National Honors Society members elected five seniors to serve as chapter officers for the ’22-23 term after virtual voting took place Sept. 14-16.

The following students were elected to leadership positions:

Riya Prasade – President
Sonika Tamilarasan – Vice President
Karthika Nair – Treasurer
Adithya Sathyamurthy – Secretary
Aria Biavar – Public Relations Officer

Choir performs in fall concert

The five choir classes and Key of She and VoiceMale acapella groups performed in the annual fall concert on Sep. 26.

Student Council hosts New Student Breakfast

Student Council welcomed 49 students new to the district with food and games at the annual New Student Breakfast in the fishbowl during 2nd hour, Wednesday, Sep. 28.

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that five of the new speech team members were freshmen.

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About the Contributor

Avani Rai, Editor-in-Chief

Avani Rai is a senior at Normal Community High School and is a part of the Speech Team, FBLA, and Swim team. This is her second year working with the Inkspot, where she is a senior staff reporter. Random fact about me is I've been to 10 countries outside of the United States. My hidden talent is that I am a fantastic procrastinator. My slogan to live by is never be afraid to make someone's day. Whether that's something small, like complimenting someone in the hallways, or something big, like advocating for what you believe in.