Engineering Students in the Spotlight
On November 9 at 9:30 a.m., months of hard work and planning went into effect for the students in Mr. Vermeulen and Mr. Bennett’s Engineering and Design Development class.
Starting in August, these students worked as a team to create two high altitude weather balloons. These balloons were launched with with GoPro cameras and APRS tracking devices attached. The balloons were expected to reach 100,000 feet into the sky and did just that, and they traveled 260 miles as well.
The balloons, called Genesis and Exodus, were launched by their student led teams from the Hobart High School football field. A select group of students from these teams had the opportunity to follow behind their balloons and track their location on a five hour drive to their landing locations. The students on the tracking team for the Exodus balloon were Jerry Lozano, Garrett Boggs, Andrew Enslen and Zac Compton, while the Genesis balloon team consisted of Mikayla Zakutansky, Adisan Funke, Noah Schuffert, Quentin Gomez, Mike Meagher, and Lucas Dombroski.
Beyond the tracking team, some students involved in the launch stayed back to keep a digital visual of the tracking on the balloons and keep the traveling team updated at the command center. Diego Gomez, Josh Hazard, Matt Holsclaw, Lennon Reyes, James Davis and Thomas Lozanovski, Eddie Jelinek, Shannon Murdock, David Castro and Alex Marler were all part of the command center.
The leaders of both teams were Jerry Lozano and Mikayla Zakutansky. As leaders of their teams, there was a competitive sense as to whose balloon would be more successful. At the end of the journey, Lozano’s team went only a bit further, but both teams had a victory in their balloons creation.
The balloons landed and were received in Defiance and Sandusky, Ohio, which meant a 10 hour total drive for the tracking team members.
Officer to the Classroom: Sandilla in the Spotlight
HHS had the privilege of welcoming many new teachers this year. In particular, Mr. Sandilla; he is the criminal justice teacher, and prior to teaching he was part of the Hobart Police Force.
In regard to his interest in Law Enforcement, Sandilla stated, “I was about 10 years old and met a Hobart Police Detective by the name of Steve Rettig. He was not only tough on the surface but was also down to earth and shared his experiences in law enforcement. Then, when I was older, I met more Hobart Police Officers and detectives that became my friends and eventually my coworkers.”
He spoke of his career as an officer and being on the road, which is not a distant memory for him.
“I loved working on the road. To me, every day was a new adventure or challenge. I supervised a great group of officers and we had a lot of fun working together," said Sandilla.
Sandilla had a large transition when it came to going from being in the department to becoming an educator. He explained that his weeks adjusting at HHS were hard to get used to; however, he was up to the challenges he faced. Sandilla emphasized the help his family has provided him in this transition.
He said, “Being a police officer is definitely a career where you need your family supporting you. Once I got to know the staff and students here at HHS, the classroom became a lot easier and more fun. Now, I’m proud of the career I had as a police officer, but I really don’t look back that often.”
He added, “I appreciate how my family has stood by my side through my career as a police officer and now as a teacher. They have made my transition to becoming an educator an easier feat.”
What’s Happening
November has been a month of magic on the stage for Hobart High School as they opened with their fall musical, The Wizard of Oz.
The show opened Friday, November 10 with a full house. It carried through the 11 and 12 and the following weekend on the 17 and 18. The crowds for this show were incredible and one of the highest counting of any HHS Theatre show in history.
The cast leads included Mikhail Greenwood as Dorothy, Nate Jenkins as Tin Man, Cassidy Belk as Scarecrow, Max Johnson as Lion. Additionally, Zoey Belk played the Wicked Witch, Madison Camacho as Auntie Em and Bradley Goben as the mayor/the head of the flying monkeys. As for crew, Aleena Popp was head of light design, Skyler Sherwood was in charge of makeup design, and Nicole Zabrecky led set design for this show with the help of the set crew. Kathleen Belk designed all costumes seen in the show.
The cast and crew alike put in immense work leading up to this show and executed it wonderfully. The weeks leading up were rough, but it all came together for Hobart’s Thespians.
Winter Sports on the Come-Up
Winter sports have gained speed, which means it is time for wrestling, swimming and basketball to all take their turn in the spotlight.
The wrestling team has begun their wrestle-offs, which consist of wrestlers on the HHS team in similar weight classes wrestling against each other to determine their places in the upcoming season. In regards to basketball, the boys’ team has already had their first scrimmage and had their first official game Saturday, the 25.
As for the swim team, the girls’ team had their first meet November 9 and started their season with an incredible kick. Student Emma Wright broke the school record of 54.87 with a 52.78 for the 100 Freestyle. Amanda Kowalski, Delaney O’brien, Becky Lozano and Emma Wright of the 200 Freestyle Relay broke the pool record for this event.
The boys of the swim team have yet to start their competitive aspect of the season, which will kick off with their first meet Saturday the 25 at Hobart Middle School.