What’s recently happened?
This year, Crown Point High School (CPHS) added boys volleyball and girls wrestling to its plethora of school sports. Due to Title 9, which took action to ban discriminatory activities, the school added girls wrestling and boys volleyball. While the wrestling season ended this past winter, spring sees the start of volleyball season.
“The state decided to make it an emerging sport which is just a great opportunity for the guys,” said the boys volleyball coach, Gabriella Argenta.
Argenta played volleyball when she attended high school and has been a volleyball coach for the girls program for six years.
“I love volleyball, so I was just really excited to be able to work with a guys program and get it started,” Argenta said.
The team just started its season and is now competing in conference play. The team just recently played against La Porte and Merrillville and will face them again later on in the season.
“Most of our team has never played volleyball before, so at the start of our season, we’re working on skills and getting the guys comfortable on court,” Argenta said.
As the team gets accustomed to playing, the boys volleyball team hopes it can further advance in sports divisions.
What’s coming up?
CPHS’s Excalibur Yearbook staff is set to hold its annual book distribution in late May. Facing numerous technical issues, by December the staff had lost all of its progress on fall sports and activities. The program they used, Adobe InDesign, was no longer available to them so they had to make the switch to Herff Jones eDesign.
“Yearbook was challenging this year because of many factors. First, it was the first year that our staff was split in half due to the abundance of students enrolled in the class. Second, our entire system was rendered compromised for the better part of two months. Both of these were huge factors that became challenges that the entire staff, as well as Isabella Robles, the co-editor-in-chief, and I had to overcome,” Marianne Gerona, co-editor-in-chief said.
Since the staff was split up, communication was harder than past years, especially with both editor-in-chief’s in one class. It was a team effort to get the book done on time.
“Communication was key this year to help solve the former part of the issues that came about. As for the latter, we transferred onto the new program, eDesign. This caused another change in the year, forcing us editors and staff to adapt to this new program,” Gerona said. “Although we missed InDesign at first, there were a few perks that came along with this new program. For instance, creating cutouts became automated and easier for our staff, and we had the ability to tag photos and the accessibility to be able to search and know a student’s name and grade by just searching them.”
The staff had two and a half months to get acquainted with the new system and complete the book, as well as restore their past fall spreads. Because of their hard work, they get to partake in distribution this year.
“Even though we had an array of challenges, I think we pushed through and created a beautiful book,” Gerona said.
Staff spotlight
CPHS’s Ashley Cosme teaches Marine Science and Biomedical Innovations. This year Cosme competed in the Mrs. Indiana America 2023 Pageant.
“I was just sitting next to one of my friends at a wedding and she had done the Miss USA system, and she told me about the Mrs. System. I did some research on it and emailed the director,” Cosme said.
After getting in contact with the director, Cosme proceeded to work with her coach, Jackie Blankenship, a past Mrs. America winner. From there, Cosme traveled to South Bend, Ind. to get her headshots taken and begin her interview prep.
“I went in there with the focus of presenting the best version of me. When I went into the interview I wanted the judges to know how passionate I am about girls in STEM, which was my platform. I wanted them to know that I am a true adventurer and explorer and that a lot of what I bring into my classroom is life experiences that I have had,” Cosme said.
Science as a whole has been a passion for Cosme, stemming from her education at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Fla. in Marine Biology.
“I was doing a bunch of sea turtle research, but if I wanted to advance my career and actually work hands-on with animals, I would have had to go to grad school and possibly get my PHD. At that time in my life. I wasn’t ready for that, so I explored other options and landed on teaching,” Cosme said.
Cosme started teaching marine science in Florida for five years, after which she moved back to Indiana. Back in Indiana, she taught regular biology. While teaching, Cosme had been requesting a marine science course to the administration. This year Cosme was able to start building and teaching the course.
“It’s really exciting because I get to bring in my own personal experiences that I have had since college. I’ve done a lot of work with sea turtles and sharks, and the kids love hearing about that. I bring in real specimens and animals that the kids get to see. I think a course that’s never been taught before is exciting because I am the only one that teaches it and I get to really pour my heart and soul into it,” Cosme said.
CPHS congratulates Cosme for winning Mrs. Indiana. The school also thanks teachers like her for showing passion and pouring their hearts into the courses that they teach.
Student spotlight
Allison Amo is a captain cheerleader on the school’s varsity team and just recently won MVP at Nationals.
“I’ve cheered for my whole life. It’s a part of who I am, and it just makes me a better person,” Amo said.
Amo is now a junior, and she made varsity her freshman year. Amo has found an outlet in cheerleading where she feels safe to express herself.
“The coaches have really played a big part as have all the girls and the environment. It’s part of who I am, and I can’t imagine my life without cheer,” Amo said.
After getting done with performing at sporting events, the cheer team started to practice its routine for Nationals. Amo is a base in the routine.
“Though I like games better, I do like the competition aspect of getting a routine and perfecting it. I like getting to perform for a crowd on a mat. Getting MVP was really exciting. I was very proud of myself. It didn’t just happen overnight. It takes a lot to be a leader,” Amo said.
Being a role model can prove to be a challenging test, but students like Allison Amo prove that with hard work and dedication they can do whatever they want. CPHS can’t wait to see what Amo has in store for her senior year.