What’s recently happened?
A group of 21 Lake Central High School (LC) publications students recently got back from a school field trip to Boston, Massachusetts. The students and advisors had the amazing opportunity to attend this year’s JEA Fall National High School Journalism Convention from November 1-5.
This was the first national convention for some, while it was the second national convention for others.
At the convention, there were sessions going on all day with a large variety of topics. Students were able to pick which sessions to attend and learn from successful advisors and figures within the journalism industry. This trip was a great experience with many learning opportunities for the publications students.
Ashtyn Payne, co-Editor-in-Chief of Lake Central Television (LCTV), was able to go on the trip and attend her second national convention. She feels that it was a great learning experience for herself and her staff.
“My main goal was to bring the experience and knowledge that I learned from the convention back to my staff,” Payne said.
In addition to the valuable learning that took place on the trip, the publications students were able to venture out and explore the history of the city. They visited the Freedom Trail as well as Fenway Park.
“My favorite part was sightseeing with the whole group,” Payne said.
These publications students worked hard by submitting videos and photos into contests at the convention. LC had nine students receive awards at the awards ceremony on the last day of the convention.
“The biggest thing I took away from this convention was that, if I like what I produce, it doesn’t matter what anyone else says,” Payne said.
What’s coming up?
As we approach the holiday season, LC will be hosting and participating in several donation drives to give back to the community.
Interact Club has already hosted a food drive. The club was looking for nonperishable items and hygiene items to donate to the less fortunate. It posted flyers around the school to spread the word about its drive.
LC was also collecting used glasses to donate to needy villages in Mexico. This was through the East Chicago Leos.
Coming up on November 20, LC’s football and volleyball teams are having their third annual pajama drive. Last year, over 1,000 items were collected, and the teams are hoping to get even more this year.
Each class, from freshman to senior, is suggested to bring in a different size range in order to get a variety of sizes to donate.
They are partnering with the Salvation Army. This donation drive will be open from November 20 - December 1.
LC recognizes the importance of giving back to the community, especially during the holiday time.
Staff spotlight:
Room C111 is always full of laughter and positive energy at LC. This is because of Kristina Ochman’s personality and passion for teaching.
Ochman attended Purdue University Northwest to earn her teaching degree in social studies education. Ochman has been teaching for nine years now. She also previously served as a guidance counselor within the Lake Central School Corporation for 12 years. Ochman has her master’s degree in school counseling.
She has taught a variety of different classes at LC. Currently, she is teaching government and psychology.
Outside of school, Ochman has two sons and is always on the go. Her kids are involved in sports, and she enjoys traveling for baseball with her family. They recently went to Cedar Point in Ohio and had a great time.
Ochman helps out at LC whenever she can by doing the scoreboard and announcing at basketball games. Sports play a big part in her busy life.
Ochman is a people person as well.
“I enjoyed being in high school, I had a good high school experience. I knew I wanted to have a job with people; I couldn’t just sit behind a desk all day. I wanted to interact with people,” Ochman said.
It is important to Ochman that she shows her students that she is human too.
“My biggest thing is that, if we have to be here for seven hours, it can still be fun. It’s okay to laugh and have a good time. Not everything is so serious,” Ochman explained.
She shows this clearly through her teaching. Ochman creates a great learning environment where there are group discussions often. She interacts with her students as equals.
“I want kids to see me as a real person. I’ve got kids of my own. I have bad days, and I have good days. Things happen,” Ochman said.
She hopes to make her students feel comfortable enough to talk to her if there is something going on.
Ochman strives every day to create a positive and fun atmosphere within the walls of her classroom.
Student spotlight:
Bella Connelly is a senior at LC with a kind heart and giving personality. Along with her selflessness, Connelly is incredibly involved at the high school. She is in the Asian-American Club, Latino Club, Dollars for Scholars, and Future Medical Professionals.
While being a member of four clubs, Connelly is also the captain of the Girls Tennis team at LC.
Outside of school, Connelly enjoys shopping and getting her nails done.
In addition to her many hobbies and activities, Connelly is a humble and dedicated leader with determination. She was able to organize and coordinate a babysitting fundraiser for a good friend of hers struggling with aplastic anemia.
Connelly used to babysit Clare McShane. McShane was re-diagnosed with aplastic anemia this year.
The first time McShane was diagnosed six years ago, Connelly’s mom organized a fundraiser at McShane’s elementary school. They were able to raise thousands of dollars. This time, Connelly knew she wanted to be the one to take action and help McShane out as much as she could.
There is a lot that goes into planning an event like this. Organizing this fundraiser was a months-long process for Connelly.
“We had at least three main fundraiser ideas cycle through. We were going to do a car wash, but I used to babysit for them, so I decided babysitting would be a good idea,” Connelly said.
Once Connelly decided on the babysitting idea, the process started to move along. She pitched the idea to Mark Jonas, a State Farm employee, and he loved it. He agreed to sponsor the event.
Connelly worked hard to advertise the fundraiser and spread the word. People started to share it, and soon, everyone was talking about how great it was.
“Even if people couldn’t go to the fundraiser, or donate, they could still share it,” Connelly said.
The fundraiser was held in the Lake Central Fieldhouse and ran by student volunteers. Connelly created a team of volunteers by asking her friends and classmates in the clubs that she participates in.
Parents were able to drop their kids off from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. to hang out with student volunteers and play games on October 20. It cost $5 per kid per hour.
There was a smile on every kid’s face, and they all had a great time. The group played kickball, soccer, and basketball.
All of the money earned went directly to the Children’s Organ Transplant Association for McShane.
Connelly feels extremely passionate about raising money for McShane.
“This is important to me because it’s such a hard thing. Especially for a child to have this twice, is so hard. Aplastic anemia has fewer than 20,000 cases in the U.S. so it’s rare. She’s a child, and once she overcomes it, she’s able to have her childhood. You don’t want her to miss out on things that every other kid gets to experience. I feel if we can help her as much as possible, she’ll be able to get back to her normal self,” she said.
Connelly explained how she always sees McShane smiling, even in her worst moments. She wants people to know that McShane is just the sweetest little girl, who deserves nothing but the best.
Connelly has been sharing a link to an online T-shirt store where people can buy shirts to support the cause. She is also currently planning to have another babysitting fundraiser sometime in December.
The world would be a harsh place without giving people like Connelly.