First Ever Baseball Season Begins

paigwilliams — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:24:32 +0000

Greenwood Christian Academy is overjoyed to have its first ever competing baseball team. Coached by Doug Hagist and assisted by Brad Walters, the team is working hard to build a strong program. Fortunately, the team is young and has some outside experience, which means there is the time and talent to become a well-built team. Kyle Stidom, senior, commented, “It’s fun starting a program and being the leader of a team again.” So far this season the Cougars have a record of 1-3 but are not discouraged because they have thirteen games left for improvement.

National Honor Society Welcomes New Inductees

paigwilliams — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:21:51 +0000

Every spring the National Honor Society inducts its new members for the end of this school year and the upcoming school year. Mrs. Jackson oversees the National Honor Society and was very pleased with how this year’s induction went. “I thought it was a very classy induction that honored its new members for all their hard work.” Mr. Hagist was this year’s guest speaker. He spoke on how to keep applying the four pillars of NHS, character, scholarship, leadership, and service, in everyday life. It was a very nice speech that had a great challenge to the students. Nich Frost, senior, was one of the inductees and he said, “The induction went very well with so many students joining. I feel that NHS is a great way to step up and be a leader with a group of students that want the same thing.”

We Can Only Go Up From Here

paigwilliams — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:19:32 +0000

Greenwood Christian Academy’s enrollment for next year is ever-increasing, which means that space needs to increase as well. The plan to build a new wing next to the gym is underway and on schedule. Mr. Peters reports that currently there is a concrete slab. The next step is to get all of the building permits, which should be completed by next week. Peters says that the short term benefits of the expansion will be, “more students and smaller class sizes,” and the long term benefits will be, “more opportunities classroom-wise and extracurricular-wise. “

Sixth Graders Visit Creation Museum

paigwilliams — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:18:04 +0000

Helping to build the foundation to their beliefs of what God really says about how the world was made, the sixth grade class took a field trip to the Creation Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio. The field trip was a success and the students all really enjoyed themselves. “It was a really great day and the students had a great time!” said Mrs. Walters, one of the chaperones that went on the trip. The Creation Museum is a state of the art museum that is over 70,000 – full of exciting exhibits that shed light on what the Bible says about the creation of the universe. Besides the exhibits to visit, the museum also has a huge garden that contains a petting zoo and over 500 different types of plants. One of the favorite parts of the day for many students was getting to feed the camels at the petting zoo. The class was able to experience almost all that the museum had to offer and had a great day learning about God’s power and creativeness.

Yellow Brick Road Leads to Success

paigwilliams — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:16:17 +0000

The GCA drama class starred in the play “The Wizard of Oz” this weekend and was labeled a great success from everyone who attended. The wicked witch, Paige Williams, senior, said, “It was a good play to end my senior year! Because it went so flawlessly on Friday night, it encouraged everyone’s confidence to finish the next two plays with success!” Wendy Brown, senior, who played Dorothy in the play said, “It went a lot better than expected! At first everyone was freaking out because drama practices weren’t going well, but in the last few days of practice everyone pulled together and it all worked out!”

Spiritual Emphasis Day Brings Students Closer to Christ

paigwilliams — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:13:10 +0000

Every semester, GCA takes a day off the regular class schedule to emphasize spirituality. On Spiritual Emphasis Day, students go through a series of worship sets, chapel sessions, and various games.

Students started out the day with either game time or a chapel session. The first speaker was Ken Johnson, a former Cincinnati Bengals player. Following him was Bruce Humphreys from Mount Pleasant Church. In the third and final session, Pastor and Chairman of the Board Wayne Murray spoke. Many students and teachers were impacted by the sermons that the men delivered. “It was really good. I could really feel God’s presence there throughout the day,” commented Megan Ruggles, senior.

In between each session, students were able to take a break by playing games like Frisbee, volleyball, and football. There were also many class competitions to participate in. Spiritual Emphasis Day gives the students a chance to grow closer to God and closer to their fellow classmates.

Senior Night: A Time to Honor Leaders

paigwilliams — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:10:20 +0000

Starting off Senior Night was the JV boys’ basketball game against Baptist Academy. Although they won by fifteen points, they did not achieve that win easily. According to freshman teammates Noah Shingleton and Brayden Murray, it was Coach Beaty’s half-time speech that put some fire into their game. Shingleton then went on to add, “The first half was shaky, but the second half was a lot better.” Once again Alec Brown, freshman, played a scrappy game. Teammate and friend, Mark Gibson, freshman, exclaimed, “Big Al makes the floor shake!”

Finishing an intense game with a score of 65-51, GCA’s boys’ varsity team came out with yet another win. Senior and captain, Kyle Stidom, had a great game with twenty-five points and eighteen boards. Even though the stands were packed out, the guys kept their cool and competed extremely well with long time rivals, Baptist Academy. It was a refreshing win that immediately followed the guys’ loss to Crispus Attucks, which was only their second loss this season. They all kept their heads and played a smart ball game.

Following the JV game, two seniors who participated in winter sports were honored. Kyle Stidom and Meagan Davis were escorted onto center court by their proud parents. They were each presented with a basketball that was signed by their team. Davis participated in GCA basketball for two years and commented, “It has been awesome! I love my teammates.” Kaitlyn Ruddick, sophomore, who has played ball with Davis for the past two years commented, “It was fun playing with her. She will be missed.” Stidom participated in GCA basketball for four years. He commented, “It has been fun, rewarding, and an honor. I have had a great time over these four years.” Coach Satre, Stidom’s varsity coach for the past four years, commented, “It’s been really great having him on the team. I am really going to miss him. He has been a huge part of the program and a big part of our success. I am really going to miss him not only as a player but also as a leader and great guy in our basketball family.” These two will be greatly missed in GCA’s sport’s program in the coming years.

8th Graders Hit the Slopes

paigwilliams — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:08:16 +0000

Each year the 8^th grade class takes a ski trip. The students are studying different aspects of physics and applying it to how the skis work in the snow. Mrs. Jackson started this a few years ago to give students a way to apply the things they are learning. Mrs. Walters teaches 8^th grade science this year, so she took them. The students had a great time this year even if there were multiple wipeouts, none serious just comical. Emma Maze and Mary Manship both said that their favorite part of the trip was learning how to ski. “I learned even though I’m pretty clumsy,” said Manship. Briana Lawrence said her favorite part was “going really fast down the hills. It was a lot of fun!”

Gold Medal Won at State ISSMA Competition

paigwilliams — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:06:31 +0000

For the past couple years, GCA has had the opportunity to participate in the Solo and Ensemble competition. Choir students can sing for a panel of judges individually or in an ensemble. “I like that you actually have to be good; it’s more of an ability competition,” stated Ashlynne Keller, junior. A gold, silver, bronze, or no metal are rewarded after the singing. Qualifying for state were Ashlynne Keller and the high school ensemble including the following: Kelly Eby, Katheryn Grissom, Ashlynne Keller, Stephanie McQueen, Claire Williams, and Paige Williams. Those who received gold medals are the following: Ashlynne Keller, Kelly Eby, Hailey Harris, Landon Schellin, Daisy Shull, and Brigette Mobley. The high school ensemble was also awarded a gold medal. Sydney Ilko and the high school large ensemble (Kelly Eby, Katheryn Grissom, Hailey Harris, Ashlynne Keller, Stephanie McQueen, Breanna Shaub, Calire Willaims, and Paige Willaims) received silver medals. “I’m really proud of them,” stated Mrs. Bradshaw, choir director. “It’s an accomplishment that we made it to state in our second year of competing.”

The Ensemble group scored Gold at the ISSMA Division I State competition on Saturday. Students in this group include seniors Paige Williams and Stephanie McQueen, junior Ashlynne Keller, sophomores Katheryn Grissom and Kelly Eby, and freshman Claire Williams. After qualifying for State,” I was really excited because last year we qualified but did not get to go,” said Paige. Besides ensemble scoring Gold, Ashlynne also received a gold medal for her solo. “I was so relieved and proud of myself after I found out that I scored gold,” she said.

Incredible SAT Score by Junior, Michael Hodson

paigwilliams — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:04:51 +0000

Junior, Michael Hodson, recently took the SAT at Greenwood High School and scored a 2050 out of 2400, becoming the highest scorer in the school district. His study process was to study an hour a day every day for as long as he possibly could until his scheduled test. Different study guides he used to achieve his incredible score were online tests and quizzes and a number of SAT study books. When asked what advice he could give to others who will be taking the SAT he said, “First, if you get books to help you study, make sure that you are constantly looking and paying attention to how the writer’s word the question and understand their way of thinking. When you do that, the answers to the problem come to you much easier. Second, be sure to bring food and water to snack on to give you energy during the breaks. Thirdly, Stay calm and don’t second guess yourself. ” Hodson also wanted to point out that whoever is taking the SAT must write in cursive.