High school seniors present final projects

Wrangell's senior class showcased its various projects May 6 inside the high school commons. Parents, faculty, students and community members mingled between booths and displays as the seniors explained what tasks they had taken on for their requisite service project.

"There's just so much diversity in what they do," said secondary schools principal Colter Barnes. "I love the diversity; I like the service behind it. And it's a nice time for the seniors to showcase their talents."

Students set to graduate are required to adopt a task or service project as part of their senior-year curriculum. Within some guidelines, they are free to pursue a variety of tasks.

For example, Laven Ritchie decided to clean up the shooting range on Spur Road.

"I shoot a lot out there and pay attention to what people do there," he said. Ritchie noticed a number of items dumped or left behind after being used for target practice. Because of its distance from town, he reckoned it received the least attention of Wrangell's public amenities.

"I think it definitely needed some cleanup," he said. From April to the beginning of May he hauled out and disposed of a number of items, including lots of televisions and old computer monitors. Ritchie went a step further and swept up the scattered glass and debris as well.

David McQueen spent time this spring working at St. Frances Animal Rescue. In addition to repairing the facility's roof and floors, he also helped keep the shelter's many cats company.

"I have a strong love for cats, and all these cats are homeless," McQueen explained.

Other students also pursued their personal interests to assist existing programs and events, such as the horse club or local recycling program.

Jeffery Rooney Jr. worked with Evergreen Elementary School's wrestling program, teaching students the basics. An avid wrestler himself, Rooney took third place in his weight class at the State Championships last December. This was his first experience ringside, as an instructor.

"I can say it was a challenge, but overall, I enjoyed doing it," he said.

Similarly, Mason Dingwall coached youth basketball for the parks and recreation department. It was also his first time coaching, taking two second-to-fourth grade teams under his wing.

"This is all a new experience," he said. "It was just something I like to do."

Corey Goicoechea revived the WHS Pep Club, after noticing there was not enough school spirit at local games. He searched online for ideas, making posters and getting students involved.

"I hope that they're going to continue it," he said, with the high school adopting the program in future years.

Molly Prysunka introduced a dozen middle schoolers to yearbooking, in the hopes of getting them interested in the program.

Over several meetings, she introduced students to photography and the Adobe InDesign and Photoshop programs. Students then came up with their own designs and edits.

"They came up with some pretty cool stuff," Prysunka said.

Some students joined forces to approach their projects.

Baylee Thrush and Aaron Howell worked with Krissy Smith in setting up and promoting the Children's Health Fair in October. The pair got the idea from Howell's grandmother who is involved in the annual event.

"It sounded like it'd be kind of fun," Thrush said. The two further explained it felt good to support pediatric health in the community.

Malachi Cole and Justus Mikkelsen worked together created a wooden bench shaped like a tree, using the wood shop's new CNC router.

"We built it from scratch," Cole explained, basing the design on one they found online and guessing at the dimensions.

"We built it on our AutoCAD," Mikkelsen explained. The computer program is used to design two- and three-dimensional objects, the cuts for which are then rendered by the router.

Cole and Mikkelsen hope to have the school's art class decorate the bench next year and have it used on campus.

Charlie Colier, Ben Florschutz and Kacie Galla helped with this year's Southeast Alaska Regional Artfest, which Wrangell hosted last month. Sixty students and art teachers from the region's high schools came for four days of classes and presentations.

"We designed the logo," Colier explained, which went on posters and t-shirts created for the event. The students also helped organize sales and orders for the shirts.

"I designed the website," Florschutz said. The three discovered putting on such a sizable event takes considerable effort. "It helped me realize how much planning goes into this," he added.

This year's 22 seniors will be having their graduation ceremony at the high school tomorrow at 7 p.m.