John Wesley North High School - Aurora Yearbook (Riverside, CA)

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A c a d e m 1 c ' We ' re Number Two!! ' T did it for the company, re- L marked Edie Chang as she at- tempted to explain what had actual- ly compelled her to spend long hours interpreting poetry, discuss- ing the various battle strategies of World War II, and boning up on immigration (of all things!). Aca- demic Decathlon, she continued, is much more like being on an athletic team than other academic endeavors. Individual achievement is secondary, and the success of the team as a whole is what ' s most im- portant. Together, North ' s eleven decatha- letes made an impressive showing, taking first runner-up out of four- teen schools in Riverside county ' s fifth annual Academic Decathlon. Working together for a combined total of 35,069 points. North fin- ished approximately 2500 points behind county champ ' s Poly. The actual Decathlon consisted of a day long competition, in which comprehensive tests were given in writing, math, science, social stud- ies, English, fine arts, interview, and speech. Finally, the day was capped off by an oral superquiz on immigration. Teams consisted of students r epresenting three sep- arate grade point categories, an Honors (A) division, a Scholastic (B) division, and a Varsity (C) division. Aside from their outstanding showing as a team. North ' s indi- vidual accomplishments were even more impressive. Capturing first in fine arts and economics and plac- ing in the top three in practically every other discipline, Sabrina Grannan took honors as the indi- vidual sweepstakes winner, with the highest accumulative score to- tal. When asked about her success, Grannan replied, I won a lot of nice medals to show to my grand- children. Not to be out done Chang took first place in speech, and every other member of the team brought home medals for out- standing achievement. All together, North won thirty-three individual and team trophies. Awards were not limited to the starting six, however, as Wendy Roger and Sean Clegg had the highest two over all scores, respec- tively, in the alternates ' competi- tion. All of the decathletes seemed to agree that the greatest contribu- tions to the success of the team were made by their fearless leader and coach, Mr. Chuck Libolt. He has a whole filing cabinet full of just decathalon stuff! exclaimed David Moberly. Now is that true dedication, or what? The efforts expended by members of the teach- ing staff were also invaluable. Mi- chael Childers, Michele Lieux, Lin- da McCaskill, Gary Puffer, and John Reinhold sacrificed many after school hours in order to help the team in training. The actual competition was, for most, a very anticlimactic end to the season, however. I really looked forward to the meetings, sit- ting in people ' s living rooms while eating junkfood and digressing from whatever we were supposed to be covering that night, said Dean Sanematsu. Steve Wong sgreed, It wasn ' t the medals or the achievements, but the people that made the experience special. 208 academics

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Constructing j project of her own design, Kim Walker work-s on the frame of a spice rack. ■ Attractive items, such as miniature roll top desks could be built in Wood I. Arts Test Talent ± What s the point of blowing j horn, plucking a bass or beating a drum? For students ac- tively involved in the fine arts, they were forms of self-expression- in- dividual abilities performed at the highest level. Mr. Perry Hall, the new instrumen- tal director at North, taught three separate classes of music, empha- sizing theory and technique. Self discipline and motivation made a great musician, said Mr. Hall. I ' ve played the flute since the sixth grade, and was persuaded by my mother to learn the piano, said Sara Schaumburg, a senior in the wind ensemble. Combining her musical talents with a strong dedi- cation for improvement, Schaum- burg illustrated a true enjoyment of the fine arts. Music offered me a constant challenge through prac- tice and recital, remarked Schaumburg. Through the buzz of a saw or the clang of a hammer, students could hear the productive noises of the industrial classes. The industrial arts wing was the only place on campus where participants could work with a hands on basis in wood, metal, and auto shop. Wood- en cabinets constructed for school use, engine tune-ups, and other North services gave students more than just a grade at the end of a semester. Industrial arts appealed to the hobbyist or engineer of to- morrow, said wood instructor Mr. William Bains. For any person willing to use his hands, the classes offered away for students to use their imagination formally. Since working with metal was my favorite hobby. North supplied the materials for me to build a tool box and other projects, said Ara Boyranian. Whether enrolled for future occu- pations or just for fun, the indus- trial classes proved to be a worthy experience. ' V Standing straight and playing loudly, Ben Tyson and other members of the brass section run through the march Old Panama in wind ensem- ' ble. A variety of music was performed in the band classes, from hymns to concertos. I n d u s A r t s fine arts, industrial arts 207

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Gadzooks! exclaims an astounded Sabrina Crannan, as she jokes with teammate, Steve Wong. Humor and digression often served to lighten up otherwise hum-drum meetings. Pausing to look over his notes, Mr. Liboh lounges comfortably at a night meeting. The team met for an average of five or more hours each week. icning the tejoi tnascot for emotional support, Edie ing prepares to compete in the super quiz North answered lestions totaling 2,800 points, tying two other schools for hird place in the event. ACADEMIC DECATHLON TEAM, FRONT ROW: Sean Clegg, Caroline Pegis. Edie Chang, Sabrina Crannan, Wendy Roger, Dean Sanematsu. Steve Wong, TOP ROW: Lynne Wcsiafer. David Moberly, Catherine DeHayes, Coach Libolt (not pictured Jennifer Deal) D e c a t h 1 o n academic decathlon 209