Meadowbrook High School - Sceptre Yearbook (Richmond, VA)

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Digging for Gold? Wood Technology students, Tom O’Brien, Oakley Waddell, John Worch, and Ron Wetzler install their hand-crafted benches along the 300 hall walkway. Curved grades? A “C” student wonders whether the “+” is more of a help than a hindrance. New Grading Scale: A Plus Or A Minus? R eport cards for tons of joy- ous students throughout Chesterfield County were blessed with an extra “+” as changes were made to the county grading policy. These changes were done supposedly to help alleviate the county's high dropout rate. But how did this really affect the students? Mr. Randy Rowlett stated, “it made students work less because it was a wimpy grading scale.” “| don’t think it got any easier or any harder because when the system changed, the way the teachers graded changed along with it,” explained freshman So- nya Simmons. Another student agreed that “‘it was just too easy to not fail, espe- cially when you've been used to the old scale.” Many students did seem to concur that the grading scale made life easier on them in some cases, but for the most part the teachers adjusted their systems enough to keep everything basi- cally the same. Classroom Activities 9

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s students strived for in- dividual excellence their efforts provided an excellent overall impres- sion of every educational de- partment in the school. Also, students found that learning does not always take place in the classroom, and that often it can be a fun experience. Over 20 of the papers sub- mitted by science students placed in the annual VJAS competition, outclassing all other schools in the county, and four of the winners placed first. One of many accomplish- ments in the Math Depart- ment came at the VCU Math Contest. Two teams placed in the top 10, one in third, and the other in eighth. The Advanced P.E. class kept themselves busy with numerous field trips, one of It’s Over. Tired of doing her En- glish, Marchelle Payne catches some sleep in the library. Tapping the FBI? Erica White con- centrates on interpreting the com- puter screen. 8 Classroom Activities Striving Tor Success Students Worked For Excellence In All Areas which was to the James River Park for rapelling and climb- ing. The group also canoed, played golf, bowled, and took in some racquetball. In other news, a new pro- gram began this year in which Ms. Deborah Rizzo's 6th period class became pen pals with students at Hop- kins Elementary School. Cultural awareness was a focus of the Social Studies Department this year. They brought in Yayoi Kurita from Japan as a guest speaker. Black History Month and field trips to Washington D.C. were other happenings aimed at promoting cultural integration. English was in full swing as several students entered the Write Now Contest. Fea- tured were: Steve Goldsby (first in prose) and Kristen Miller (Honorable Mention for prose). The Young Author’s Con- test also had many entries. Dawn Ruhlen won first in the countywide contest for her short story. Special con- gratulations are extended to Becky Woodson for placing second in the state for her short story, Never Changing World. The Business Department a financial contributor to childhood cancer research. This endeavor, enttiled the ASK project, raised $1600. Several scholarships were awarded to business stu- dents as well. The $200 FBLA Award went to Shereen EI- nahal, while the Internation- al Management Council granted a $1000 scholarship to Marty Terrell. Home Economics fostered a varied classroom life with many guest speakers, includ- ing Rev. Chambers from Branch’s Baptist Church and a speaker from Johnson and Wales with a culinary dem- onstration, and another from Kings Dominion talked about job interviews. In other areas of interest, the Child Care students sim- ulated pre-school with 4 year-olds from the Wee Folks Nursery, as the Life Management Class helped with the spring musical by fabricating costumes. Six Home Economics stu- dents received awards at dis- trict proficiency events. Trina Crawford and Shannon Pipes, went on to receive statewide recognition. On an international scale, the Foreign Language De- partment was priviledged again to house foreign ex- change students. Magdelena Muedra, Maria Alonso, and Finger Flourishes. Mike Acosta demonstrates the talent of applying make-up delicately to a Hening ele- mentary student. Don’t touch! Mrs. Williams’ Biology students spend a day at the Marine Science Museum in Virginia Beach exploring nature.

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10 Classroom Activities Helping Hands. Anika Lamb receives assistance in locating a book from Library Media student Derrick Oates. Magnetic interference. Computer student, Ja- son McKnight, becomes acquainted with the newest technologies. Building houses. Technical Drawing teacher, Mr. Allen Danielson shows his students the proper way to design a layout. First Day Roll. Sallie Mae Award Winner, Su- zanne Clark takes roll in her first English class. You Say ‘‘Potato,’’ I Say “‘Spud’’. Reading Spe- cialist, Roberta Mukadam goes over vocabulary words with Deborah Cox. Tai-Chi Math, Gordon Morton-Grenke takes a breather from Mr. Cather’s math antics to see what's going on in the hall. Civil War re-enactment. U.S. History student Chris Hyatt “becomes” a general-for-a-day Mrs. Rusher’s class. It’s Just Temporary. Family Living students pose for album photo after the mock wedding cere- mony. — ——— wi