GreatNews.Life Student Voices: New Prairie High School celebrates the teachers that make school possible

What’s recently happened?

Teacher appreciation week at New Prairie High School (NPHS) is always an event students look forward to organizing. This year, the celebration fell from May 4-8, and the National Honor Society (NHS) worked with its members to ensure teachers are properly recognized for their efforts through food, cards, and more.

To get as many students involved as possible, the NHS also reached out to the various booster clubs of the area to obtain donations. Among those who were able to donate, New Prairie Volleyball provided breakfast from Monday to Wednesday, and lunch from Wednesday to Friday. Other notable donations included lunch from Boys Basketball, breakfasts from Girls Basketball and the New Prairie Education Foundation, rootbeer floats from the Choir Booster, a beverage station from Boys Football, and much more.

In addition to the food and items provided by donors, members of the NHS were each tasked with writing a heartfelt card to at least one teacher to show them they are valued.

“It was such a great opportunity to make cards for the teachers to show them how much we appreciate them. They do so much for our school and I loved being able to let them know that they are appreciated,” Senior Ava Lux said.

The time and effort put into showing love for the teachers not only proves their impact on the student body, it teaches students how to show their gratitude for the immense amount of work done by teachers to keep students engaged.

“Every teacher at our school does so much to help all of us students. It felt amazing to be able to show them that we care and appreciate their efforts. They have to deal with a bunch of high schoolers driving them crazy everyday, so they deserve it all,” Senior Abby McKinney said.

What’s coming up?

As June creeps closer and graduation looms overhead for many seniors, this time can also bring a myriad of different emotions.

“I’m so thrilled to start a new chapter of my life. I’m sad to leave my friends but excited for all these new opportunities,” Salutatorian Jenna Kelly said.

Some students have been a part of the New Prairie United School Corporation for 13 years and can be understandably conflicted about their next steps, but others are just ready to move on and start the rest of their journey.

“I am so excited to be done with this chapter in my life. Usually people say graduation sneaks up on you, but I feel like I have been waiting for years,” Senior Jenna Lenig said.

NPHS’s graduation ceremony will be held on June 7 starting at 2 p.m. central standard time. The gates will be open one hour beforehand and there is no cost to attend.

Staff Spotlight:

Angela Ruby is the guidance counselor at NPHS for students with the last names H-N, but she helps students in many more ways than just scheduling their classes.

“School counselors work with all students on academic, social and emotional, and college and career planning.  While it isn’t always the role of a school counselor, I take on the role of testing coordinator at NPHS and organize standardized testing for the high school.  This is something I started doing when I started and have a system that seems to work and I enjoy planning and organizing events,” Ruby said.

Having received her Bachelors of Business Administration in Marketing and Professional Sales in May of 2004 from the University of Toledo and her Masters of Science in School Counseling in May of 2011 from Butler University, Ruby is very prepared to help her students.

“At the University of Toledo, I was a member of Delta Delta Delta sorority, a Student Wellness Awareness Team (SWAT) member, and spent lots of time working in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions as a front desk worker, tour guide and caller on the teleteam,” Ruby said.

Ruby has been a school counselor for 15 years and all of them have been with NPHS, but she didn’t always see herself as a counselor. Entering college she believed she wanted to work in the medical field.

“I was good at math and science and wanted to make a lot of money. I started college as a pharmacy major, but that only lasted a semester before I changed my major to sales and marketing,” Ruby said.

After college, Ruby had a job in business that she didn’t necessarily love, and she transitioned into college admissions.

“I reflected on my interests, strengths and weaknesses and found college admissions; I loved my time as a tour guide at Toledo. I then worked at Ohio University and then Purdue University West Lafayette as an admissions counselor for a total of five years,” Ruby said.

Through her work as an admissions counselor, Ruby met school counselors that she enjoyed interacting with, prompting her to get her Masters and transition to school counseling.

“I think my favorite thing about my job is that there is always something to do and you never know what might come up. Every day is different. I also get to meet some amazing students and families. Working with juniors and seniors on planning for life beyond high school is one of the areas I enjoy most,” Ruby said.

When not helping students, Ruby can be found reading, shopping, doing home improvement projects, or watching college football. She also enjoys spending time with her family.

“I spend most evenings and weekends at a game or taking kids to and from some kind of practice. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Ruby said.

Student spotlight:

Senior Callie Miller is heavily involved in the NPHS community, having chosen to participate in cross country, Student Senate, Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), NHS, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), and track. She is also captain of the Cross Country team, Treasurer of NHS, and President of FCA.

“Though I do love all of the clubs I participate in, my favorite would definitely be cross country. The community that surrounds this sport is so special and I’m so grateful I was a part of that,” Miller said.

As a Senior, Miller has had many experiences made more special by her status. This includes the football games, during which she served as one of the Cougar Crazy, the group of students tasked with leading cheers, setting themes, and generally keeping spirits high.

Miller has also had plenty of time to sample all that NPHS has to offer in terms of classes and events.

“My favorite class I’m taking right now is child development because it is so interactive and will help me in my future career, but my favorite class I’ve ever taken would be human body systems in the biomedical pathway at New Prairie. I love all things healthcare so this class was so much fun for me,” Miller said.

Miller will be attending Indiana University Bloomington to receive a degree in Community Health. She hopes to work in pediatric occupational therapy in the future. While she has some nerves regarding her freshman year of college, she is mostly looking forward to what’s to come.

“I’m so excited to have new opportunities, be with my roommate, and experience game days,” Miller said.

Miller also loves hanging out with friends, running, shopping, and crafting when she isn’t in school or participating in her extracurriculars.