Our Schools in the News: UCHS Student receives Dance Award

Nice recognition for yet another talented University City High School Student!

From the St. Louis American August 17, 2016

Nia Spencer receives Career Award from Dance St. Louis

Nia Spencer received a Dance St. Louis Career Award. She is a student at University City High School and captain of its dance team. She will receive help from Dance St. Louis with auditions, summer intensives, supplies, letters of recommendations, coaching and anything else to help her succeed in the field of dance.

Our Schools in the News: BCJ teacher named finalist for MO Teacher of the Year

Barbara C. Jordan Elementary School Teacher Nancy Luebbers has been named a finalist for Missouri Teacher of the Year. Ms. Luebbers is the 2016-2017 University City Teacher of the Year. Congratulations to Ms. Luebbers and the many, many fantastic teachers in our district who work so hard for our kids, day in and day out.  We are so proud!

From the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch, August 25th, 2016

University City and Lindbergh teachers are among finalists for Missouri's best  
From staff reports

An elementary English teacher in University City and a high school English teacher in the Lindbergh district are among seven finalists for Missouri's teacher of the year.

The local finalists are Katherine Arens, who teaches at Lindbergh High and Nancy Luebbers who teaches at Jordan Elementary.

Other Missouri finalists are from Camdenton, Hollister, Fort Osage, Lee's Summit and Savannah.

According to a state news release, nominations for the award were submitted by school districts throughout the state, and the finalists were chosen by a selection committee appointed by the Department. The seven finalists were narrowed from a list of 31 regional teachers of the year.

The selection committee, comprised of teachers, business leaders and education leaders, will choose the Missouri Teacher of the Year following interviews with each finalist on Aug. 30. The winner and the finalists will be honored at a banquet on Oct. 24 in Jefferson City. The teacher selected will serve as the state’s nominee for the National Teacher of the Year competition.

The state's current teacher of the year is Linda Glasgow, a third grade teacher at John Nowlin Elementary in Blue Springs.

The Value of Making Mistakes: 2016 Valedictory Speech

UCHS 2016 Valedictorian Lydia Soifer was kind enough to share with us her inspiring speech, delivered at the May 18th graduation ceremony.  Lydia attended U. City Schools for 13 years, beginning with kindergarten at Jackson Park Elementary.  She will be attending Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina this fall, studying  biological sciences. 

All of us have gone through thirteen years of school to make it to this point. At times it was great — we succeeded by getting a good grade or pulling our grade up after studying really hard for a final. But at other times the journey was a bit rougher. Maybe you didn’t quite get the grade you had hoped for or maybe there were things going on outside of school that made it difficult to get homework done. Either way, at these rough times we are faced with potential failure.

About a month ago, I stumbled upon a quote that stood out to me, as it was describing a predicament I see myself facing on a regular basis. It was a quote by Eckhart Tolle, “The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.” For me, this quote applies to almost every aspect of life. In school, is it better to challenge myself even though I might fail, or should I take the easier route for guaranteed success? When I am in ballet class, should I try a triple turn and fall, or should I stick to a double because I know I can do one? In piano, should I practice even though I know I will fail the first few times, or should I continue to put off working on a hard piece because I am afraid I will never succeed? In each of these scenarios, the option that will result in improvement is the challenge, the option that might lead to failure.

Every single one of us has been faced with options such as these. None of us like to make the decision because the right choice requires us to step outside our comfort zone. We have to challenge ourselves even though it is difficult and may seem impossible because the difference between failure and success is not what distinguishes between a successful and unsuccessful person — what determines the difference is how we fail. One option is to give up, but this is no better than immediate success. We don’t learn anything, we don’t push ourselves, we don’t challenge ourselves to do better. The other option is to analyze our failure, figure out why we failed and how we can do better next time, and then, despite the fear of not succeeding, picking ourselves up and trying again. Maybe we will be successful the second time, but maybe we will fail again. We might even fail ten more times before we succeed, but each failure can teach us a lesson about ourselves. Whether it be learning a technique in art class or learning that if you think positively, you are more likely to make a successful pass in a football game, each failure can let us know how we can improve and eventually succeed.

As all of us leave U. City, we will find ourselves faced with many decisions, some of which will lead to immediate success and some which might lead to failure the first few times. We might be faced with the decision of whether or not to take the harder class in college, or we might have to decide whether or not to take a job that will push our skills beyond their current limit. At these critical points in our lives, we must remember that it is okay to fail. As we take the next step into life, we will be presented with many challenges, defeats, and failures. But these are not what marks our success. That is determined by our ability to take those challenges at which we did not succeed the first time, turn them around, and make them into successes which we can say we are proud of.

Thank you for your wise words Lydia, and best of luck to you in all of your future endeavors!  We know you will continue to make U. City proud!

Barry Williams: A Student's Tribute

Here on the "Say Yes to U. City Schools" blog we love to talk about our fantastic students, teachers, and programs. Today we have a story that combines all three: a touching Facebook tribute to a former Brittany Woods Middle School teacher from a student whose life was profoundly affected by the robotics program he started. 

Science teacher Barry Williams served in the district from 2000 until his retirement in 2013, with four years as the science department head. In 2009 he started the district's first FIRST robotics program, the Soaring Eagles FLL team. Since then the program has grown and spread, and hundreds of U. City students have benefited. 

One of those students, UCHS 2015 graduate Walter Deitzler, took to Facebook in 2013 to talk about how Mr. Williams influenced him:

"June 7, 2013

Today I played guitar at the retirement ceremony of the single, most influential teacher in my life, Mr. Barry Williams. Many, if not all of you, know that I am addicted to robotics, Mr. Williams is the teacher that influenced all of this. Before 7th grade, I knew that I wanted to go into a STEM field, but was not sure what exactly I wanted to do. Then, I joined Mr. Williams' FIRST Lego League robotics team, and ever since my life has been changed. He had a passion for us doing robotics. If we wanted to meet before school, he would be there bright and early to let us into the lab. He would allow us into his room at lunch to build robots, and on top of that, we would have our meetings after school for 2-3 hours each day. On Saturdays he would arrange for the school to be open so that we could build robots for another 6-8 hours. In 8th grade, he was my Science teacher, and allowed us to build our robots for FLL in his class. He led us to victory in every single qualifier that we ever attended, and we had reasonable success at St. Louis area championships, both years I was in his program. He nurtured my passion for science, and made me the budding young mechanical engineer I am. he will be sorely missed in the district.

Thank you Mr. Williams!"

Mr. Williams passed away earlier this year, and now Walter is a mechanical and aerospace engineering student at the University of Alabama in Huntsville

. Once again he took to Facebook to remember Mr. Williams and his impact:

"June 7, 2016 

Mr. Williams passed away earlier this year. He had a large impact on all of those he taught, and especially me. He dedicated all of his free time to inspiring students to go into STEM, and was just a great all around teacher."

Rest in peace Mr. Williams."

Barry Williams was just one of many, many excellent and dedicated teachers we are so fortunate to have here in U. City.  These individuals make a lasting impact on our students each and every day, and we are grateful. 

Our Schools in the News: Post-Dispatch names Korinna Brandt 2016 Scholar Athlete

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch recently named University City High School senior Korinna Brandt as one of their 2016 STLHSS Scholar Athletes.

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 18, 2016

University City: Korinna Brandt

Academic rank • 7 of 203.


Sports • Field hockey, swimming water polo.


Academic bio • Scholar Athlete Award; Northwestern University Book Award; National Field Hockey Association Academic Scholar Award; PTO Scholar Award.


Athletic bio • Captain of the University City Varsity field hockey team and water polo team; honorable mention for the field hockey all-conference team.


Activities • Member of the National Honors Society; member of the Gay Straight Alliance; ran the Go! St. Louis Half Marathon with Students on the Go.


College • Missouri State University.


Goal • "As an adult I hope to be in a profession where I can help people. While I'm not entirely sure what I want to do later in life at the moment, I know that whatever it is will hopefully make a difference the lives of those around me.”


Favorite subject • Biology

Our Schools in the News: Brittany Woods Students Launch Streetwear Line

Check out this article from the Riverfront Times about two of our Brittany Woods Middle School students!


St. Louis' Hottest Streetwear Line Was Created by Two 8th Graders
Posted By Sarah Fenske on Mon, Apr 25, 2016 at 6:50 am

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MXTRO MVB
Gunnar Wurst, left, and Daivion Crawford.

In their artfully layered streetwear, Gunnar Wurst and Daivion Crawford might be any hot young clothing designers on the streets of Soho or Brooklyn — except for the fact that they live in a suburb of St. Louis, and neither is old enough to drive.

Wurst, 13, and Crawford, 14, founded MXTRO MVB in the winter of 2015, inspired by Supreme and the other streetwear brands they stalk online. The way they describe it, the whole undertaking sounds remarkably easy. "Within one to weeks, we made a logo, put it out and got ideas going," Wurst says. They launched their website soon after, initially offering two shirts and two hats.

Since then, they've expanded to add two more shirts, but they've got much bigger plans for the future. Their classes at Brittany Woods Middle School have included sewing (part of the Family Consumer Sciences program) and fabrication, prototyping and modeling (part of their class in Industrial Arts). They want to begin cutting and sewing their clothing — "jackets, pants, and a lot of things that are harder to do," Wurst says. They've been using materials from the Small Business Administration to fine-tune their business model.



PHOTO COURTESY OF MXTRO MVB

Part of their goal is an accessible price point. Their idol Supreme may charge $48 for a T-shirt — if you can even get one; most of the products on his website are in a perpetual state of being sold out — but MXTRO MVB charges $15 for a short-sleeve shirt and $22 for a long-sleeve.

"You see the clothing that kids are into, they go for crazy money," says Crawford. "We're trying to make it affordable."

It helps that overhead is low, of course. They personally took their line's promo photos. They also serve as the models, and found a site that will host their online presence for free. Both set of parents have been supportive. (Wurst's dad teaches industrial design; of his own father, Crawford says, "My dad's into fashion, and he inspired me a lot." But, he says, he doesn't wear MXTRO MVB: "I think he's too old for it.")

The summer could be a big one for MXTRO MVB. Wurst has a trip planned to New York City, and he suspects he'll find plenty of inspiration in the city's fashion district to share with his business partner. The young designers also plan to get to work on that new line of clothing — one they sew, not just have printed.

"Through the summer, we're going to get a sewing machine and get the fabrics to do it," Wurst promises.

That's the thing about being thirteen and fourteen. Once school is out for the summer, you have all that time free .... to work.



COURTESY OF MXTRO MV

UCHS Grad Wins Peace Grant to Train Indigenous Women Leaders

Congratulations to Caroline Martinez, University City High School Class of 2012!

From Bowdain News

Caroline Martinez ’16 Wins Peace Grant to Train Indigenous Women Leaders
March 31, 2016 by Rebecca Goldfine

After her parents separated, Caroline Martinez ’16 left Ecuador for the United States with her siblings and her American mother. She was 16. Now, as her graduation from Bowdoin draws closer, Martinez is eager to return to her home country. Although she has appreciated her college education, she said she has often felt too distant from the cause she’s committed to.

Since she was a teenager in Ecuador, Martinez has been fighting for the rights and welfare of the country’s 14 indigenous nationalities, which include the Kichwa, Waorani and Cofan people. These groups are in danger of losing rights over their land, natural resources, water, schools and medicine. Since coming to Bowdoin, Martinez has seized several opportunities to continue being involved, including using college grants to do sociological research in indigenous communities.

As a child, Martinez’s Ecuadorian father would tell her not to forget that while some of her blood is European, some also comes from indigenous people. “Mestizo people are indigenous people, too,” he would tell her. Mestizos refer to people of mixed heritage, and in Latin America, they often enjoy greater privileges than indigenous people.

Martinez’s dedication to working on behalf of indigenous people, particularly women, received a boost recently when she won a $10,000 grant from the Davis Projects for Peace foundation. The organization supports undergraduates who want to implement projects around the world that contribute to conflict resolution and peace building in some way.

Martinez will use her funding to organize a series of free leadership trainings in the highland communities of Ecuador. With an Ecuadorian partner, Carmen Lozano, Martinez will teach women of all ages, from teenagers and up, skills such as public speaking and how to draft project proposals and implement them. The workshops are designed to encourage women to organize to promote the welfare of their communities. “The workshops will give women a chance to speak with each other about what they face and what they want,” Martinez said.

This summer, Martinez will travel to 14 highland provinces to offer the training. She anticipates that about 200 women will attend. At the end of the summer, she’ll invite all the participants to a great assembly. “The idea is to form a core of indigenous female leaders and this core will be able to teach other, organize and be an advocacy force for women,” she said.

Martinez is going into her project well-versed in the needs of indigenous women. Last summer, with funding from Bowdoin’s Grua/O’Connell and Surdna Foundation research fellowships, and support from a Mellon Mays fellowship, she conducted sociological research in Ecuador. She interviewed 10 indigenous women leaders, aged 40 to 66, about their life stories, and listened to them talk about what has helped them achieve their position of prominence and what has held them back. “My goal was to understand how these women were able to become leaders in their community and be in a position where they could create change for both women and indigenous people,” she said. This year, she wrote a thesis paper for an independent study, outlining the services or opportunities that would help more indigenous women gain influence and also describing what is holding them back.

One of the requests she heard over and over from the women she spoke with was for more leadership training.

After being gone for five years, Martinez said returning to Ecuador was joyful for her. “I felt very happy to be there again. But doing research didn’t feel like enough. I’m not going to just write a paper and that’s it,” she said. She asked herself, “What can I do now that I am outside this situation to contribute to women and indigenous people’s struggles?”

After she completes her summer of leadership trainings, Martinez said she will start thinking about attending a graduate program in sociology in her country. She said there’s no question about her leaving Ecuador again. “It is where everything I care about is,” she said.

UCHS Journalism Students Receive Numerous Awards

University City High School Journalism students received over 30 state-level awards at the Missouri Interscholastic Press Association (MIPA) Scholastic Journalism Day at University of Missouri in Columbia on Wednesday, April 6. Publications students accepted the awards at the closing ceremony where 1300 state-wide journalism students and advisers were in attendance. Congratulations to these outstanding students and their fabulous teacher, Ms. Mary Williams!

2015-16 MIPA State Journalism Awards
[Ratings: All Missouri, Superior, Excellent, Honorable Mention]


Overall Publications Awards:
U-Times Newspaper: All Missouri (Christine Politte, editor-in-chief)
U-Times Online Newspaper: Excellent (Payton Bass, editor-in-chief)
Yearbook (2016 edition): Excellent (Emily Looby, editor-in-chief)

All-Missouri Awards
Newspaper News Story (Borrowed Logo): Christine Politte (editor-in-chief)
Newspaper Editorial (School Spirit Shrinks): Christine Politte (editor-in-chief)
Yearbook Theme/Concept: Johanna Hill and Hannah Fuller (co-editors-in-chief)
Yearbook Student Life Design (Love Actually): Johanna Hill (co-editor-in-chief)

Individual Awards, Reporting:
Excellent, Newspaper Sports Writing: Kathryn Fuller
Excellent, Newspaper Feature Writing: Francene Bethune
Honorable Mention, Newspaper Feature Writing: Jaylen Williams
Honorable Mention, Newspaper News Story: Christine Politte

Individual Awards: Diversity Awareness
Superior, Newspaper Editorial (Straight Outta U. City): Payton Bass
Superior, Newspaper Editorial (Black Students Need More): Payton Bass
Excellent, Newspaper News Story (Fox, Ritenour Students): Kathryn Fuller
Excellent, Newspaper Feature (Black History Evades…): Jaylen Williams
Honorable Mention, Editorial (The Kids Aren’t Alright): Payton Bass

Individual Awards: Design
Superior, Newspaper Design (Homecoming Spread): Christine Politte
Superior, Yearbook Student Life Design: Hannah Fuller
Excellent, Yearbook Student Life Design: Aniya Kendrick
Excellent, Yearbook Academic Design: Cat Hoff
Excellent, Yearbook Sports Design: Cat Hoff
Honorable Mention, Newspaper Spread Design, Christine Politte

Individual Awards: Photography
Superior, Yearbook Photo Essay: Johanna Hill, Della Cox, and Hannah Fuller
Superior, Yearbook Sports Photo: Jermarcus Perkins
Superior, Yearbook Personality/Portrait: Cat Hoff
Excellent, Yearbook Sports Feature: Taneya Parker
Excellent, Yearbook Student Life: Christine Politte
Excellent, Newspaper Student Life: Lucy Wurst
Excellent, Yearbook Student Life: Johanna Hill
Excellent, Yearbook Personality/Portrait: Cat Hoff
Honorable Mention, Yearbook Personality/Portrait: Johanna Hill
Honorable Mention, Yearbook Photo Illustration: Taneya Parker and Hannah Fuller
Honorable Mention, Yearbook Sports Feature: Christine Politte
Honorable Mention, Yearbook Sports Feature: Hannah Fuller
Honorable Mention, Yearbook Student Life: Cat Hoff
Honorable Mention, Yearbook Student Life: Christine Politte (x3)

Fifth Annual U City FLL Warm Up at UCHS

On Saturday, September 26th, University City High School was host to the fifth annual University City FIRST LEGO League Warm Up.  This event, sponsored by U. City Robotics, brought together 27 teams and approximately 125 students plus parents and mentors from across the region and as far away as Cape Girardeau.  FIRST LEGO League (FLL) introduces young people, ages 9 to 14, to the fun and excitement of science and technology. Teams, composed of up to ten children, build and program an autonomous robot to score points on a thematic playing field, as well as research and create a presentation centered around creative and innovative solutions to a problem (this year they will seek to solve the world's trash problems) and adhere to set of core values known as gracious professionalism.

The teams came to the Warm Up for an early chance to test drive the robots they are building and programming for the 2015 FLL challenge, TRASH TREK.  While there was no official refereeing or scoring, they had an excellent opportunity to meet and compete with other teams, and to practice for the upcoming November qualifiers (two of which will be held at Brittany Woods Middle School.) The event is also used by FIRST LEGO League of Eastern Missouri to train referees for the upcoming competition season.

FLL teams get the chance to play
this year's robot game in a timed
environment. 

Technical support was on hand to assist teams with design, building, and programming as well as subject expertise for the project presentations required as part of the competition.  The City of University City sent an employee from Waste Management, and Washington University sent six subject experts to help with project research.

Students get expert help on their research projects.

Six of our own district FLL teams, from Jackson Park Elementary, Flynn Park Elementary, and Brittany Woods Middle School, participated in the event.  All district teams were sponsored by Rankin Technical College, who was also a sponsor of the event and provided technical support staff.

Members of the Brittany Woods team make adjustments
to their robot.

Our high school robotics team, the UCHS Robolions - FIRST Robotics Competition team #3397 - brought their competition robot to demonstrate and even allowed some of the kids from FLL to try their hands at driving it.  The Robolions also provided help with set-up the night before, and volunteered at the event in various capacities, including providing programming expertise and support.

UCHS Robolions team members
set up the FLL competition fields.

FIRST  (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) was founded in 1989 to inspire young people's interest in science and technology. In 2015 FIRST programs will reach 400,000 students around the world through four leveled programs for kids K-12.  FIRST kids are significantly more likely to attend college, major in science or engineering, and be outstanding future employees and citizens, For more information, please visit www.usfirst.org.  

UCHS Students on the Go! in Half Marathon

After months of training, a team of University City High School students joined runners from across the nation for the 15th annual  Go! St. Louis Half Marathon on April 12th, 2015.  This year's course took runners across the Eads Bridge into Illinois and then back into downtown via the MLK Bridge, with a loop around the Anheuser-Busch Brewery, finishing up at Soldier's Memorial.

Congratulations to the kids, teachers, and coaches!

From Brittany Woods to the World!

Saint Augustine wrote that "the world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page."  If this is so, then one group of 8th graders from Brittany Woods Middle School are well into their first chapter. Under the direction of French teacher Alexis McGeahy and Latin teacher Madelyn Roth, thirteen students along with parent chaperones had the opportunity to dive deep into the history, culture, food, and beauty of Europe on a once-in-a-lifetime spring break trip.

After fundraising for over a year, the group spent ten busy days exploring London, Paris, Rome and surrounding areas. Highlights included Colosseum, the Pantheon, the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, Vatican City, the Palace of Versailles, the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, and Westminster Abbey.  One traveler called it, "the most fabulous time of our lives."

Plans are already underway for next year's trip, which will include Paris, Lucerne, Munich and Heidelberg, with stops at Neuschwanstein Castle and Dachau concentration camp. They are still accepting students, and travel arrangements will be through EF Educational Tours.

Thanks to Sarah Holahan and Joycelyn Barnes for the photos.

Be Our Guest: UCHS Presents Beauty and the Beast!

The University City High School theater department will present the annual Spring Musical this weekend (April 10th and 11th, 2015).  This year's production is Beauty and the Beast, and it promises to be a magical spectacle of song and dance, perfect for everyone in the family.  You can come and see our talented students perform on Friday at 7:30 and then again on Saturday at 2:00 and 7:30, in the UCHS Auditorium. 

Tickets are $8, $6 for students, seniors, and kids under 12, and will be sold at the door. 

Here is video from the show:

Thank you to Chris Braeske for the videos.

UCHS Students Receive a Record 48 State-Level Journalism Awards

University City High School journalism students, under the direction of teacher Mary Williams, received a record 48 state-level awards at the Missouri Interscholastic Press Association (MIPA) Scholastic Journalism Day at University of Missouri-Columbia on Wednesday, April 8. In several categories, University City High School was the only school in the state to receive the award. Publications students accepted the awards at the closing ceremony where 1200 state-wide journalism students and advisers were in attendance. Many students were recognized for their reporting on Ferguson (diversity awareness).

2014-15 MIPA State Journalism Awards

Ratings: All Missouri, Superior, Excellent, Honorable Mention

Overall Publications Awards

U-Times Online--utimesonline.com: All Missouri (Christine Politte, web editor)
U-Times Newspaper: Excellent (Alice Mutrux and Lily Lewis-Stump, co-editors)
Dial Yearbook--2014: Superior (Reneise White, editor-in-chief, 2013-14)

All Missouri Awards
Newspaper Individual—Feature Story: Johanna Hill
Newspaper Individual—News Story: Christine Politte
Yearbook Individual—Theme/Concept Copy: Emily Looby (editor-in-chief)
Yearbook Individual—Sports Design: Emily Looby (editor-in-chief)
Yearbook Individual—Sports Design: Emily Looby (editor-in-chief)

Excellent Newspaper Awards
News Story: Christine Politte
Feature Story: Christine Politte
Double Page Design: Christine Politte, Hannah Fuller and Johanna Hill
Single Page Design: Francene Bethune
Feature Story: Alice Mutrux
Feature Story: Johanna Hill
News Story: Francene Bethune
Sports Writing: Francene Bethune
Sports Writing: Lily Lewis-Stump x2

Honorable Mention Newspaper Awards
Feature Story: Brooklyn Bass
Double-Page Design: Christine Politte, Hannah Fuller and Johanna Hill

Superior Yearbook Awards
Academic Reporting: Kayanna Wymbs

Excellent Yearbook Awards
Sports Reporting: Keira Duncan
Student Life Reporting: Keira Duncan

Honorable Mention Yearbook Awards
Overall Theme/Concept: Emily Looby
Organization Design: Emily Looby and Marvin Bullard
Student Life Design: Emily Looby and Kayla Holmes
Student Life Design: Marvin Bullard and Sloan Marion

Superior Diversity Awareness Awards
Individual Newspaper: Christine Politte
Individual Newspaper: Payton Bass
Individual Newspaper: Alice Mutrux
Individual Newspaper: Staff Editorial
Individual Yearbook: Raven Bullard
Individual Yearbook: Joshua Thomas

Excellent Diversity Awareness Awards
Individual Newspaper: Payton Bass
Individual Newspaper: Brooklyn Bass

Honorable Mention Diversity Awareness Awards
Individual Newspaper: Christine Politte

Excellent Photo Journalism Awards
Personality/Portrait: Payton Bass
Organization Photo: Sloan Marion
Sports Action Photo: Kayanna Wymbs
Sports Action Photo: Taneya Parker

Honorable Mention Photo Journalism Awards
Creative and Artistic: Johanna Hill (x2)
Personality Portrait: Johanna Hill
Sports Action Photo: D’Lija Brown:
Sports Action Photo: Kayanna Wymbs
Sports Action Photo: Taneya Parker
Academic Photo: Porcia Rhodes
News Photo: Payton Bass

Photos from the School District of University City

Jackson Park Elementary 'I Have a Dream'

In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. we share this beautiful video from 2007, featuring third graders from Jackson Park Elementary School. 

UCHS Cross Country Leads the Sports Pack

The University City High School Cross Country team just finished its 2014 season. Closing out the regular season was an exciting race at the district meet. Clayton won as expected, and MICDS (the pre-season favorite) and UCHS battled it out for the second state spot. MICDS prevailed, but it came down to the fifth runner and a mere difference of ten points.

Even so, UCHS placed four runners in the top 15 with Derrick Freeman, Isaac Levan, Cleo Pleasant and Benjamin Pomerantz qualifying for state. This is the best representation UCHS has had at the state meet in a number of years.  The UCHS team also had five personal records on the day, so districts was a very successful meet. 

The cross country team is one of the most successful sports teams at University City High School. The team is fortunate to have James Crowe, an UCHS alum, and parent to two UCHS alums, coaching the team.  Coach Crowe has made the team’s mission – for University City cross country athletes to develop their running abilities in a supportive and positive environment.  Each athlete learns teamwork, self- discipline, dedication, integrity and sportsmanship and carry these skills over into their academic and professional lives. 

Summer training will be starting before long and the Alumni/Team- 2 mile time trial is tentatively scheduled for Saturday August 9. Anyone interested in joining the team can contact Coach James

Crowe xccoachcrowe@gmail.com.

The UCHS Cross Country team has a long tradition of success both on the field and in the classroom. Here are just a few facts:

• The 2006 boys' team won the District meet and took 12^th at the State meet.

• The 2008 boys' team was runner up at districts and took 5^th at State.

• Since 2005, no boys' team has finished less than 4^th at Districts.

• Since 2005 the UCHS Cross Country team has had three different individual runners win Districts (David Lambus twice, Brian Hart, and Ali Klooster, twice).

• At state UCHS has had girls finish as high as 4^th (Ali Klooster) and 7^th (Anna Shafer-Skelton) and boys finish as high as 4^th and 6^th (David Lambus).

• In years when the UCHS team did not qualify, individual team members qualified for State. In fact every year since 2004 UCHS has sent at least two boys (and most years more than that), and at least one girl runner (most years more than that) to State.

• In 2012 and 2013 the class valedictorians were cross country runners.  Since 2000 there have been 7 class valedictorians that have been members of the cross country team.

• David Lambus holds the boy's UCHS record of 16:15 set in 2010.  Ali Klooster holds the girl's record of 19:46, set in 2006.

UCHS Robotics Team Wins Tournament

The University City High School Robolions (FRC team 3397) took first place in the 2014 Gateway Robotics Challenge, held at Hazelwood Central High School on September 13, 2014.  The Robolions competed against 25 teams from across the midwest in the inaugural year of this off-season event.  

After a day of intense competition, the Robolions advanced to the semi-finals with their alliance partners team 1985, the Robohawks from Hazelwood Central and team 2481, the Roboteers from Peoria, IL.

The team will compete again in November at the Cow Town ThrowDown in Kansas City.

You can read more about UCHS robotics here and follow the Robolions on facebook. 

2014 season competition robot, "Ulysses"

Because She's Happy: 2014 UCHS Salutatorian Speech

A beautiful, inspirational speech from 2014 UCHS Salutatorian Molly Patterson.

Happiness.

Do what makes you happy.

Life may be long for you,

Or life may be short,

Either way life is precious,

And whether you have a lot of time to live happily,

Or only a little,

Be the happiest you can be at every moment.

Studies show that the happier you are,

The longer you live.

So choose to be happier for longer,

Instead of sadder for shorter.

Ignore the norm and pay attention to your heart, or whatever guides you,

Know that you will get hurt, but don’t let it stop you.

Know that you can learn something from everyone,

And that knowledge is power.

So when in Rome, talk to those around you, in whatever language or hand gestures you can,

Communication is the ultimate ability.

When given lemons, make lemon meringue,

They say food is the way to the heart, not lemonade.

When given an opportunity, take it.

It may lead you to the love of your life,

Or the heartbreak of the century.

Either way, you learned.

Keep a smile on your face,

Maybe someday it will freeze like that.

Whether you are a leader or a follower,

A professor or a student,

You have something powerful to teach another,

So teach and be taught,

And you will live longer.

That poem contained my words of advice given to my AP Lit class a week ago today.  A class containing one amazing teacher and nine students, two of whom received full rides to their dream universities, yet somehow I am up on this stage speaking to you today.  My class has had our ups and our downs throughout the thirteen years I have been a student at University City, but I am glad to have been with this particular group of people on our own personal roller coaster.  As I have heard so many alumni say in the past, I am proud to have attended University City Schools.  I am proud to be part of such an intellectually diverse group of people, who will continue to be a part of me wherever I go in life.

  While many of us may not make it too far from University City after graduation, such as Mr. Carter, Mr. Kelton, and all of the other University City alumni who came back to make our district the best it can be, I know there will be others who may even surpass Nelly, I know we have at least one Beyonce and a few Steve Job’s out there.  But the truth is that it doesn’t matter how far we get, it’s about what we do with what we were given here at University City High School.  It’s about taking our knowledge and spreading it, taking our smiles and making them contagious, and it’s about never forgetting where we learned it.

  My goal is for the class of 2014 to change University City’s stereotypes, to someday never be asked again if I got a good education, if I felt safe, or if I would have gone anywhere else given the choice to.  I chose to attend University City schools and I wouldn’t change that decision.  I am discouraged by those questions and I want ours to be the class to demolish the stereotypes.  I want to come back twenty years from now and see that the ‘Hall of Fame’ has grown to be ‘The Halls of Fame’ and I want to see all of the faces I see in this audience up there on those walls.

  I have confidence in my dream and in every member of the class of 2014.  This class has had many wonderful opportunities, which would not have been possible without Mr. Maclin and Mrs. Johnson.  In the two years they have been at University City, the two of them have arranged a trip to Washington, D.C. to watch the Inauguration of our president, and a college tour trip all around Illinois.  These were experiences exclusive to our class and make us unique and greatly appreciative.  

For me, and I assume many of you here today, high school has been a time of stress, sports, and support.  In the midst of hard classes and busy seasons, I had Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Aboussie, and Mrs. I to help me out.  These three women, along with my parents, are the reason I am standing here today and I would like to thank them for all of their support.  University City’s amazing field hockey coach, Marissa Davenport-Shepard, has also had a huge part in my success as well as three other graduates here tonight.  I would like to thank the Class of 2014 for everything each individual has taught us, and the power I hope we will take from the knowledge that we have received and will carry on to our future endeavors.

Molly will be attending the Foster College of Business Administration at Bradley University in the fall, majoring in Business Administration and Business Management. 

UCHS Jazz Band Workshops with Peter Martin

The University City High School Jazz Band recently spent an afternoon with famed jazz pianist Peter Martin.  The band was invited, as they have been for the past ten years, to participate in a workshop at the Sheldon Concert Hall  in Grand Center.

Students had the outstanding opportunity to perform for Martin (himself a UCHS alum, class of 1987), who then gave them detailed feedback on their performance.  Students were free to ask questions, and topics covered included everything from how to achieve a more authentic New Orleans jazz sound to the complexities of syncopation to what makes the blues sound like the blues.

The workshop concluded with Martin accompanying the band on the piano, enabling these lucky students to claim that not only have they performed in one of the premiere concert halls in the nation, but also that they have played with one of the most acclaimed jazz pianists of our time.

Jazz Band Director Stan Coleman (a Yale University Distinguished Educator) consistently seeks out educational and performance opportunities for his students.  Over the years they have had the opportunity to work and play with many locally and nationally known musicians. In 2012 the jazz band won ten awards at the UMKC Jazz Festival, and they look forward to future festivals and competitions.

University City High School has a proud tradition of producing outstanding musicians, including the likes of Peter Martin, Jeremy Davenport, Marty Ehrlich, Ronnie Burrage, Wayne du Maine, David Harris, and most recently 2013 grad Zach Morrow, who just last week performed at the Monterrey Next Generation Jazz Festival. 

You can catch the current crop of UCHS jazz legends, along with some returning alumni, when they perform at the Starlight Concert Series this summer at Heman Park!

Band Director Stan Coleman
with Peter Martin

Photos by Kim Deitzler.

Journalism Awards

And now a word from the sponsor...

From: Williams, Mary [mailto:marywilliams@ucityschools.org]
Sent: Monday, March 10, 2014 8:00 PM
Subject: Journalism award winners today!

Greetings,

Please congratulate our journalism students who excelled at the Sponsors of School Publications of Greater St. Louis (SSP-STL) conference Monday at Webster University. All of our publications received an overall excellent rating, which is a testament to their teamwork and dedication. One of our newspaper students, Anna Russell, was awarded a Best of Show for her editorial cartoon. Below is a detailed list; however, all students on staff contributed to our success.

Overall Publication Awards

Excellent: Overall 2013 Yearbook, Madeline Lewis, Editor-in-Chief

Excellent: Overall 2013-2014 U-Times, Lily Lewis-Stump and Alice Mutrux, Co-Editors-in-Chief

Excellent: Overall utimesonline 2013-2014, Christine Politte, Web Editor

Newspaper Individual Awards

Best of Show: Editorial Cartoon, Anna Russell

Honorable Mention: Illustrations, Anna Russell

Honorable Mention: Sports Feature Story, Christine Politte

Honorable Mention: Sports News Story, Sophia Kenyon

Honorable Mention: In-Depth Story, Sophia Kenyon and Alice Mutrux

Yearbook Individual Awards

Superior: People/Classes Design, Marina Claunch and Reneise White

Honorable Mention: News Photography, Individual Photo, Eric Strand

Thanks, Mary

--

Mary C. Williams

University City High School

Publications Adviser/English Teacher

U Times - the UCHS newspaper can be found online at http://www.utimesonline.com.