Red Devil Ready:DCHS WeeKly Message

Week 32: An Easter Break to End "That Week in April"

Decatur County Community High School

605 E Commercial St, Oberlin, KS 67749

April 13, 2025 (Schedule at the bottom, Skip What You Want)

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Decatur community,

I am tight on time this week and my internet keeps cutting me off, but it's that time of year to reflect back on "That Week in April."

I have mentioned many that prior to becoming a principal I was a history teacher, and as such, I am definitely one that analyzes the past to help us learn and prepare for our future. We are all history teachers at heart. As parents, we take our past experiences and use them to help us guide our children through life. Children take the lessons they learn growing up ("Watch out for cars"/"Don't touch that stove"), learning from their own history to shape their future.

As a teacher, I always referred to the dates of April 8-15 as "That Week in April." As I have said in the past, Feel free to skip this history "micro-lesson," but I don't think I will ever have a year in my life that I don't take time to reflect on "That Week in April."

I have always been amazed at the amount of significant events that happend in April:

April 12th

1945: On this day, Franklin D. Roosevelt passed away. The only president to be elected more than twice, Roosevelt was elected 4 times, dying shortly into his 4th term. Roosevelt will forever be remembered as the US leader that represented us against Hitler and will be linked to WWII. It was only after his passing that an amendment would be passed to limit presidential terms to a max of 2. One man had become almost too relied upon.

1961: The first shots of deadliest war in our US history were fired on this day. Ft. Sumter, an island fort off of the coast of South Carolina was the signal of the beginning of the US Civil War. Though there were no casualties during the fighting during the Battle of Ft. Sumter, the Civil War is still the deadliest war in our history, near 3% of the population of that time a direct casualty of war.

April 14 &15

I cannot help but link these two dates together.

1865: It was late in the evening of April the 14th when Abraham Lincoln was sitting next to his wife inside a balcony box at Ford's Theater. John Wilkes Booth approached behind him during the performance of Our American Cousin and shot him in the back of his head. Lincoln was dead for all intents and purposes, but it was not until the morning of the 15th that he was officially pronounced dead.

1911: I often wonder if there were any history buffs that were on board the Titanic that may have been making the connection to Lincoln. I am sure there were few if any, but in the last hour of April 14th, 46 years after Lincoln, the Titanic hit an iceberg in middle of the Atlantic. The damage was done on the 14th, but it wasn't until almost 3 hours later on the 15th that the ship plunged to the bottom of the ocean.

April 9th

1865: It was almost exactly 4 years after the Civil War began that it came to an end. Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee, sat down in the home of a man named Wilmer McLean and signed the treaty that would officially end the war. It occurred in a small town in western Virginia by the name of Appomattox Court House.

Last weekend at the Regional Music Festival and this past Thursday during the Forensics meet, there were a variety of foods that Mrs. Tally, Mrs. Witt, and others prepared for the Hospitality Room, a room that is always filled with options. Tonight, I shall simply have spaghetti, but I can't help but think back to that April14th 112 years ago where unexpecting passengers had no idea that this would be their final menu:

Filet mignons Lili
Saute of chicken, Lyonnaise
Vegetable marrow Farcie (Farsi)
Lamb, mint sauce
Roast duckling, applesauce
Sirloin of beef, chateau potatoes
Green peas, creamed carrots, boiled rice, Parmentier or boiled new potatoes
Punch romaine
Roast squab and cress
Cold asparagus vinaigrette
Pate de foie gras
Celery

Dessert

Waldorf pudding
Peaches in chartreuse jelly
Chocolate vanilla eclairs
French ice cream

SHOUTOUTS

Shoutout to our JH track athletes for getting off to a strong start. Results from the St. Francis meet have been shared on Facebook, and we will get results from Norton posted as soon as we can. JH high coaches Jess Allen, Tamera Rice, and Kerrie Wahlmeier have a solid routine that begins right after school, and they have done a great job of getting their kids in as good of shape as possible and recognizing their individual accomplishments. It's going to be a good season!

Shoutout to each and every staff and community member that assisted with the forensics meet this past Thursday night. I enjoyed judging the rounds myself, but what I really enjoyed the most was just seeing everything come together. There are a lot of people needed for a forensics meet, and people showed up. Our students did a great job supporting Mrs. Witt, and Mrs. Witt was outstanding with her communication and organization of the event.

Shoutout to Mr. Jesus Cepeda. Mr. Cepeda is both an apprentice and aide, and he has done a great job of building positive relationships with his students. Here are a few things that really stand out. I don't know if there has been one home activity that I haven't seen Mr. Cepeda at. He comes to every sporting event and every concert. Even more impressive, he hasn't missed a single day of school. He is extremely reliable, and I am looking forward to him improving even more in year 2.

Shoutout to a beautiful track. In my first year here, I remember hearing athletes comment on the condition of our track in a negative way, a reason why the board had decided even before I came a whole year prior to have a new one put in. Last year, we obviously didn't have a track done in time. Even though it was technically Atwood's meet and they brought a lot of the workers, it was the first time that we really got to put our new facilty to the test, and it was a beautiful day "In April" that this new track was christened.

Shoutout to Mr. Persinger and the DCHS band. This past week they received a 1 rating at the Oakley Large Group Festival.

Shoutout once more to Mrs. Johnson, Mr. Persinger, and Mrs. Tally for everything they do and for surviving April. For the music department, every year April is "That Month." The Reginal Festival that we host every year, the Large Group Festival, and of course State that will come up in a few weeks all make April a challenging month. They all handle it in stride and with grace.

Shoutout and good luck to our two young ladies that will be competing this Wednesday and Thursday in Manhattan in the State YEC (Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge). As our local winner, sophomore Devyn Stagemeyer qualified automatically and freshman Quinn Ketterl was one of a few competitors chosen across the state as a wildcard entry. Both girls presented outstanding business plans and products, and I know they will do DCHS and our local community proud.

Shoutout to all of the students that made their way to State Powerlifting. Haden Allen, Guss Emigh, Dillon Kuhlman, Colten Mathes, Valentina Rodriguez and Ella Williby made their way to Solomon, KS. Each student was able to improve and have a PR (personal record). A special shoutout to junior Valentina Rodriguez. Valentina ended up as the girls, State Champion in squat, tying the State record with a squat of 250lbs in her weight class. Valentina also had a personal best bench press of 135lbs en route to a second place overall finish. Congratulations, Val!

JH and HS Students Do Well at League Art Show

Over the past few weeks, DCHS students had their art work entered into the League Art Show. Dozens of items were entered, and several of our students ended up with solid recognitions. Since joining his alma mater, art teacher Anthony Marshall has continued to share his passion for art with the students. It's always great to see the students working in his classroom. They are always engaged, and Mr. Marshall is involved in both their art and his at the same time. It's a great learning environment.

I am sharing some of the entries here.

"Introspection" by Myleigh Hayes Grade 11

High School: First Place

"Fairy Village" by Karlee Mack Grade 9

High School: 2nd Place

"Bomby" by Raelyn Bailey Grade 12

High School: Third Place

"Flower Envelope" by Aurora Allen Grade 7

Junior High: First Place

"Vine Envelope" by Natalie Weyeneth Grade 7

Junior High: Second Place

"Portrait" by Zoey Wrinkles Grade 7

Junior High: Third Place

Kansas State Assessments Start This Week

April is State Assessment month. This week , 7tth, 8th, and 10th grade students will be taking the math assessment. 11th grade students will be finishing up their science assessment on Monday. These tests are very important. It is an opportunity to really see how well our students have gained the knowledge that the State has deemed necessary. The assessment gives us information that we can use to improve teaching strategies and lets us know how we compare to other schools across the state.

Assessments are given to students in the JH and High School at these grade levels:

ELA: 7, 8, 10

Math : 7, 8, 10

Science: 8,11

Red Devil Ready

It's one heck of a week in April, and it always reminds me every year of my own past, my experiences, and how the people around me and the choices I made shaped my future.

Parents, maybe take this "Easter" week in April and make it one to share your experiences with your students and discuss where they are and what their plans are. How are they looking to finish the year? How did State Assessments go? Rekindle a nostalgic memory from way back in your own "That Week in April," share in the present, and plan for the future.

Until next week,

Jeremy Holloway

Go Big Red!