Dryden's Jack Kaplan named finalist in MHSAA Scholar-Athlete Award Scholarship!
To be eligible for the award, students must have a cumulative grade-point average of 3.50 (on a 4.0 scale) and previously have won a varsity letter in at least one sport in which the MHSAA sponsors a postseason tournament. Students also were asked to respond to a series of short essay questions, submit two letters of recommendation and a 500-word essay on the importance of sportsmanship in educational athletics.
Of 1,356 applications submitted, 120 finalists were announced last week. The applications were judged by a 72-member committee of school coaches, counselors, faculty members, administrators, and board members from MHSAA member schools. Dryden senior Jack Kaplan was one of only three students in Lapeer County advancing to the final round of the scholarship competition. Jack has earned Varsity letters in Basketball, Football, Baseball, Soccer, and Golf in his high school athletic career and has a 3.8 cumulative grade point average.
The Class D scholarship recipients will be announced on February 2. Good luck, Jack!
Zack Ballinger
by Teagan O'Bryan
Before the students went on winter break, the Senior Seminar class was met with the great opportunity to speak with motivational speakers, career coach, and author, Zack Ballinger, to discuss a plethora of topics ranging from stress management to goal setting, to finding your true passion in life. It was an amazing chance to sit back and really look at our actions today, which can impact our entire futures. We met with Mr. Ballinger over a Zoom call, which allowed us to interact and engage with him while also being able to clearly view his presentation materials.
One main topic Mr. Ballinger spoke about was the importance of familiarizing yourself with job-seeking software, such as LinkedIn, a social networking program developed to help broaden your network of potential employers, while displaying your portfolio in a simple, easy to understand way. We were able to gather many new strategies to implement into our daily lives from his presentation, which has already been and will continue to be beneficial to many aspects of our lives and careers.
Between the emphasis, Mr. Ballinger placed upon the importance of time and stress management strategies, and how we can create a lasting impact on the course of our lives and future career and overall life goals starting today, we were left with very valuable information that will continue to help us all as we progress through college and begin searching for new opportunities. I truly enjoyed Mr. Ballinger’s presentation, it was a fun and engaging way to discuss these topics while making them easy to understand and retain.
Dryden High School Alumni
by Claire Sobek
So far this year, our class has gotten the opportunity to listen to a lot of speakers from different colleges talk about why their college could be the right fit for us. Listening to alumni who actually graduated from Dryden and then went to college tell their firsthand experience about what it was like was really helpful. Hearing more honest stories about what college is really like after high school was really interesting to me, and I honestly liked hearing them more than the regular speakers.
The speakers (Paige Abromaitis, Kylie DeVlaminck, Ronny Hudson, and Teagan Norman) each started off by telling our class where they are now and how they were enjoying their college experiences so far. Something that I thought was cool was the fact that they went to different colleges after they graduated high school, so we got to listen to different stories from different schools. Also, I thought that it was helpful that the speakers gave us advice about what to do in college and why, like when Teagan told us that she would definitely recommend getting an apartment instead of living on campus. After the speakers told us about their experiences and how they are doing, they answered questions that our class asked.
Overall, I found the opportunity to listen to the actual experiences of Dryden High School alumni very helpful in learning about what the actual college experience is like, especially what it is like during COVID-19. I always like hearing alumni’s stories and how they adapted to college life after attending such a small school.
Matthew Hickmott
In our random student spotlight today we have Matthew Hickmott! Matthew is a Freshman at Dryden High School who has been at Dryden since Kindergarten. Outside of school, Matthew enjoys playing video games. His favorite thing about Dryden is how small it is. Matthew’s dream job is as a Police Officer but he plans on attending law school after he graduates. Matthew says the hardest thing about COVID is not being able to hang out with friends.
Michael Hickmott
Also in our random student spotlight today we have Michael Hickmott! Like his twin brother Matthew, Michael is a freshman at Dryden High School who has been going to Dryden for his whole life. Outside of school, which he says is his favorite part about Dryden, Michael enjoys snowmobiling, walking his dog, and playing games. After high school, he wants to attend a trade school with the plans on going into construction. Michael says that the hardest part about life during COVID is having to see his family all the time.
Noah Hall
by Lily Finnigan
Today in our random student spotlight we have Noah Hall! Noah is an eighth grader at Dryden High School who has been here since Kindergarten. Noah is involved in Yearbook, NJHS, Color Me Green, and LCCF. He also runs Track and Cross Country. Outside of school, Noah enjoys hanging out with friends and playing video games. Noah’s favorite thing about Dryden is he knows everyone. His dream career is to work with animals but for now he is looking forward to only having four more years left of high school. Noah says the hardest part about COVID is having to wear a mask.
The Team
Ava DeVlaminck - Editor
Connor Wolff - Reporter
Nick Abromaitis - Reporter
Lily Finnigan - Reporter
Jason Richardson - Reporter
Email: SCzerwinski@dryden.k12.mi.us
Website: dryden.k12.mi.us
Location: Dryden High School, Rochester Road, Dryden, MI, USA
Phone: (810) 796-2266
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drydencommunityschools
Twitter: @DrydenSchools