Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Harvard Model Congress


Knights at Harvard Model Congress

Between February 23rd and 26th, nine students traveled to Boston, Massachusetts to take part in the 27th Harvard Model Congress.  After preparing over the course of several months, our students competed with 1400 other students from schools from across the country and around the world.  Each student took on the role of a congressional representative, global leader, or other political figure in the four day competition.  After several "global crises," a mock presidential election, a scandal on the scale of Watergate (deemed the Sheraton Scandal and discovered by our own Jack Pape), the Congress came to a close.  For their leadership and effectiveness, both Jack Pape and Neils Domina  were recognized with awards of excellence in their respective committees.  Mount Michael represented itself well at the conference both in awards and in the actions of all of the participating students.

Monday, February 27, 2012

Robotics Team Qualifies for Nationals & World Competitions


Mount Michael Benedictine Robotics

Mount Michael has had 2 teams qualify for the National Robotics Competition to be held March 15-17 at the Kroc Center in Omaha. Those teams are Sleepless Knights (1970b) who recently were State Runner-up. Members are Paul Kujawa, Ned McNally, Josh Bloomquist, Tony Gao and Yun Sik Oh. The tournament was at Omaha North, 55 teams competed and it was the first ever State robotics tournament in the United States.

The Nighty Knights (1970C) consisting of Andy Ernst, Chase Goddard, Albert Park and Yoonho Kim (1970c) also qualified for Nationals at an earlier meet.

At the state competition the “Nighty Knights” and the “Knights Who Say Ni” (1970A) consisting of John Choi, DJ Wooten, Sean Kruger and Elliot Prusa competed as well but were both eliminated during the quarter finals.

The “Sleepless Knights” have also already qualified for Nationals to be held in Anaheim, California April 18-21st.

Go Knights! - More Photos

Sister Carol Jean: The Fun Nun



Sister Charol Jean

The Fun Nun

Peter DeWald | Editor for "The Mount"

We see her everyday in the hallways, in the classrooms, and in the chapel, yet she is one of a kind in the Mount Michael community. Sister Carol Jean VanDenHemel, O.S.B. is the only Mount Michael faculty member who is also a nun. Born and raised in Woonsocket, South Dakota, a town of just 655 people, VanDenHemel brings her small town ideals and religious values to the students and staff of Mount Michael.

VanDenHemel currently lives in Omaha but holds her permanent residence at Sacred Heart Monastery in Yankton, South Dakota. Sacred Heart Monastery has just over 100 Benedictine nuns currently living in it. She said, “I first felt a call to the religious life when I was in college, but when I was in high school, the thought didn’t even cross my mind.” VanDenHemel entered the monastery 14 years ago and has been a full fledged nun and under vows for twelve-and-a-half years. “My favorite part of being a Benedictine nun is having the love and support of a huge extended family of sisters who are always there to help you and give you guidance on a daily basis,” she said.

In addition to being called to the religious life, VanDenHemel felt the calling to be a teacher when she was in high school. She graduated from grad school at Marquette with a Masters in Education and has been a teacher for 11 years. She has taught English, speech, debate, and religion. “When I was a little girl, I never wanted to be a teacher. I really wanted to be a storm chaser and go after the big tornados and thunderstorms. They fascinated me,” she said. She currently teaches freshman Hebrew scriptures and junior morality classes, but her students know that proper English is very important to her style of teaching. “She really stresses the importance of proper spelling and grammar in all of our papers, tests, and assignments. It’s tough to do, but I know it will pay off in the long run,” said junior Josh Rauterkus.

VanDenHemel does not directly receive pay for being a teacher, but instead her pay goes to help fund the day-to-day expenses of her community. “My favorite part of being a teacher is the students’ sophomoric humor and hearing stories they tell. I also thoroughly enjoy the presence of all the neat and interesting people I teach and spend time with,” she said.

In her free time, VanDenHemel enjoys reading all types of books and planting vegetables in her garden. Before she became a nun, she fell in love and got engaged. However, due to the long distance relationship and a strong call to the religious life, she broke off the engagement to become a nun. VanDenHemel said the most important thing in her life is family. She said, “I am so grateful for my family. I would be no where with out them.”

Sister Carol Jean VanDenHemel brings her experience as a teacher and a person of faith to every aspect of her life. She says that she strives to bring God into the lives of all that she comes into contact with on a daily basis. She finds her strength to be a role model to others and a person of strong faith in God, family, and friends. “Friends influence your life in more ways than you think. Treasure your friendships, because you don’t realize how precious friends are until times of need,” she said. As for what lays in store for VanDenHemel, she isn’t sure, but she knows God will always be there to light her way. She said, “Right now in my life, I’m not just happy, I’m joyful.”

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Lenten Season begins with Student Retreat

Ash Wednesday Retreat
     On Ash Wednesday the Mount Michael student body gathered in the gymnasium for a morning retreat titled “Stories that Shape Us.” The retreat was led by Mount Michael Abbey’s Bro. August Schaefer OSB.  After the retreat everyone gathered in the Chapel for the celebration of the Eucharist.  More Photos

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Mom Prom


Mothers and Sons

Mothers and Sons
The Annual Mother and Son Dinner-Dance was held at Indian Creek Country Club.
A good time was had by all. Photos

Sunday, February 12, 2012

From Serving His Community To Serving His Country


From Serving His Community To Serving His Country

"It's really about what scouting represents"
Reporter: Brian Mastre WOWT Channel 6 News

An Omaha student is in Washington, D.C. for big meetings with government officials. The Boy Scout is being recognized for his heroism.
Normally, Jack Pape would be wearing his scout uniform instead of his school uniform for an interview. "It's getting tailored to make sure I look all nice and pretty for this trip."
He'll need it when he meets with top government officials this week, from the White House to the CIA. "I'm very lucky and blessed to be picked for this trip."
The Elkhorn Mount Michael High School senior was selected because of his outstanding heroism, preparedness and ongoing leadership. Pape was in Little Sioux, Iowa in 2008 when a tornado tore through the Boy Scout campsite.
"I was in the shelter that got hit and I was thrown about 20 yards backwards from the tornado. The shelter was completely gone and ran back and started working on the first people I saw who needed help."
Four of his friends, fellow scouts, died that June day. "I don't know why I was the person to be singled out for the recognition because there were so many boys there that did things similar to me."
Pape will graduate from Mount Michael in May. What will he do for an encore? Judging from his decision, it seems fairly logical. "I'll be going active duty military."
The Eagle Scout will be joining the United States Army and plans to study bomb disposal. “My mom was nervous and anxious about it. I don't know how to explain it, it's just something I feel like I should be doing."
From serving his country to mentoring and leading others, scouts will always be there, even in the face of tragedy. “This isn't me saying look at what I've done. It's really about what scouting represents. What I have done is only because of scouting."

Friday, February 3, 2012

Knight Writers Collect JEA Awards


Journalism Education Association Awards

JEA Award Winners

Joe Bastian – Advertising/Excellent

Randy Speer – Advertising/Honorable Mention

Joe Sobcyzk – Column Writing/Honorable Mention

David Bastian – Editorial Cartooning/Superior

Benet Kinghorn – Sports News Writing/Honorable Mention

Peter Dewald – Sports News Writing/Honorable Mention

Eliot Prusa – Sports Feature Writing/Honorable Mention

Thomas Feichtinger - Newspaper Layout /Excellent

Chris Thomas – News Writing/Excellent

George Townsend – News Writing/Excellent

Michael Budler, Chris Thomas, Nate Van Haute, Joe Bastian, Joe Kucerik In-Depth Coverage/Excellent

Nate Van Haute - Feature Writing/Excellent

Graham Jewell - Feature Writing/Excellent

Nate Van Haute – Yearbook Sports Feature Writing/Superior

News/Feature Photography – Joe Bastian/Excellent

News/Feature Photography – Kim Yoonho/Honorable Mention

Sports/Action Photography Kim Yoonho/Excellent