When freshman Ryan June was a kid, he already knew that engineering was “his thing.” Starting with improving objects around his house and helping his dad work on cars, June began his path toward working with RC vehicles. People on both sides of June’s family are mechanically-inclined and have worked on machines like cars and boats. They influenced a young June. His father was one of the first people to bring him to the world of engineering. To read the full story, go to Trojaneer.com. 🖊️: Payton Naftzger

Over the past year, Karli Bergen ‘25 has found a love for crocheting, creating a range of handcrafted items from flowers and ornaments to stuffed monsters and animals. “My boyfriend's mom really wanted to teach me how to do it, and I just really enjoyed it,” Bergen said. “I really like being able to make things that people enjoy and being able to put something beautiful out there.” But recently, Bergen’s passion started transforming from a hobby to a job as she started selling her items. “I started making ornaments for people,” Bergen said. “My dad really encouraged it. I put it out there, and it just kind of took off.” Bergen said she plans to keep selling and is already planning out what she will be making in the future. “I’ve got a whole bunch of things lined up for Valentine's Day right now, and I’d really like to do Easter stuff, which has already taken off too,” Bergen said. “People have been really liking the Easter stuff, so I'd like to keep it going from here on.” Bergen can be reached by her instagram maes_crochet_creations or her facebook @Karli Bergen

During the school day on Friday, students in Publications went on a field trip to Franklin College for the annual Indiana High School Journalism Convention. “The field trip was very socially interactive,” junior Javon Bundy said. “I learned about all of the different aspects that go into Journalism such as PR (Public Relations).” Publications advisers Melissa Warner and Casey Tedrow submitted some students’ work to a competition called the Harvey Awards. “In the spring, we asked students if they had anything they wanted to submit,” Tedrow said. “We were very excited with the success we had. There are a lot of great high school journalists in our state, so we were very proud to have some Trojans among those names up there.” Among the students who submitted work, several received an award. Gourav Pany and Sam Findley won writing awards for their writing portfolios, Findley won another award for an opinion column and Laney Brooks won an award for her sports photography. “I was not on the field trip, so I actually found out during my aerospace class,” Brooks said. “I received multiple texts and DMs from my peers congratulating me on my award, which I then shared with my friends in the class. I felt extremely overjoyed, and it was all I talked about the rest of the day.” In addition to the individual awards, both the trojaneer.com website and the Trojan yearbook won Hoosier Star awards. 🖊️B. Bradley

Junior Aiden Murray wasn’t planning on doing more than 100 sit-ups, let alone 400. He was doing his physical training test for the Central 9 Career Center (C9) firefighting course. As he passed a thousand, everyone in his squad – his teammates, his coaches, other firefighters – were screaming and cheering him on, which motivated him to push to 1,500 sit-ups. He kept going until his instructor stepped in to stop him. Not only did Murray earn the sit-up record in the firehouse, but he also found motivation to continue the program. However, Murray didn’t always have his sights set on firefighting. He originally wanted to go into the military, but C9 did not offer programs for military prospects. “I’ve always been interested in the military, and firefighting was the closest thing,” Murray said. “It’s something I never thought I would get to experience. [There were] lots of unexpected things but it’s really fun.” To read the full story, visit Trojaneer.com. 🖊️: Ramona Wright

In the middle of her nutrition class, Senior Isabelle Felke was surprised with a visit from a representative of Johnson and Wales University. “I walked in and I saw my parents, and I saw my friends in there, and I didn’t really know what was going on,” Felke said. “Then I saw Victoria, who is the representative for Johnson and Wales, and she held up a giant check. Everyone started clapping. It was really exciting, and I was really just freaking out, I wasn’t expecting that at all.” Although she had already been accepted to the university, Felke received a one of the prestigious school’s four full-ride scholarships for her performance within the culinary arts. “I’m a state officer for Indiana through SkillsUSA, and I’m the state officer president through SkillsUSA,” Felke said. “The effort I put in to get into that college, and all of those, kind of combined to qualify me.” Felke said she intends to study baking and culinary arts with a focus in entrepreneurship as she hopes to run her own bakery one day. 🖊️: Genevieve Konijisky 📸: Laney Brooks

For the past few weeks students in Fiber Arts have worked on their weaving projects. They have been using different colors and creating different patterns throughout the design using the techniques they learned in class. “In this project specifically, we’ve been given the opportunity to use any colors we want, and any pattern,” Madeline Robinson ‘25 said. “We have to use at least 5 different techniques.” One of the things that make fiber arts different from other classes is that it includes many different projects such as weaving, silk dye and embroidery. “The silk dye project was a lot different than the other art classes,” Robinson said. “Also in the class we did embroidery. There is a lot of stuff which is different from our other classes.” As in many art classes, there is a lot of freedom given to the students through the projects when creating. “We get to design everything ourselves and we are in complete control of our projects,” Robinson said.

The claps of the audience ring throughout the dimly-lit auditorium. The stage lights rise up. Anticipation builds in the stomachs of both senior Ryan St. Pierre and junior Cooper Peters as they await their entrance onto the stage of the Center Grove auditorium. Moments like these are no stranger to St. Pierre and Peters, who are both members of Center Grove’s all-male a cappella and barbershop group, Sh’boom. Consisting of nine students pulled from each grade level, Sh’boom is a student-led group that typically participates as a special act in the choir program’s seasonal shows. They also carol around Greenwood and perform at various events. To read the full story, go to Trojaneer.com. 🖊️: Emmy Lockhart

Throughout the year, Ellen Nguyen ‘24 and Lindsay Ponder ‘24 have been volunteering at the White River Public Library. While they volunteer, they help with many aspects of running the library. “Sometimes I help specifically with sorting and organizing,” Nguyen said. “Other times I help with events going on or sales and children events.” Both Ponder and Nguyen were inspired to volunteer due to their early passion for reading. “I grew up going to the library all the time,” Ponder said. “I also enjoy reading whenever I have free time. I wanted to do something, so I thought volunteering at the library would be a good fit for me.” Working at the library has many benefits for both students. “I love the atmosphere because everything I do is so fast paced, so it’s nice to slow down,” Nguyen said. “I also just enjoy volunteering somewhere that was important to me as a kid.” Volunteering helps prepare Ponder and Nguyen for the future by exposing them both to important skills. “I find that it creates good organizational skills and good work habits because I need to make time in my day to do it,” Nguyen said. “I also find it awesome to work on social skills when I'm working at sales where I help people find something they are looking for.” In their time at the library, both Nguyen and Ponder have learned skills they say they will carry with them in their futures.

On Saturday, January 14, Juniors Molly Kidd and Ivan Gooch played in Indiana's All-State Orchestra in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The students traveled to learn and play music they had received while separate from the rest of the of the orchestra. They said they enjoyed the experience of learning the music independently before they put it all together with many other musicians from all over the state. "My favorite part was the first rehearsal because the sheer power of the ensemble was breathtaking upon first hearing it," Gooch said. Being with other schools' students also allowed Kidd and Gooch to form new bonds with other musicians. "My favorite part was definitely meeting new people and getting really close with my roommates even if we only were together for a few days," Kidd said. The orchestra serves not only as a place for students to showcase their skills outside of school, but also as a learning experience for everyone involved. "I learned much more about how to adjust to different styles of conducting," Gooch said. "I also learned a lot about how to adjust to the sound of an orchestra, in contrast to the sound of a band." The orchestra played five pieces, each requiring different skills to learn and play. "We played five pieces: 'Ode to Joy,' 'Overture for Candide,' 'Ballade,' 'Danzón No. 2,' and Dvorák 'Symphony No. 8 Final Movement.' These pieces are a good mix between fast paced and slower movements," Gooch said. "My favorites were the Danzón and the Ballade," Kidd said. "All of them were very powerful and there were a great many beautiful ballad moments, but there were also lots of tempo pushes and accelerandos that kept making things feel fresh and new," Gooch said. 🖋️: Kate Strunk