Fourteen Albert Lea High School students attended the 2008 JEA/NSPA Fall National High School Journalism Convention Nov. 13-16 in St. Louis, Mo.

Ahlahasa was awarded seventh place in special section in the Best of Show contest. Ahlahasa’s special section was about Change. Having been inundated with the use of the word in the recently finished presidential election, the students decided they wanted to show real changes locally among its student body, and to do so without mentioning politics since the election had already passed and had been in some ways overwhelming. The staff produced an eight-page section highlighting students and some of the major changes they’ve experienced in their young lives.

Also while in St. Louis, each of the 14 students competed in a writing or design competition. Two ALHS students were winners: senior Parker Stanley was given an honorable mention rating in entertainment review writing and Jeff Thorstad received honorable mention in the category editorial cartoon.

Students spent Friday and Saturday mornings attending sessions on a wide variety of topics related to improving high school publications. On Friday evening students explored the interactive City Museum,. One described it as a jungle gym for young adults.

On Saturday afternoon, the students took a trip to the top of the Gateway Arch. They also experienced authentic Italian food at Rigazzi’s and met journalists from all over the nation. More than 5,000 journalists descended upon St. Louis for the convention.

Traveling on a pair of buses with 70-plus students, teachers and chaperones from eight other schools, the group left Albert Lea Thursday morning and returned Sunday night. Albert Lea students taking part in this trip were: seniors Ashley Wieland, Chelsie Luna, Ashley Stewart, Liz Burnett, Alec Grangruth, Parker Stanley, Drew Claussen and Jared Jensen; juniors Erika Blickenderfer, Ally Herbst, Morgan Stadheim, Tara Chirpich, Jeff Thorstad and Andy Schrad.

Yearbook orders now being taken

Have you ordered your 2009 Tiger Yearbook? You can do so at www.smart-pay.com. Follow these steps:

1) Go to the Web site.

2) Click on the “Locate Your School” button at the bottom right-hand corner of the page.

3) Select the state (Minnesota).

4) Select the city (Albert Lea).

5) Click on Albert Lea High School when it shows up.

6) Click on the Go button under “Order History”

7) Fill in the information, making sure you have a credit or debit card handy for payment.

If you don’t have a credit card, but do have Internet access, then go to www.smart-pay.com, go to FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions), and look under “What if I don’t want to order online? Is there a form I can print?” It can lead you to a pay-by-mail option.

If you don’t have Internet access, you can contact adviser Riley Worth at 379-5807 and he will assist you.

Seventh-graders see ‘A Christmas Carol’

On Nov. 18, all Southwest seventh-graders saw “A Christmas Carol” performed at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis.  The play was the finale to the study of Charles Dickens’ story, “A Christmas Carol,” which was read in language arts classes.

For many students, this was a rare opportunity to see a professional play. Many were impressed by the special effects and found it interesting to see the actors improvise when mistakes occurred.  Mariah Bolinger’s favorite part was, “The ending, when Scrooge got into the spirit of Christmas, because it was funny to see him so happy and jumpy.”

Tyler Vandenheuvel said, “Seeing and learning about the poverty of the Victorian time was very interesting.” 

Hannah Hertling said, “It was awesomely awesome, especially the Spirit of Christmas Yet to Come. He was my favorite.”

Joseph Grano added, “It was cool to see a real, live professional play, especially the sound effects.” 

The consensus among the students was that the play was incredible and they were pleased with the opportunity.  The teachers said they were pleased with how the students represented Southwest Middle School.

Southwest students share artwork with the world

Move over, famous artists! Southwest artists are taking over the spotlight!  Talia Bloedel, the school’s art teacher, has teamed up with Artsonia, www.artsonia.com — the world’s largest online kid’s art museum — to display the students’ artwork.

Anyone can view the school gallery online at: www.artsonia.com/schools/southwest14. Visitors can browse the artwork in the school gallery by grade level, or by specific exhibits.  Southwest students join thousands of students from over 100 countries whose artwork is showcased on Artsonia.

“This program is a wonderful way to get parents and family members more involved in Art Education,” said Bloedel.

All of Artsonia’s one million pieces of artwork are viewable on-line, and any teacher or parent can create an online art gallery for their child or school. Artsonia provides several online features such as fan clubs and personal guestbooks, as a way for families to encourage the creativity and imaginations of their young artists. In addition, family members can purchase keepsakes imprinted with the child’s artwork, with Artsonia donating 15 percent of their annual product revenue back to school art programs.

Headquartered in Gurnee, Ill., Artsonia was established in 2000 as an online kid’s art museum providing free, educational resources for kids, families and schools to create art projects.