Granite City High School academic achievers participate in pep assembly
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| JASON SIBERT PHOTO Granite City High School student Alyssa Wallen sings LeeAnn Rimes "Blue" at the school's first ever academic pep assembly. |
Students wrapped up Prairie State Achievement Examinations, the state's standardized testing, on Thursday at 10:30 a.m. While students and faculty spend the entire year preparing for PSAE, the testing only lasts two days.
"It's kind of a celebration," Granite City Principal Jim Greenwald said. "The kids have all been working hard. Here in the gym we have all grade levels, but these are kids who have shown outstanding academic achievement. Often we have the pep assemblies for football. We thought we wanted to make this for a select group of kids who have done a good job."In order to attend the assembly, freshmen students had to have a 4.5 grade point average and sophomores, juniors and seniors had to have a 4.25 GPA. Earning character-based awards also bought students a ticket to the assembly.
Granite City High School teachers Chris Hutchings and Karen Robertson served as coordinators of the Academic Achievement Assembly. The assembly followed a radio format, as it featured music and commercials. The entertainment at the assembly drew on talent from programs earlier in the year. Contestants from last month's Mr. Warrior Contest, a male beauty pageant, performed a dance. The assembly also featured lip-synch acts and singing. Students also performed skits patterned after commercials.
The Academic Achievement Assembly also credited academic and civic achievement by asking groups of individuals to stand at different times in the show. It recognized the National Honor Society and honored winners of this year's personal choice awards, an awards program in which teachers recognize students for a positive impact on the school and community. Alpha Peers, a program in which upperclassmen help freshmen with the peer pressure involved in drug and alcohol abuse, and Big Brothers/Big Sisters, a program in which high school students act as role models for younger kids in the community, were also given recognition. In addition, Rotary students of the month and Elks students of the month and Prairie State Achievement Award winners, an award for outstanding performance on the PSAE, were honored.
"We just wanted to highlight the major activities we did throughout the year and the good job we did throughout the year," Hutchings said.
Hutchings also said the show provided a balance when it comes to student recognition.
"We wanted to give a chance to all of the students who have done well academically and who might not have been recognized for sports or for band," he said. "It's for the kids who haven't been recognized."
