Welcome Back, Ms. Taylor Cleland!

By Precious Riley & Beatriz Villalba

Ms. Taylor Cleland is back at Pueblo High School to take over math classes for Ms. Rhesa Olsen who retired at the end of last semester.

She should look familiar to many students—as Cleland taught here at Pueblo from 2018 until 2022 to pursue her passion in writing (and to avoid COVID-19).

“I’m a writer, and I wanted some more time to work on my writing,” she said, explaining why she left two years ago.

“I also got long-term COVID-19, so I couldn’t work full time. However, I’m much better,” said Cleland.

She also substituted many times before this semester, but Cleland adds that she likes having her own students a lot more.

She said that she is focusing on getting the students back on track.

“When students have substitute teachers, they end up doing little or nothing,” Cleland said.

Her main goal is trying to create a positive learning environment for students, allowing students to listen to music while they do their work and frequently monitors all her new students’ work.

“I think if students have a positive environment in which to learn and work, they will have much better chances of academic success,” Cleland said.

She added, “I also have students working on projects as well as having some students teaching their peers. This creates an exciting learning environment.”

McLeod Joins Pueblo Faculty, Shares Love Of Worldly Cultures

By Anyssa Fimbres & Jessica Tarango

After 10 years of teaching anthropology at the University of Arizona—and after many “worldly” experiences”—Mr. Jonathan McLeod has ventured to Pueblo High School to teach English.

McLeod teaches four classes of freshman English; one sophomore English class; and this second semester he will teach an ACT Prep class to juniors.

“In the first semester at Pueblo, I have enjoyed developing student-teacher relationships,” McLeod said. “I’m just now really started to feel comfortable with those students in my classrooms.”

McLeod has been friends with PHS nurse Ms. Kate Straub, and she convinced him to apply for teaching positions at Pueblo. He was a frequent substitute-teacher last school year, and he jumped at the chance to become an “official” teacher for 2023-24.

“What I’ve really enjoyed most as a high school teacher is seeing improvement in my students’ work,” said McLeod. “I gain a lot of satisfaction from their academic success.”

Originally from Chicago, McLeod has lived and worked in many places around the world. He attended Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and lived in several American cities—most recently in San Francisco, Calif., before moving to Tucson.

However, McLeod’s early life reads like a global map. He attended many years of school in Singapore and Indonesia, which he said influenced his decision to become an anthropologist because of his fascination with many cultures. McLeod has even lived in Alaska for a few years.

He said, “I worked in the New Guinea jungles as an anthropologist from 2014 to 2019 conducting research with indigenous people because I wanted to know how these people live in the rain forest and how they were adapting to development.”

McLeod defines “anthropology” as the study and research of how people live and adapt to their environments, and although he would like to someday return to teaching college anthropology, he is happy right where he is now.

“I hope that my love of different cultures is contagious to my students,” McLeod said. “I have a lot to share with my students.”

‘TRIO-EST’: Another Tool for Academic Success

by Alyvette Moreno & Jenna Twaje

Grissel Bojorquez

TRIO Educational Search, or “EST” for short, is one of the many programs here at Pueblo High School dedicated to supporting students and helping them succeed in their education.

While the commitment is lower than Upward Bound where students meet three times a week, TRIO-EST still offers students many opportunities such as workshops, tutoring, campus tours and more. Instead, students in EST are required to meet two times during the school year, although members can meet whenever they work.

Currently, students are not required to have a specific GPA to join ETS. The only requirement to join is to be a U.S citizen or U.S resident. Students can join at any grade, but students cannot be in both ETS and Upward Bound simultaneously.

“Our main goal is for every student to graduate knowing what they want to do after high school,” said Ms. Grissel Bojorquez, the coordinator of TRIO-EST.

She decided to become the coordinator of the program because she felt a need to people just like her.

Paola Salazar, a senior, said, “It’s been helpful having a mentor whenever I need it.”

Since learning about TRIO in her freshman year Salazar got all sorts of help such as having her college essays proofread and reviewed—as well as financial aid and help with her applications.

Having been in ETS since his sophomore year, Nae Alba, a junior, hopes that this experience will help him get into his dream university. Finding out about ETS from his older sister gave Alba the opportunity to get help with FASFA, college applications, and tutoring.

TRIO-ETS is a resource many students use to help in their pursuit of higher education. The support given to students by TRIO-ETS empowers them and helps them achieve their full potential.

“It is a very helpful program that provides resources to help me in my college journey with FASFA and college applications,” said Alba.

French Returns To Pueblo

By Saul Arias & Aubrey Garcia

Pueblo High School welcomes recent University of Arizona graduate Mr. Oliver Yizukoni as the new French teacher for the 2023-24 school year.

Yizukoni was born in Ghana, Africa, and graduated from Bolgatanga (aka “Big Boss Senior High School”). After 30 years in his native country, he came to the United States to complete his master’s degree in French and to begin a teaching career soon thereafter.

“Growing up in Ghana, I was able to learn multiple languages such as English, French, Twi, Talen, Dagbani and Grune,” said Yizukoni.

He first taught French to adults for nine years at the U of A before deciding to teach at the high school level. After four months into the school year, Yizukoni said that he loves his job, his students and has already made a commitment to stay as long as possible.

“I learned early on how much I loved teaching,” Yizukoni said. “When I was in the seventh and eighth grades, I really enjoyed helping my classmates with their work. I think I knew then how much I loved teaching.”

After several years of not having more than Spanish as a foreign language choice at Pueblo, Yizukoni said that he is glad to fill the “void”.

“I want my students to write and eventually speak fluent French,” Yizukoni said. “I wish my students the best as they learn a new language because I know how difficult it can be.”

Is The ASVAB Worth Taking?

An Opinion By Emely Villanueva

Earlier this month, Pueblo High School seniors took the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test (ASVAB). Some may ask what the ASVAB is and why students are required to take it. The ASVAB, although administered by the military, is a test that measures students’ strengths and weaknesses for potential future success in verbal, math, science, and technical, and spatial domains.

The ASVAB, first introduced in 1968 and adopted by all branches of the military in 1976, is used to rank the best categories for occupational and academic success in the military. This, however, does not mean that students are signing up to be in the military. The ASVAB can help with placing students in the different military branches. Here at Pueblo High School, College and Career Center director Dr. Avila is hoping that the test will help seniors further expand their career exploration. The better students’ ASVAB results are, the broader students’ career options become available.

The ASVAB is currently offered at 14,000 schools and Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS) nationwide. The test is offered, developed, and maintained by the Defense Department. The ASVAB has two scores. One score determines if students are eligible to join the military; students will need to score 31 to enlist; the second score, “a line score”, determines a student’s job eligibility in 10 different categories. The ASVAB also helps students with their test-taking skills by using critical thinking skills and common test skills of answering every question as they have a 25% chance of getting the answer correct.

The ASVAB helps seniors explore not only career options but also steers them in a direction they didn’t know they could have. Many Pueblo students are often lost after graduating high school. They feel lost in the sense that they feel a college or university is not an option for them. The ASVAB, however, opens new options for them as now they feel a new path has opened. Joining the military can give students a sense of belonging and accomplishing a goal for themselves and their country after completing high school.

Although, many students find it “stupid” or “useless” to take the ASVAB, requiring seniors to take the test should not make them feel that it is a punishment. Instead, students should keep an open mind about ASVAB because it offers students another opportunity for test taking skills. It opens opportunities to students considering the military and preparing these students for this path with their ASVAB results. Pueblo wants to open newer opportunities to students in career opportunities and military options.

In fact, many countries require their students to serve from one to four years, and they all require some version of a military test to place them in the corresponding branch of government. Here in the United States, the ASVAB helps students realize their strengths and weaknesses which helps them within their futures. The ASVAB also helps Pueblo’s overall “grade”; currently, Pueblo earned a “B” for the first time in its history, so students should feel the need to take the test as a duty to give back to their community.

If students are interested in taking the ASVAB, and if they missed the original testing date, there will be other opportunities to take the test in the spring. Please support your Pueblo community and yourself by taking the ASVAB. Students should see Mr. Avila or their counselor for more information.

Mr. McCauley Joins Pueblo Math Department

By Jenna Twaje

Among the nearly two dozen new teachers and staff members joining the Pueblo High School family this year, math teacher Mr. Collin McCauley is enthusiastic about sharing his love of his subject to students.

“I’ve always been good at math—ever since I can remember,” McCauley said. “As a first-year teacher, I’m hoping to help my students reach their full potential.”

Even after just a few months at Pueblo, McCauley said that being a part of the Warrior community makes him feel at home.

“This is definitely a school with a lot of culture,” he said.

McCauley said that he was influenced by his own math teachers growing up.

“These [math] teachers were true role models in my life,” he said.

McCauley said that he is looking forward to being the head coach of Pueblo’s JV basketball team.

“With my love of sports, I want to create an environment that is safe and fun and help the team reach their full potential,” McCauley said.

He added, “I want to feel like everything I do at Pueblo is important to my students and team members.”