Around Campus – Page 12 – Pueblo High School

What Is Love?

By Lauren Ahern and Nayeli Sanchez

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, Pueblo’s teachers and students expressed their true definition of love.

Ms. Rhesa Olsen, math teacher: “Love is treating that person the way you want to be treated.”

Ms. Tiffany Mendibles, English teacher: “Love is unconditional, and it’s genuine. It is undeniable because we are human beings and have the ability to love.”

Ms. Sharett Brown, English teacher: “Love is not love, which alters when it alteration finds, or bends with the remover to remove.

Nayeli Sanchez (12): “Love is when you can’t stop thinking about someone who makes you laugh like crazy and smile until your cheeks hurt.”

Angelita Delcido (11): “Love is a mutual respect that two people have for each other being both physically and emotionally.”

Myriam Navarro (12): “Love is being able to be completely yourself in front of someone who appreciates you even for your flaws.”

Isaias Lucero (12): “God is love.”

Tais Jimenez (12): “Love to me is when you care about someone more than yourself.”

Josselyn Rivera (12): “Love is a relationship you don’t want to forget.”

Roger Ruiz (12): “Love is someone who matters a lot and is always there.”

Kimberly Gracia (12): “I think that love is when I love someone more than myself.”

Yazdel Enriquez (12): “Love to me is caring about someone that makes you laugh and smile.”

Ana Verdugo (12): “Love is totally about being comfortable with a special person.”

Job Opportunities Open For Warriors

by Paula Fierros

Last month, 45 Pueblo juniors and seniors contacted school nurse Ms. Kate Straub about the Pima Prevention Program, which could provide them with a job opportunity working with Pima County.

According to Straub, joining the program could benefit students who are in need of a job and/or are interested in an array of different fields, such as law, medicine and law enforcement.

Straub said that this program is preferred for students who meet the following requirements: they should speak English as a second language, get free or reduced lunch or come from families where they are the first to graduate from high school or the first to apply to college.

She added that there are only 45 spots to fill; students need to fulfill criteria with age, credits and grades.

Only 45 juniors and seniors between the ages of 16 and 21 can be a part of the Pima Prevention Program, Straub said. She added that students must have at least 12 credits in order to be eligible and need to be on track to graduate.

Students will train for this position on Tuesdays and Thursdays and one Saturday a month. In the end, they will be guaranteed a paying job at Pima County during the Summer of 2017.

“The training will be from 3:30-5:30 and will be held in the special projects room and Mr. Reyes’ room,” said Straub. “Saturdays will be half day.”

Straub recommends that this program could also benefit students who are unsure about career plans.

“Students who are accepted into the program will meet with professionals in different careers and will be able to ask questions and be exposed to professionals’ work,” Straub said. “Students will also participate in field trips and get free training in First Aid and CPR.”

The Pima Prevention Program will determine which students are eligible according to their job applications.

Pueblo Welcomes New Monitor!

By Lauren Ahern

As the second semester started on January 9, 2017, Pueblo welcomed a new member to the list of faculty and staff .

Mr. Michael Yslada is Pueblo’s newest campus monitor.

Although he has been at Pueblo for only a few weeks, Yslada said that so far being a security monitor has been easier than what he thought.

As a football coach for eighth-graders (Pop Warner) for the past three years, Yslada said that he is used to being around children and is accustomed to interacting with them

Already, Yslada said that he feels confident about knowing his way around campus.

As a former Tucson High School graduate, Yslada said that he likes how small Pueblo is and how easy it is to locate the different classrooms and the teachers.

In his first three weeks as a monitor, Yslada said that he has encountered just a few moments when teachers needed to have disruptive students removed from their classrooms. He said that he believes that most students are respectful and well-behaved at Pueblo.

Yslada is unsure how long he plans to work at Pueblo, but he admitted that he would love to be our school’s varsity football coach.

He said that he is interested in learning more about the Pima County Sheriff’s Department or Tucson Police Department.

For now, Yslada said that he is very content about being at Pueblo.

“Even after just a few weeks, I can tell that Pueblo is a community school, and I enjoy how intimate it can be,” Yslada said.

Ms. Brock Joins The Warrior Family

By Victor Garcia

This school year, Ms. Claire Brock joins the Warrior staff as a new freshman and sophomore English teacher.

Even at the beginning of the school year, Brock said that she knew that Pueblo was a special school.

“Dr. Romero [principal] welcomed us [teachers and staff] like we were all part of the same family,” Brock said. “It’s great to work in a culture of true professionals.”

Brock began her teaching career at Sunnyside High School last year teaching sophomores. She decided to move to Pueblo to begin her second year of teaching.

Brock is currently finishing her master’s degree in secondary education. Her thesis will focus on the idea of how an English-dominant school culture impacts the community. She plans to complete this degree this May.

“I foresee being a teacher at Pueblo for at least the next five years,” Brock said. “I also foresee myself being a mom to another child. I also want to be a midwife and a lawyer, so I have a lot of plans for my future.”

In the short time at Pueblo, Brock expressed the positive qualities at her new school.

“I really feel that Pueblo has a strong culture of support and trust that keeps everybody focused,” Brock said. “I really want to help my students find their voices and to help them to find evidence with their arguments.”

Pueblo Welcomes Back Mr. Alcantara

By Iram Arce

A former Pueblo Magnet High School language arts teacher, Mr. Baltazar Alcantara, has once again become a Warrior. After eleven years, we welcome him back as our new English Learning Development (ELD) coordinator.

“I really feel as if I’m back home,” he said.

Alcantara explained that one of his primary functions in his new position is job is to ensure that the school is compliant for English Language Learners (ELL’s).

“My goal is to make sure that the students can take an equal part in this country,” he said.

After leaving Pueblo for more than a decade, Alcantara said that he had brief “homes” at Valencia Middle School and Catalina High School, but he knew that Pueblo truly felt like home the most when he returned.

“It’s [being at Pueblo] almost as if I’m living with cousins,” he said.

In the first quarter of this school year, Alcantara said that one of his goals was the build trust relationships with students, and he said that he definitely achieved this goal.

“I will work here for as long as there is need,” Alcantara said. “What appears to be difficult is always a lot bigger in your mind. You don’t realize that you can actually achieve something so great and awesome until you actually commit to its completion.”

Let’s Go Hikin’

By Alex Pesqueira

It seems that almost every teenager today in the 21st century is on his or her phone for hours each day—playing video games or exploring social media. However, communications media technology teacher Mr. Ernesto Somoza is changing pastimes for many of our Pueblo Warriors. He is the sponsor/adviser of the schools hiking club.

When Somoza initiated this club two years ago, only a handful of students committed to being in the hiking club. But, through the word of mouth and some promotion, the hiking club has more than 30 Pueblo students.

This school year, Somoza is planning to take the club to new levels—including a trip to the Grand Canyon in the spring.

During this past summer, Somoza was already researching trips to Tumamoc Hill, Sabino Canyon, the Tucson Mountains—among other locations in Southern Arizona.

“Arizona is a hiker’s paradise,” Somoza said. “Even around Tucson, there are wonders to be explored for the average hiker. I look forward to experiencing these local treasures sometime this school year.”

The Hiking Club meets every first Tuesday of the month, and they hike once a month.

“Right now we’re planning a trip to the Grand Canyon which will be for about 10 students,” Somoza said. “We’ll be spending a couple days there! This will be happening sometime in the spring, although I haven’t set a definite date yet.”

He added that there is still room in the club for any students still interested in joining the Hiking Club. Somoza said that students do not need any experience hiking because there are several levels of hikers in the club.

“I will make accommodations for all levels of hikers,” Somoza said.

Please see Mr. Ernesto Somoza in Room T-12 after school every first Tuesday of the month if you are interested or curious about the club.