Electives – Pueblo High School

Maria Servellon Accepted to Medical Workshop

By Daniela Moreno

Junior Maria Servellon (Class of 2018) was accepted to the Perry Initiative, a one-day program for young women interested in orthopedic surgery and biomechanical engineering.

Servellon is excited to be the first Pueblo applicant to be accepted to this program. Out of more than 200 applicants in Arizona, Servellon was among just 35 young women to be selected.

“I feel like being accepted has been a stepping stone for young women who are interested in this field,” she said.

On Saturday, September 17, 2016, Servellon attended the one-day program at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix. Pueblo science teachers Dr. Andrew Lettes and Ms. Elaine Straub accompanied her to this event.

“I really learned a lot performing six mock surgeries,” Servellon said. “I learned how to repair fracture using plates as well as spinal repairs due to scoliosis. I even had a chance to learn how to perform knee ligament reconstruction and to perform surgeon stitching.”

The application process consisted of a paragraph on why she was interested in attending this event as well as stating her short- and long-term goals in life.

“When I learned that I was accepted, it was totally unreal,” Servellon said. “I didn’t feel that I was that worthy of acceptance.”

Her former teacher, Dr. Andrew Lettes, is extremely proud of Servellon’s accomplishment and hopes many more females will follow in her footsteps in the future.

“Dr. Lettes truly encouraged and inspired me when I had him for the first time last year in Biotech 1-2, and even though I don’t have him for a teacher this year, he still inspires me because he is my ‘Science Dad’.”

Lettes said that Servellon’s acceptance into this program is a validation that anything is possible if you believe in yourself and are motivated enough.

Straub echoed Lettes’ words and added, “I’m beyond proud of what Maria Servellon has accomplished this year. I hope that she inspires more female students to follow in her footsteps.”

Servellon is open to all sciences and hopes this experience will help guide her towards her future career. She said that she would like to help in the efforts to develop more effective plastic hearts to those who are in desperate need of heart transplant.

Servellon said that she is starting to investigate colleges and universities to pursue her medical education, and she is curious about the University of California at Berkeley, which is her original home.

“This [event] exposed me to even more science, and I’ve always been very passionate about science,” she added. “There are not many women devoting their careers to sciences these days, still, but more women are needed in sciences because I believe that women are more precise and meticulous than men.”

On Oct. 18, Servellon will be recognized and honored by T.U.S.D. Superintendent H. T. Sanchez during the Governing Board meeting. Servellon has been asked to invite her family to this special occasion.

Warriors Urged To Attend Town Hall Meeting

By América Cárdenas

Students, teachers and parents are urged to attend a Town Hall meeting regarding the future of CTE programs on the evening of Wednesday, October 21 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Catalina High School auditorium.

Pueblo CTE Auto Program — Auto Program at Pueblo would be affected by budget cuts.

This meeting will discuss the recent funding cuts approved by the Governor’s Office for the 2016-2017 school year and how this will negatively affect Career and Technical Education programs throughout the state.

State senators Steve Farley and David Bradley will be present to discuss how the cuts will affect school districts, including Pueblo Magnet High School.

Please plan to attend this meeting. Your voice and opinions will definitely count.

Students Learn Valuable Lessons At DECA Conference

By Iram Arce and Daniel Cantu

On Sunday, March 1, six Pueblo Students attended the DECA [Distributive Education Careers of America] Conference at the Phoenix Convention Center, competing in events among 2,000 other students from all around the state.

Also known as CTSO [Career Technical Student Organization], DECA is part of marketing—giving students an opportunity to learn business skills and compete with others in various activities.

Mr. Pete Pederson, Pueblo’s digital printing (and yearbook) instructor, was a judge for one of the DECA contests that involved students having to apply for an entrepreneurial business proposal. Pederson said that Pueblo students did not compete in this event.

“All contests were scenario-based,” Pederson said. “Students had to play their part and exemplify business etiquette and business savviness.”

Mina Van Gorder, President of the DECA chapter at Pueblo, attended the competition for the second time—this year with more experience and preparation.

“Last year, I had no idea what I was doing,” Van Gorder said. “Now I had more experience on what to expect from the competitions.”

Junior Daniella Contreras admitted that she was really nervous in front of people during the competition, but was able to confront her fears and succeed.

“I was about to have a breakdown, but luckily Mina [Van Gorder] was there to help me out,” Contreras said.

After the competitions students enjoyed the award ceremony—and this is when our Warriors found out that they would not advance to the next round.

“Although we didn’t win, we met lots of new people and gained much more experience on how to talk professionally, making us effective leaders,” Contreras said. “Learning how to be an effective leader is important—not just at school but in ‘real’ life.”

The advisor/sponsor for DECA, Dr. Maria Bicknell, explained that students were very successful raising money for this trip through numerous events and student participation.

Bicknell said, “I’ve been to many of these conferences, and I never get tired of them. I have a never-ending passion to help our students grow and to learn to be leaders as well as critical thinkers. I really want them to succeed in life.”

Ernesto Somoza: Getting Students Ready for the Next Step

By Anais Salais

Ernesto Somoza Pueblo High School Teacher 2015 — Mr. Somoza (center in plaid shirt) with group of students

This spring semester welcomed several new faculty and staff members to the Pueblo community, including Mr. Ernesto Somoza, our new Communication Media Technology teacher.

Somoza attended the University of Arizona where he earned his bachelor’s degree in photography while minoring in art education.

While attending the University of Arizona, Somoza worked for the campus’ newspaper, The Daily Wildcat, as a photographer. The significant amount of hours that he invested while working for the Wildcat (and later with Red Bull as a photographer) was enough for Somoza to earn a CTE teaching certification in photography.

After graduating from college, Somoza took his first teaching position working as a special education teacher at Utterback Middle and later at Oyama Elementary School.

Eventually, Somoza saw an opportunity to teach photography, and this position eventually brought him to Pueblo.

“I wanted to find a job that was close to home and one that I got to teach photography and graphic arts,” said Somoza. “It’s exciting coming to work [at Pueblo] because I’m teaching what I truly love.”

Somoza is teaching a new class here at Pueblo that educates and trains students about enrolling in communications media technologies courses.

“This class hopefully breaks the monotony of how school is set up,” Somoza said. He added, “This class helps students understand basic concepts while making them more creative while adhering to the Common Core.”

Although Somoza came in at the beginning of the second semester—and the class is something both new to him and his students—Somoza remains optimistic and positive.

“So far, my experience at Pueblo has been great!” Somoza said. “The students are enthusiastic, and that makes me excited to teach when I see that they are excited.” He added, “I’ve already seen students’ creative levels increase, and I can just imagine where they’ll be by May.”

Somoza’s goal for the remainder of the school year is to ensure that his students are prepared to enter the appropriate communications art class next fall.

“I’m hoping that when students leave this class in May, they’re able to amaze their next teachers,” said Somoza.

Somoza also has hopes to see more students, especially the underclassmen, enroll in his class as they prepare for the communication art electives.

“I would encourage students to take this class if they are interested in taking classes like photography or graphic arts,” said Somoza. “This class is about going more in depth with the outstanding programs that are offered here at Pueblo.”

Warriors Attend Drama Festival

By Emilio Grijalva and Aliah Luna

Pueblo Players Attend Drama Festival — Pueblo Players attend Drama Festival

Pueblo’s advanced theatre students participated in the Southern Arizona Festival of Theatre at the University of Arizona on January 24, to compete against other drama programs in Tucson area high schools.

Senior Andrea Martinez won three superior ratings, qualifying her for state in Phoenix. She performed monologues from Jake’s Women by Neil Simon and The Scottish Play by William Shakespeare.

Martinez said, “It was an overwhelming experience! I got to spend this moment with people who have the same passion as me. This experience taught me a lot about myself.”

Ms. Sarah Sutton, Pueblo’s drama teacher, said, “I knew during rehearsals that Andrea Martinez was doing really well. I was and am very proud of her.”

Pueblo’s drama students who attended the festival performed solo monologues, small group plays; musicals, and duets.

Sutton began preparing her students after winter break, which involved daily practices to be competitive by late January. Her students selected their own material that they wanted to perform.

Senior Santos Barbosa said, “Everyone there tried their very best and had lots of fun.” Barbosa said that he performed a duet from the play/movie, The Producers called “We Can Do It” with his drama class peer, Gilbert Becerra, a junior.

Sutton said, “I’m hoping that we continue this tradition each year. I’m confident that this year’s beginning students will eventually be in competition with other drama students across Southern Arizona.”

Say ‘Cheese’! Warriors Enjoy Benefits of Photography Class

By Holly Pogue

Iram Arce Interviews Annalisa Verdugo — Iram Arce interviews Annalisa Verdugo

Pueblo offers many electives to its more than 1,500 students, and one of the most integral branches of the communication magnet program is photography, which provides students beginning and advanced classes.

Sophomore Jacqueline Guerrero wholeheartedly believes that students should enroll in photography classes in the future because of the many benefits the program offers; she attests to how beginning photography has helped her in numerous ways.

“This class truly has prepared me to be more professional and to interact with others,” Guerrero said. “I’ve really learned how to express myself better.”

She said that she enjoys how teacher Ms. Emma Tarazon gives her and her peers opportunities to go out of the classroom and take pictures—not just randomly but specifically for Tarazon’s assignments.

“Sometimes she [Ms. Tarazon] wants very precise pictures,” Guerrero said. “Everything we do is for a purpose. We are being prepared to be advanced photo students, and I intend to stick to this program hopefully all four years of high school.”

Felicity Aguilar Interviewing Ms Emma Tarazon — Felicity Aguilar interviewing Ms. Tarazon

Students use the Macs frequently—learning an array of photography editing skills, including restoring old photographs and learning how to remove unwanted objects in pictures to make them more aesthetic.

Guerrero said that she has also enjoyed learning how to use different cameras, including film cameras and learning how to develop pictures “the old-school” way.

“I really encourage other students to enroll in this program because photography will help them to become better people,” Guerrero affirmed. “You’ll learn how to view the world in a different way and be more positive, which is always a good thing.”

Another student, Analise Verdugo, who transferred to Pueblo from Cienega High School last semester, said that she is glad that she enrolled in photography because she is not only having fun but also learning a lot of strategies about photography.

Verdugo said, “I really enjoy the days when we students are allowed to go outside—to take a break from being cooped up inside of a classroom—and learning new techniques about photography, including lighting and shadows. And, who doesn’t like taking pictures? This is such a great class!”

Despite having some mixed classes of beginning and advanced photography students, teacher Ms. Emma Tarazon has observed improvements with her first-year students.

She said, “Despite the agonizing challenges of teaching two totally different groups of students at once, I’ve had to somehow make it work like a lot of electives teachers at Pueblo.” She paused and added, “It’s not fair for the advanced students to be with beginning students, although there are opportunities for job-shadowing, which is a valid way to teach beginning students and reinforce what my experienced photography students already know.”

One student, sophomore Kimberly Teran, said that she enjoys her beginning photography so much that she is considering a career as a photographer.

“Ms. Tarazon has truly been helpful and has taught me so much in a short period of time regarding photography,” Teran said. “This is one of the very few classes I’ve had at Pueblo that has been both fun and academically rewarding.”