A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, MAY 16, 2018
EDUCATION
Echo students qualify for national competitions
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
STAFF WRITER
Meat classification and
Argentinian history may not
seem to have much common
ground, but both subjects
are sending Echo students
to national competitions this
year.
Three high schoolers
will travel to Indianapo-
lis in October to compete in
the Future Farmers of Amer-
ica national competition, in
meats evaluation.
Senior Ethan Hobson and
juniors Kiana Morrison and
Kylee Murstig will represent
the state of Oregon in the
field, which includes identi-
fying, judging and grading
meats.
“We had to identify cer-
tain cuts, yield and quality
grade,” Hobson said.
While
Hobson
and
Murstig had older siblings
who had competed in meats
evaluation, Morrison had no
background knowledge and
STAFF PHOTO BY JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
Kiana Morrison, Ethan Hobson and Kylee Murstig will travel to Indianapolis this fall to
compete in FFA Nationals for meats evaluation.
is in her second year com-
peting in FFA. All three stu-
dents compete in other cat-
egories as well, including
parliamentary procedure and
raising livestock.
Echo’s teams have won
the statewide meats evalua-
tion category three times in
the last eight years.
Raymon Smith, Echo
Schools superintendent and
Hermiston senior awarded
scholarship from wheat group
The
Oregon
Wheat Foundation is
pleased to announce
awards of 10 $1,000
scholarships to high
school seniors this
year, representing 10
counties or regions.
Students
were
judged on their com-
munity involvement,
academic achieve-
ment and an essay
on a wheat industry
topic.
Reed Middleton
is a graduating senior
Middleton
at Hermiston High
School and plans to
study agricultural business at Kan-
sas State University. Reed is the
daughter of Jason and Cindy Mid-
dleton of Hermiston.
She plays tennis, and is the senior
representative, FFA Chapter vice
president, a member of the National
Honor Society and
is active in Umatilla
County 4-H. She also
volunteers on several
school and commu-
nity projects.
Oregon
Wheat
Foundation Schol-
arships are open to
high school seniors
whose parents are
members of the Ore-
gon Wheat Growers
League or whose par-
ents are employed by
grower members of
the organization.
The scholarship is
also open to students
employed by grower members.
Scholarship information can be
found in the Oregon Wheat Foun-
dation section of the Oregon wheat
website at www.owgl.org.
Applications are accepted begin-
ning in October.
the meats evaluation coach,
said the long-term aim of the
program is to help make stu-
dents informed consumers.
“It’s good to win, but the
goal is to get them to under-
stand when they go to the
grocery store — why they’re
buying what they’re buying,
and get the quality product
in the end,” Smith said.
About 46 high school stu-
dents participate in Echo’s
FFA, half the high school’s
population.
At the middle school,
four sixth-graders qualified
for nationals in the National
History Day competition.
Sam Wyse, McKenzie
Rose, Allyson Brown and
Calliope Mills researched
and performed a piece about
Madres de la Plaza de Mayo,
a group of mothers who pro-
tested the kidnapping and
killing of thousands of
children by the military in
Argentina during the 1970s
and early ’80s.
The students did a short
performance, depicting pro-
tests by the mothers at the
World Cup.
“We got a book about
women worldwide who had
done things to stand up for
themselves,” Rose said.
“This was a good topic
because they were stand-
ing up for children,” Mills
added.
Echo History teacher
Debbie Royer said the stu-
dents are hoping to go to
the national competition in
June, at the University of
Maryland. But she said the
students will have to fund-
raise first, and it’s not con-
firmed that they’ll attend.
Though many schools
competed at the National
History Day competition at
Concordia University, the
Echo sixth grade team was
unopposed, because no one
else in that age group gave a
performance.
There are several catego-
ries in which students can
compete, including filming a
short documentary, creating
an exhibit, writing a paper,
or making a website.
Royer said this is the third
year Echo has competed in
National History Day.
Two local seniors earn scholarships
HERMISTON — Two local
graduating seniors have been
chosen to receive Tripper Rice
Memorial Scholarship for 2018.
The scholarships are given
in memory of Tripper Rice,
a past InterMountain High
School Rodeo Association state
champion and national qual-
ifier, by his parents Paul and
Cindy Rice.
Daylon Eng of Hermiston,
an Echo High School senior,
received a $1,500 scholarship.
He plans to attend Blue Moun-
tain Community College in
Pendleton to earn an associate’s
degree in preparation for learn-
ing the electrician’s trade. Eng
has been active in FFA, 4-H,
wrestling, baseball, and rodeo
during his high school years.
He is a youth wrestling and Lit-
tle League coach, and helps set
up the Umatilla County Fair
each year. He is the son of Can-
dice Osborne and Shawn Eng of
Hermiston.
Hallie Porter, a senior at
Eng
Porter
Pendleton High School, was
chosen to receive a $2,000
scholarship. She plans to attend
Eastern Washington Univer-
sity in Cheney, Wash., to study
communication disorders. In
addition to her involvement
in National Honor Society,
FFA and basketball at the high
school, Porter also teaches horse
riding lessons to 11-year-olds
and participates in the Happy
Canyon Night Show during the
Pendleton Round-Up. She is the
daughter of Kevin and Whitney
Porter of Pendleton.
Tripper Rice scholarships
are not solely based on the aca-
demic achievement of the stu-
dent, but also weighed heavily
on the student’s financial need,
desire for continued education,
sportsmanship, leadership in the
classroom and community, and
continuous enthusiasm for their
school and rodeo.
Thank you Dr. Gifford for
serving our community!
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After 26 years of continued service to our community,
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the retirement of Joseph R. Gifford, M.D., Family Practice
Physician. As of April 2018, Dr. Gifford is no longer
seeing patients at the Gifford Medical Center.
We wish Dr. Gifford and his family the best of
luck as they embark on their new journey.
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