SCHOOL
A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6, 2022
SPRING WELCOME
Hermiston High School greets guests with conferences
By ERICK PETERSON • Hermiston Herald
H
ermiston High School students
showed off their talents and
education at conferences March 30
and April 1 at their school. Music, clubs,
technology and more were all on display.
Hermiston School Dis-
trict Superintendent Tri-
cia Mooney and Hermis-
ton High School Principal
Tom Spoo were among the
administrators who met vis-
itors at an entrance. They
opened the doors for peo-
ple to come face to face with
enthusiastic teenagers and
their proud teachers.
“This is a little bit different
than what we’ve done in the
past,” Mooney said. “Spoo
has put in countless hours to
shift what had been tradition-
ally a parent-teacher confer-
ence to what we’re calling a
‘Spring Welcome.’ It’s about
all of the resources available
in our community and for our
kids, as well as a highlight of
all of the amazing programs
at Hermiston High School.”
She added that she was
happy for students to meet
community members and
create bonds that could lead
to new activities.
“Yes, you come for con-
ferences,” Spoo said. “At the
same time, there’s a lot else
going on. There’s a career fair
going on, a job fair and more.”
He said this was the first
“true” conference, coming
back from coronavirus lock-
downs. Previous conferences,
such as student-led confer-
ences in fall, were scaled back.
This one, he said, included
more activities and people.
“This is exciting,” he said.
Spoo was especially
enthusiastic about simula-
tors at the conferences, which
showed students the experi-
ence of working with heavy
equipment.
There
were
several
employers and organizations
represented with booths at
the conferences, including the
Hermiston School District,
Amazon, Umatilla Electric
Cooperative, Oregon Migrant
Education Program and Good
Shepherd Health Care System.
Alexandria
McClure,
junior, was one of the students
performing at the conferences
on April 1. Setting up her key-
board, she was getting ready
for a musical performance.
“It’s always a lot of fun,”
McClure said of her upcoming
performance. In addition, she
said she was excited to partic-
ipate in other things offered at
the conferences. The confer-
ence’s job fair, she said, was
of particular interest, as she
wanted to obtain employment.
Earning money so she could
buy a car and help pay for col-
lege was important to her, she
said.
Meanwhile, Helen Cooley,
senior, was setting up tables
for the FFA. Cooley, who is
involved in FFA and business
clubs, said she was looking for-
ward to showing adults things
being done at her school. Stu-
dents, she said, had created a
business to sell T-shirts and
other goods with Hermiston
High School branding.
“I’m excited,” she said of
the opportunity to show off
her clubs.
Working alongside Cooley,
Felicity Bequette, sophomore,
said she was an FFA member,
too. Not only did the confer-
ences give her the chance to
show her club to others, they
also allowed her to help attract
people to the FFA.
“I have a sister who is an
eighth-grader,” Bequette said.
“She’ll come and look at it
and see if she wants to join.”
As the students busied
themselves on setting up for
the conference, FFA Advisor
Sandy McKay said he was
very proud of them.
“They’re an amazing
group of kids, and they’ve
been very successful in recent
years,” he said. He added that
he was glad to be able to have
visitors meet the students.
Ryker Browning, junior,
“(PRINCIPAL
TOM) SPOO HAS
PUT IN
COUNTLESS
HOURS TO
SHIFT WHAT
HAD BEEN
TRADITIONAL-
LY A PARENT-
TEACHER
CONFERENCE
TO WHAT
WE’RE CALLING
A ‘SPRING
WELCOME.’
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Alexandria McClure, junior, sets up her keyboard March 30, 2022.
— Tricia Mooney, Hermiston
School District superintendent
passed out cubes of Tillamook
cheese.
“I like having the oppor-
tunity to participate,” he said.
“It’s fun cooking with my
classmates and representing
my school.”
Another group of students
said they are glad to represent
their school, too. Members of
the school’s health care pro-
gram displayed their under-
standing of CPR.
Meekah Vandecar, soph-
omore, said it was her first
year in the program, and she
has learned how to take vital
signs and talk to patients. She
said she wants to become a
midwife.
Elle Uzzell, senior, said
she has been in the program
for three years, and she wants
to become a physical thera-
pist. Recently, she has learned
life-saving techniques, such
as CPR. Also, she is learning
how to draw blood.
“It’s a fun program,” Daisy
Wolverton, sophomore, said
of health care at HHS. “I’ve
learned a lot.
Wolverton, who was at the
health care booth with Vande-
car, Uzzell and other students,
said she was happy to show
people what she had learned,
including facts on nutrition.
Coy Estes, sophomore,
said he was enthusiastic about
demonstrating his learning,
too. A participant in the weld-
ing program, Estes was show-
ing other people a welding
virtual simulator. He talked
to people about his achieve-
ments as a welder.
“I can do about anything,”
he said. “I can do MIG, oxy-
fuel, oxy-cutting, plasma cut-
ting, blueprints. Right now,
I’m working on TIG, which is
our most difficult.”
Over at another simu-
lator, Jackson Ryan, fresh-
man, was discovering what it
is like to drive heavy equip-
ment. Meanwhile, his mother
looked on with interest.
“This is the only reason
we’re here,” Heather Ryan
said. She added that she was
glad her son could have this
experience.
Representing Hermiston
Parks and Recreation, Kaleigh
Leighton, senior, worked
at a booth, trying to attract
other students to work for the
department. She said it was an
exciting night and her booth
and others give students many
activities to explore. Hope-
fully, she added, they would
learn more about potential
jobs and clubs to enter.
Mya Hayden of Hermis-
ton Parks and Recreation also
staffed a booth. She said she
met many students, heard their
stories and saw their activ-
ities, and she said she was
impressed.
“They are good, and
they have a lot of poten-
tial,” she said.
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Jazz musicians play March 30, 2022, at Hermiston High School.
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Helen Cooley, senior, arranges plants at Hermiston High
School’s Spring Welcome March 30, 2022.
Jackson Ryan, freshman, learns how to drive heavy equipment
with the help of virtual reality technology March 30, 2022.
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Ryker Browning, junior, passes out cheese on March 30, 2022.
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Elle Uzzell, senior, practices CPR March 30, 2022.
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Deborah Wryn conducts soloist Lainey Bird, Hermiston High
School senior, and other choir members at conferences
March 30, 2022.
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Coy Estes, sophomore, demonstrates
equipment March 30, 2022.
virtual
reality