What recently happened - Geek! thespians fall play
This past weekend, November 12 - 14, the Portage High School (PHS) thespians put on its fall production Geek! by Crystal Skillman. This production entailed two huge fans (Honey played by Samantha Uzelac and Danya played by Bella Zanon) going on a challenging and character-changing quest to meet their favorite creator, Joto Samagashi.
Throughout the play, Honey and Danya face several battles with new and old enemies, find the true meaning of friendship, end up with their dream crushes, and realize that real-life friends are more important than those behind a screen.
Before the show started, two members of the play gave their opinions on being a part of the production.
Bhoomi Yadav, a new student and sophomore at PHS shares her reasoning for joining the club.
“In the beginning, this wasn’t my idea, I thought this was a dance club. But after joining I really liked it, so I stayed," Yadav said.
Yadav plays Spring, a fortune-teller who can see into the future and helps Honey and Danya along the right path.
Natasha Gould, a four-year thespian and senior at PHS, shares her favorite part of being a thespian.
“My favorite part is the energy. Also being in this club has made me more confident and given me the opportunity to make new friends and meet amazing people," she said.
Gould plays Devil Cat One, a devil cat who antagonizes and coerces Honey and Danya to become evil people.
What's coming up - Winter concerts at PHS
With winter festivities beginning in preparation for the holiday season, the PHS music department is also preparing. Within the next few weeks, the music department will put on three different musical concerts.
The first one, beginning on November 30, 2021, is the band concert, the second one on December 7 is the choir concert, and the third concert on December 14 is the orchestra concert. With a variety of holiday choral and sheet repertoire, these concerts are sure to put anyone in the holiday spirit.
Admission for these concerts are open to the public, but masks are required. It costs $2 for adults and $1 for teens and under for all three concerts. Although ticket prices are low, talent at all of the concerts are high.
Teacher spotlight - Jodi Newby: The multidimensional teacher
Jodi Newby is an English teacher at PHS, yet English is not the only course she teaches. Newby also teaches Speech, Advanced/Dual Credit Speech, and Biblical Literature. Outside of school, Newby’s teaching duties do not end since she owns a Driver's Education school located in Portage, IN on U.S. Highway 6.
Newby knew that within her lifetime she wanted to run some sort of establishment where she didn’t have to answer to anyone, so when the opportunity arose, she took it. With 28 years of teaching driver's education and 13 years of teaching high school students, Newby's passion for teaching is obvious.
After many years of perfecting a schedule balancing teaching in and out of the classroom, Newby is now at ease with her multifaceted lifestyle. Yet when faced with staff shortages her perfect schedule can become messy.
For Newby, teaching teens in every classroom educates her as much as she educates them.
“Both of us learn but in very different ways. My students are learning more academic information and I am learning more about teaching strategies, curriculum, and myself," she said.
Student spotlight - Devan Howard: Before and after the cast
Devan Howard is an 18-year-old senior at PHS and has played football for as long as he could remember. During the Portage Indians eighth game of the year, tragedy struck for Howard.
“I remember going for a pass, I jumped to catch the ball, and after I caught the ball I landed super hard on the ground and heard a pop in my knee,” said Howard.
This hard landing cost Howard the rest of his football season, a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), and possibly most of his wrestling season.
Howard has been playing varsity since sophomore year as a running back and receiver. His biggest take away from his devastating injury is contemplation.
“Football gives you a lot of small injuries that you push off and with that comes a big amount of strain on your body and mind. With this injury it gave me the opportunity to relax from the physical and mental pressures of football,” said Howard.
Howard has started to recently attend school after his injury, but that’s not stopping him from pursuing higher education and the opportunity to get back on the field. Yet with the loss of never being able to play with his high school teammates again, he feels heartbroken.
To Howard, football is much more than a sport and something he will always carry in his heart. Throughout the years of playing football, Howard has learned many valuable life lessons from his teammates and coaches. But one of the biggest lessons he’s learned is how certain stereotypes put on football players are untrue.
“Being a member of the football team has changed my perspective on high school sports a lot. On the outside most people think football players are just these tough jocks, but we’re more than that. We are a tight knit family, and it’s really special," he said.
Before Howard's injury he obtained two touchdowns and 120 rushing yards in week one of his season, marking him as a new hope for the PHS football team.