Congratulations to the Whitewater High School FIRST Robotics Team Ferradermis on winning the first annual Laser Lights off-season event at Kettle Moraine High School from July 5-7, 2019. The team competed with and against 14 robots from around southeast Wisconsin, and ended up ranked 2nd after playing 13 qualification matches with a record of 9-3-1.
The winning alliance led by Ferradermis included the teams from Mukwonago High School and St. Thomas More High School.
Ferradermis chose Team
930, the 4th ranked Mukwonago BEARS, and Team 1714, the 10th ranked MORE
Robotics team from St. Thomas More High School, as their alliance partners for
the playoffs. The Ferradermis alliance defeated the
#1 alliance led by Team 2194, Fondy Fire from Fond du Lac, in two matches in
the finals to claim the title.
Most teams, including Ferradermis, used this competition as an
opportunity to rotate roles on the team, try out new drivers to replace
students who had graduated, and give new members a taste of a robotics
competition.
In addition to competing Ferradermis ran the concession stand as a fundraiser for the team
New members had a chance to get some training. Morgan is learning about programming the robot from Zach.
Colin Chenoweth, Reilly Aschenbrener, Elijah Grall, and Jenna Lee made up the drive team for the playoffs.
Students and mentors work in the pit to replace a motor.
The off-season competition gave students a chance to rotate through the drive team positions.
Ferradermis also had the opportunity to use this event as a fundraiser
by running the concession stand. Thank you to all of the parents who
helped!
Mr. Mike Lovenberg is proud to announce the
administrative recommendation of Justin Crandall as the next WHS Athletic
Director. Justin was selected from a candidate pool of 27 applicants and starts
July 15. The interview committee was impressed with his experience and
organizational skills. Justin has worked for the Port Edwards School District
since 2012 as a physical education teacher and the last five years as its
athletic director. He has experience as a Head Football Coach and Head Baseball
Coach. At Whitewater, Justin will serve as the High School Athletic Director
and teach physical education courses.
Justin Crandall
In his letter of application, Justin shared that one of his major goals as an educator is to build many solid relationships with his students. “I want to be the teacher that my students look forward to the most. I think the best way to make my class desirable is by challenging them. In my opinion, most of my students thrive on being challenged and pushed out of their comfort zones. It’s only after I make some type of connection and build a positive relationship with the student can I push them to those limits. I’ve learned over the course of my working with young people that I can get so much more academically, socially, and emotionally from them if those solid relationships are built and maintained.”
We are excited to have Justin joining our athletic
program and community. We look forward to future successes. A welcome reception
is being planned so that the community will have an opportunity to meet Justin.
Plan
on taking in a performance of the Whitewater Unified School District’s Summer
School Playhouse production of “The Phantom Tollbooth Jr.” on July 11 and 12 at
7:00 p.m. and July 13 at 2:00 p.m. in the Whitewater High School Auditorium.
Cast of “The Phantom Tollbooth Jr.”
To order reserved seat tickets at $8 for adults and $5 for students, phone the WHS box office at 262-472-8178. Tickets can also be purchased at the box office beginning one hour before the performance.
Norton
Juster’s beloved children’s book, “The
Phantom Tollbooth,” is adapted for the stage in this modern tale of
a boy who must save the princesses Rhyme and Reason and reunite the brother
Kings who rule over the cities of Dictionopolis and Digitopolis. Aided by a
trusty time-keeping dog, Tock, Milo successfully brings harmony to the Land of
Wisdom, finding that everything we learn has a purpose and whatever we do
affects everything and everyone, and that there is never a reason to be bored
in a world full of so many things to discover.
A
magnificent group of more than 60 students ranging in age from 6th graders to WHS
Class of 2019 graduates put their acting and technical skills to the test under
the direction of Jim McCulloch and Musical Director Liz Elliott.
Assisting
McCulloch and Elliott are Nathan
Broege (Assistant Director), Lynn
Lema (Choreography), Kat Dunham (Technical Director), Tony Hansen (Sound
Engineer) and Kim Clarksen (Costume Design).
Taking
to the stage are Gio Anello, Cha Cha Binagi, Ghati Binagi, Amelia Brokopp,
Belkys Comacho-Rivera, Keith Cameron, Caleb Clapper, Emma Clarksen, Olive
Coburn, Grace Coleman, Lucy Davis, Alejandra Diaz-Gallegos, Adalyn Frye, Danny
Fuller, Henry Gehrenbeck, Charlotte Hajewski, Jillian Harkness, Nina Heim,
Maggie Jay, Kaia Jones, Josh Kirley, Tai Lin, Ilana Lothes, Alex Martin, Audrey
Mayer, Ben McCulloch, Myles Morse, Betzy Palomec, Madisyn Pope, Chris Porcaro,
Chloe Prince, Aldo Rodriguez, Cole Schlicher, Nicole Sedmak, Rebecca Sortino,
Skylar Staebler, Madison Strickler, Alexandra Sullivan, Evie Troxel, Lucy
Troxel, Sami Van Daele, Willow Vogelzang, Anderson Waelchli, Carter Waelchli,
Marco Wence, Cosette Wildermuth, Ella Willman, Xavier Zei, and Morgan Zingsheim.
Students
serving on the technical side of the production as Stage Managers are Hailey Long and Sophia Walton (Stage Manager) and as
Assistant Technical Directors Josie Hintz and Emma Van Daele, along with Payton Bunger, Emerson Dunham, Weston Lema, Ian Long, Kara Long, Abi
Olson, Jarvis Porcaro, Aldo Rodriguez, and Kelsey Zingheim.
Following
a three-hour rehearsal on July 1, 6th grader Danny Fuller said, “I think the play’s really fun.”
Sophie
Walton, a sophomore, commented, “This is my first year stage managing, and it’s
really interesting being on the other side because in the past I’ve been in the
cast itself or backstage on the crew.
It’s interesting to see the work that goes into actually directing and producing
the show.”
“It’s
a challenging and very different show, and it’s one that’s not very well known,
so you have to come up with a character by yourself,” noted sophomore Gio
Anello, cast in the role of Mathemagician. “You can’t rely on other productions
of the show,” Anello continued. “You go
through the script and you try to pick up little mannerisms on what your
character’s like. You have to develop a
voice for your character and a mood for how they’re feeling.” Anello
added, “My character has to change from angry to not angry and I have to build
off of other characters at the same time.”
“The selection of this show took me by surprise, but it has grown on me,” Carter Waelchli, a junior, reported. “I read ‘The Phantom Tollbooth’ when I was a little kid in first or second grade. Rediscovering the story and all the characters has been a magical experience.” In describing his role as Tock, Waelchli observed, “My character in this show goes on this adventure in this magical land filled with weird creatures,” adding, “In famous shows there are established portrayals of the characters but for a play like this, it’s much more like free form experimentation. You can move around and try things you wouldn’t really get to try in other, more traditional shows.”
Waelchli also said that the idea of his character is also “absolutely” influenced once rehearsals begin. “At the beginning of rehearsals, the relationship I had with Marco, who plays Milo, was more authoritarian because my character, Tock, is a watchdog. As the rehearsal schedule has continued and I have embraced the fact that my character is an animal, I’m developing more of a dopey, dog-like persona.”
Freshman Skylar Staebler said, “Theatre is just like one big family. Having everyone together is just so much fun.”
Ella Willman, a junior, pointed out the value of the summer school production for the youngest members of the cast and technical crew: “One of the great things about the summer musical is that it allows little kids to learn a love of theatre which is very important.”
Former student-athletes Fulton “Trey” Bell ’18, Erin
Bravo ’05, Ryan Callahan ’04, Brady Endl ’04, Angela (Sheehan) Rachidi ’98 and Michelle
Stanislawski ‘05 will be inducted. Former head football coach Lance Leipold ’87
will be inducted under the category of staff/coach, and longtime Warhawk
supporter Jim Kuehn will be inducted for his distinguished service to the
institution.
The 1984 men’s basketball team, which claimed the
program’s first-ever national championship, will also be inducted under the
team category. It is the first team ever inducted into the UW-Whitewater
Athletics Hall of Fame.
All eight individuals and the 1984 men’s basketball team
will be recognized for their contributions to Warhawk athletics as part of the
UW-Whitewater football team’s game against UW-Platteville on Saturday, October
12, at 2 p.m. Inductees will be part of the Homecoming Parade, which begins at
10 a.m., and be honored at halftime of the football game and at the annual Hall
of Fame Banquet, which begins following the contest at 5:30 p.m. at the
University Center’s Hamilton Room.
To purchase tickets for the game and/or Hall of Fame
Banquet, visit the Hall of Fame Registration Web Page. For more information
regarding the banquet, contact Lauree Miller at 262-472-6202 or millerla@uww.edu.
Fulton “Trey” Bell competed for the UW-Whitewater football
team in 1999 and from 2002-04. The Racine, Wisconsin, native played on
back-to-back 7-3 teams in 2003 and 2004 that helped catapult the program to its
nationally-competitive level. A defensive back and kick/punt returner, Bell
earned first team All-America honors from the American Football Coaches
Association and third team honors from D3football.com in 2004 after totaling 34
tackles, four interceptions, nine pass breakups, and two fumble recoveries
defensively and more than 200 yards in the return game. He was named the team’s
Co-Most Valuable Player that same year. A two-time All-Wisconsin
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection, Bell finished his career with
121 tackles, 12 interceptions and five fumble recoveries. He played for the
Chicago Fire of the American Football League in 2006. Bell graduated with a
bachelor’s in physical education in 2018.
Erin Bravo was a member of the UW-Whitewater softball
program from 2003-04. She collected first team All-Wisconsin Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference and all-region accolades in 2003, when she helped lead the
team to the NCAA Tournament. One year later, Bravo was named WIAC Player of the
Year and a first team All-American by the National Fastpitch Coaches
Association after leading the Warhawks in hits (61), home runs (9), batting
average (.452), runs batted in (35) and doubles (14). She is the program’s
all-time leader in career batting average (.431) and currently ranks among the
top five in conference history in both career batting average and career slugging
percentage (.758). An Arlington Heights, Illinois, native, Bravo graduated
from UW-Whitewater with a degree in criminal justice in 2005.
Ryan Callahan was a three-time All-Wisconsin
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection and two-time all-region honoree
for the UW-Whitewater baseball team from 2000-01 and 2003-04. The
pitcher/outfielder helped the Warhawks claim four WIAC championships, two
conference tournament titles, and four appearances in the NCAA Tournament,
including a trip to the Division III World Series in 2004. Callahan led
UW-Whitewater in complete games (5), shutouts (2), innings pitched (72), and
strikeouts (72), and compiled a team-leading 2.21 earned run average and two
shutouts as a senior in 2004. The Janesville, Wisconsin, native was signed by
the San Francisco Giants upon graduation, pitching in the organization for
several years. Callahan graduated with a degree in elementary education in 2004
and currently serves as UW-Whitewater’s Interim Director of Athletics.
Brady Endl was a four-year standout for the baseball
program from 2001-04. In 2004, he was selected American Baseball Coaches
Association National Pitcher of the Year and the Academic All-America® of the
Year by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Endl finished his
career as a two-year All-American and Academic All-American, and was the WIAC
Baseball Max Sparger Scholar-Athlete in 2004. The four-time All-Wisconsin
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honoree helped the Warhawks claim three
WIAC championships, two conference tournament titles and three NCAA Tournament
appearances, including a trip to the Division III World Series in 2004. Endl’s
name is etched throughout the program and conference record books, ranking No.
1 in school history in innings pitched (261 2/3) and strikeouts (251) and No. 2
in league history in pitching wins (27). He also ranks among the top 10 in
program history in home runs (40), walks (78), and runs batted in (138). Endl
is a member of the WIAC’s All-Time Baseball Team, which was recognized during
the league’s Centennial Celebration in 2013. He was selected in the 10th round
by the Atlanta Braves in the 2004 Major League Baseball June Amateur Draft, and
played professionally in the organization for three years. A Jefferson,
Wisconsin, native, Endl graduated with a degree in finance in 2004.
Angela (Sheehan) Rachidi was named all-conference four
times and all-region two times at second base during her four-year career with
the UW-Whitewater softball team from 1995-98. The Lancaster, Wisconsin, native
is one of four players in program history to earn All-Wisconsin Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference accolades four times. Rachidi was named first team Academic
All-District® by the College Sports Information Directors of America in 1996
and was selected WIAC Softball Judy Kruckman Scholar-Athlete as a senior in
1998. She helped lead the Warhawks to the conference championship in 1996 as
well as NCAA Tournament appearances in 1996 and 1998. Rachidi ranks among the
top 10 in program history in career doubles (37), runs (124), batting average
(.370), and hits (183). She graduated with a bachelor’s in public policy
administration in 1998.
Michelle (Stanislawski) Anderson was a two-time
All-American as a setter for the Warhawk volleyball team. During her career,
which spanned from 2001-04, Anderson was selected All-Wisconsin Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference and all-region two times each, and was a member of the WIAC
All-Defensive team in 2002. She helped the Warhawks win the national
championship in 2002 and was a part of three other NCAA Tournament appearances
as well as three WIAC championships and two conference tournament titles. Anderson
ranks among the program’s top 10 in career digs (1,551) and assists (2,357),
and her 1,704 assists in 2003 are the second-most in one season in program
history and ninth-most in the WIAC record book. A Milwaukee native, Anderson
graduated with a degree in criminal justice in 2005.
Lance Leipold led the Warhawk football team to six
national championships during his eight-year run as head coach from 2007-14. A
six-time American Football Coaches Association and D3football.com National Coach
of the Year, Leipold left UW-Whitewater with the highest winning percentage
(.948) among active NCAA coaches at any level, and became the fastest head
coach in NCAA history at any level to reach 100 career wins (106 games). The
four-time Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year
helped UW-Whitewater claim seven conference titles and several individual
accolades, including 66 All-America honors, 132 All-WIAC accolades, six WIAC
Player of the Year awards, and six National Player of the Year honors. Leipold
also worked tirelessly off the field to extend UW-Whitewater’s profile,
appearing regularly on regionally- and nationally-syndicated sports broadcasts,
communicating frequently with local, regional and national media, and forging a
partnership with ESPN Milwaukee. A 2003 Hall of Fame inductee as a former
Warhawk quarterback, Leipold currently works as head football coach at the
University at Buffalo, a member of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).
Jim Kuehn has been an avid supporter of the UW-Whitewater
athletic department and its teams for nearly 40 years. He has been a member of
the UW-Whitewater football team’s Quarterback Club since 1982, serving as a
board member on several occasions. Kuehn is credited as one of the founders of the
Quarterback Club Golf Outing, which began in 1987. He also serves as a member
and organizer of the football “chain gang,” a position he has held since 1983.
In addition, Kuehn serves as a committee member and financial contributor for
Wally & Rod’s Warhawk Auction Raffle, the largest annual fundraiser for the
Warhawk football, men’s basketball, and baseball programs for nearly 25 years.
He has also been instrumental over the years in coordination of post-event
meals for football student-athletes and their families. Kuehn is retired after
working for the Jefferson Fire Department for 58 years.
The 1983-84 men’s basketball team earned UW-Whitewater’s
first national championship trophy. Highly regarded after a trip to the
NCAA Division III Final Four the previous year, Dave Vander Meulen’s squad
lived up to the expectations. Behind senior guard Andre McKoy, still
UW-Whitewater’s career scoring leader and the only player in program history to
reach 2,000 points, UW-W shared the Wisconsin State University Conference
title. McKoy was named the WSUC Player of the Year, and Vander Meulen was
the league’s Coach of the Year. Junior center Mark Linde, who went on to
earn All-America honors the next season, and junior forward James Wilson, among
UW-W’s best defenders and a certainty as the school’s all-time shot blocker if
it had been an official statistic at the time, gave UW-W the complimentary
inside game to defeat Clark University 103-86 in the championship game in Grand
Rapids, Michigan, giving UW-W a 27-4 record and the WSUC its first national
basketball champion.
Representatives of Ferradermis, Whitewater High School’s FIRST Robotics Team #6574, joined members of Paradigm Shift from Pewaukee High School, the Mukwonago BEARS, and CORE Robotics from the School District of Waukesha at Generac in Waukesha for a Robotics Team Day on Friday, June 28. Generac generously sponsors all four teams.
Representatives of Team #930 from Mukwonago High School, Team #6574 from Whitewater High School, Team #1259 from Pewaukee High School, and Team #2062 from the Waukesha School District brought their 2019 robots to Generac in Waukesha.
The teams set up their robots and small displays in an area just inside the main entrance, and for a little over two hours answered questions and did demonstrations for employees of Generac. The teams enjoyed playing non-competitive games with their robots, demonstrating how they could pass the cargo balls and hatch panels from the 2019 competition back and forth. They also enjoyed fielding the in depth questions about their robot designs from various engineers. Following the demonstrations, the students and their mentors toured the facility and saw how Generac is making use of additional robotics and high-tech sensors.
Answering Questions for Generac Engineers
Playing with Mukwonago
Playing with Paradigm
Answering Questions for Generac Engineers
After demonstrating the robot in Whitewater’s 4th of July
Parade, the team will pack up and head to Kettle Moraine High School for 3 days
for the Laser Lights Off-Season Competition. Fourteen teams from Southern
Wisconsin will come together for an event that will be open to the public on
Saturday, July 6, from 9:00 – 4:00, and Sunday, July 7, from 10:00 – 4:00. If
you are interested in seeing the robots
in action, or checking out displays from FIRST Tech Challenge (middle school-aged)
and FIRST Lego League (elementary school-aged) teams, please come join us!
Gio Anello, age 15 of
Whitewater High School, has qualified for the National Jr. Olympics in three
events by his performances in the recent National Regionals held over the
weekend.
Gio Anello
Gio placed 2nd in both the 3000 and 800 meter races and won the 1500 meter race in the 15/16 year old category to earn his way to Nationals.
While Gio had earned the
right to participate in the 100 meter qualifications by his performance at the
District meet the prior week, he chose to focus his efforts on the distance
events.
The Whitewater Unified School District Leadership Team, comprised of school principals, district coordinators, and administrators, is hosting the 5th Annual Golf Fore! Whitewater Kids Outing on Sunday, August 18, 2019, at Prairie Woods Golf Course.
This event will make a difference in the lives of Whitewater children. All proceeds from this golf outing and dinner will support:
Scholarships for graduating WHS seniors
Performing Arts through the Whitewater Music Parents Association
Athletics through the Whippet Booster Club
Whitewater Unified School District’s Family Emergency Fund
Rise Grants (Innovative Educator Mini Grants)
There are several ways you can participate in this fun
and worthwhile event. First, you can register a foursome for the golf outing,
or register as an individual and we will find you a team. Second, you or your
business can sponsor a hole, which entitles you to a sign on the course
acknowledging your support. Third, you or your business can donate items for
the silent auction or raffle, or prizes for the outing. Fourth, you can attend
the dinner reception following the golf outing, where we will also recognize
this year’s recipients of the Friend of Whitewater Kids awards. Finally, please
consider helping us promote the event by posting a flyer in your business and
sharing information with others.
If you are interested in attending this important
charitable event, please fill out the registration/sponsorship form on the WUSD
website: http://www.wwusd.org/page/2927. Forms are also available at
WUSD’s Central Office. If you have questions, please contact any member of the
District Leadership Team or call 262-472-8700.
The Public Art is up on the light poles in downtown Whitewater! The Whitewater Arts Alliance would like to thank all of the artists, volunteers and sponsors of the 2019 Public Art Project, “Portals to the Past, Portals to the Future.”
The following artists chose a person, place, or thing of past significance to the history of Whitewater, or a vision of what they see in the future for Whitewater: Joanna Marr Baker, Dawn Hunter, Derek Hambly, 4th and 5th grade Lakeview students, Janet Nelson, Linda Preussner, Issak Miklik, Daniela Porras, Everett Long, Karolyn Alexander, Whitney Scherr, Erika Schwalbe, Alfredo Gomez, and Morgan Stillwagon.
This project is possible thanks to the sponsors:
Ginny Coburn Charles and Shirley Scharine Mike and Laura Grubb H. Gaylon and Hannah Greenhill Marjorie Stoneman and Joseph Kromholz Ellen Penwell Ken and Susie Kidd Everett and Ellen Long Susan Mealy Hugo Tscharnack
Dental Perfections Fort Community Credit Union Delores and Ernest Engel Kristen Burton Boostrom Olm and Associates Megan and Larry Matthews Audra Lange First Citizens State Bank Caryl Yasko Kerri Kachel
Mary Nevicosi, chair of the exhibit and WAA board member said, “The WAA thanks Carol Cartwright for her fun and informative presentation of Whitewater history at the January kick-off, David Linton for making sure the hanging holes were correct, Home Lumber for cutting the wood, the sponsors for making this project possible, the artists who shared their talent and time, and a special thanks to the city crew and Chris Munz-Pritchard for their enthusiastic help in hanging the pieces. We hope that, as part of their summer enjoyment, people will stroll in downtown Whitewater and enjoy the beautiful original art!”
Additional information on the Public
Art Project can be found at the Whitewater Arts Alliance website www.whitewaterarts.org or via a walk-along video-tour
on the StriveOn app. The application is free for mobile phones, and it allows
people to watch artists’ interviews and find the name of the pieces and the
artists as they stroll in Whitewater.
The
mission of the Whitewater Arts Alliance is to promote the visual and performing
arts through an alliance of artists, individuals, educational resources, and
organizations to promote creativity and diversity that will serve to educate
and enrich the lives of the residents of the Whitewater community and
surrounding areas.
Congratulations are in
order to both Whitewater State Farm and Whitewater Ketterhagen Motors 10u
Baseball Teams. Quad County North Division All-Star Game selections are in, and
Whitewater has six players starting (Ty Bucholtz, Tristen Kolb, Caleb
Jagodzinski, Emmett Spear, Marcus Roselle, Archie Briggs), 2 reserves (Evan
Jagodzinski, Blake Robb) and a player coach (Jessie DeMarasse) selected to
represent the North vs South Saturday, June 29th, in East Troy. The Whitewater
State Farm coaching staff, Ray Bucholtz, Eric Cutshall, and Jen Hutchison, were
selected to coach the South All-Stars.
“I am very happy with how hard these kids have worked and how far they have come. A sincere thank you to our team Sponsors State Farm and Ketterhagen Motors. Also, for the support of Fort Jr Blackhawk Baseball Club, Coburn Co, and Premier Bank. The Jr Blackhawks and Coburn Company were generous enough to allow our players to share their training facility free of charge this winter. Premier Bank also sponsored a speed and agility training group for a good majority of the players over the winter,” says Head Coach Ray Bucholtz. “Youth sports in Whitewater has not experienced much success in recent years. A good majority of these young kids are experiencing the fruits of their labor by being a part of a positive winning team for the first time in their lives.”
Bucholtz also states, “It’s not a coincidence that both Whitewater teams are in 1st and 2nd place in the division. No other team has worked harder than our kids over the year. It is a great community collaboration addressing the need for building a positive success mindset in our youth. We don’t want the kids to focus on wins and losses to measure success at this age. We focus on getting better every day in baseball and in life. For every kid that means something different. It took winning a few games to start getting the kids to believe they are worthy of winning and to buy into our daily growth mindset.”
The big match-up is Friday, June 28th, at 6pm, on Treyton Field, between 1st place Whitewater State Farm and 2nd Place Whitewater Ketterhagen Motors.
