Tag Archives: Denair High School

Cheyenne Rutherford, Edwin Flores Recognized as Denair High’s Top Student-Athletes

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Edwin Flores and Cheyenne Rutherford

Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Two of Denair High School’s top students were honored this week by the Southern League for their academic and athletic accomplishments.

Cheyenne Rutherford and Edwin Flores have excelled in the classroom and as four-year members of the Coyotes’ sports teams and have been actively involved with various school clubs. Both are seniors who intend to enroll at California State University, Stanislaus this fall.

Rutherford has a grade-point average of 4.27, one of the highest in her class. She participated in volleyball four years and was on the track and basketball teams for three years. She also has been a Denair cheerleader for four years in addition to helping to coach the youth football cheerleading squad.

“Cheyenne is one of the busiest students I have known the past four years,” said Darrin Allen, the high school’s athletic director. “She has impressed me since her freshman year balancing all of her classes, athletics, FFA, cheer and coaching cheer while still maintaining over a 4.0 GPA.

“If an injury during volleyball would not have slowed her down this year, she would have been able to play basketball and participate in track.  That would have made her a three-sport athlete for all four years.  Cheyenne has a great future ahead of her and will be a success.”

Flores has earned a 3.55 GPA while participating in soccer, football, wrestling and track. He was the honored as the Most Valuable Player of the Coyotes’ soccer team last fall. He also has worked closely with Allen as the school’s athletic commissioner for the past three years.

“Edwin has been a pleasure to coach, teach and have as an athletic commissioner,” Allen said. “He has worked very hard the past four years to get where he is today.  He has taken his role as athletic commissioner very seriously and has been an asset to the athletic department.  He will be missed by many on campus next year.  I look forward to seeing what Edwin will accomplish in the coming years.”

The Southern League recognized one boy and one girl from each of its eight member schools at a luncheon at Hilmar Cheese Company. on April 13. Rutherford and Flores were chosen by Denair teachers and coaches based on their academic and athletic achievements as well as community involvement.

Sharp-Shooting Isaac Starks Named Southern League MVP

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Issac Starks

Submitted by Denair Unified School District

High-scoring Denair High guard Isaac Starks was the runaway choice for Southern League boys basketball Most Valuable Player.

Starks, a senior and three-year varsity starter, led the league in scoring at 24 points a game. That was the ninth-highest total for any player in the Sac-Joaquin Section, which encompasses 197 schools between Sacramento and Merced.

“He had a tremendous knack to shoot the ball,” praised Coyotes coach R.J. Henderson. “Everything came together for him this year. His shot looked different. His confidence was higher. … He became a man this year. He wasn’t timid. No matter who we were playing, he was the best guy on the court and he proved it every game.”

Starks thrived despite constant attention by opposing defenses, who tried a little bit of everything to slow the 5-foot-11, 160-pound sharp shooter. Starks scored 20 points or more in 21 of Denair’s 26 games and was held below 10 points just once for a team that finished 10-16.

Starks is being recruited by four community colleges – Merced, Columbia, Cabrillo (Aptos) and College of the Desert (Palm Desert). He expects to make a decision before graduation in May.

“He’s got the ability to create a little space for himself,” said Henderson. “That’s a gift that will translate well at the next level. It’s just a matter of him getting stronger. He definitely can play four years of basketball in college.”

While he contemplates his next school, Starks will have multiple opportunities to showcase his skills.

On March 24, he joined seniors from 10 schools in the 2nd annual Central Valley Senior Showcase at Pitman High School in Turlock. With Henderson as his coach one final game, Starks scored 15 points as his National team defeated the American squad 100-85.

Saturday, he will play in the Madness in the Mother Lode game at Columbia College. And later this spring, he will be on one of the teams in the Six County All-Star Game in Modesto.

Denair High School Student Videos Honored

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Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Is the next George Lucas or Steven Spielberg attending Denair High right now? Could be, given how well the campus’ leadership class is doing in a video competition sponsored by a local newspaper.

Denair’s videos have been chosen as the best in the first two weeks of the competition, which matches five schools in the Turlock Journal circulation area (Denair, Turlock, Pitman, Hilmar and Delhi). The videos about life on campus are due each Friday. The newspaper staff ranks them and then posts them on its website the following Monday on a show its calls “The Pulse,” which it touts as being “made by high school kids for high school kids.”

Each video is about a minute long. Denair’s first shows a combination of students and teachers celebrating various themed days on campus. There was College Day featuring CSU Stanislaus, Fresno State, the University of Oregon and others. A clip showed other students on Book Character Day dressed up as “Where’s Waldo?” and “Peter Pan.” There also were glimpses of Outdoorsman Day and Coyote Spirit Day. The whole thing was set to upbeat music with narration.

The second video was cleverly produced around the benefits of life at a small school. The first segment shows “how good news travels fast” and has students sharing a secret one-by-one in the courtyard. Then there’s a funny bit entitled “it’s a hike to get to class” that spoofs the amount of time it takes to get from one room to another (in Denair’s case, not very long compared to larger campuses). And the last part of the video highlights the closeness of everyone on campus, with a student saying, “Even though we’re a small school, we’re such a big family.”

So far, the Journal staff has been impressed, saying after Episode 2 of The Pulse: “Denair has once again snagged the top spot! … Now the question is, ‘Who can dethrone the Coyotes next week???’ ”

Want to see how creative Denair’s students are? Check out these video links:

Episode 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8Qu47AVEOU

Episode 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsp6PiiPwPo

Episode 3 (winter sports and the cheerleading team): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wM95ml1332Q

National FFA Week Starts With Students Riding Tractors to School

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Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Some students ride the bus to school. Others walk or are dropped off by their parents. Denair High senior Tristan Haile and sophomore Bryson Prock did something completely different Monday – they came by tractor.

It was a fun way to kick off and draw attention to National FFA Week, which is being celebrated across the country by Future Farmers of America clubs like the one at Denair.

Bryson said he and his father borrowed the tractor idea from FFA organizations in the Midwest. They pitched it to school officials, who enthusiastically gave their blessing.

So Monday morning, Bryson climbed aboard his family’s Kubota M8560 and navigated his way to Tristan’s home, where she and her New Holland joined the two-tractor caravan to school. They parked the tractors near the ag shop on the high school campus.

“My dad and I had seen pictures of people doing this and thought it would be cool to do it here,” Bryson explained.

There were other fun parts to Monday’s first day of FFA Week. Most of the 120 Denair FFA members – and many of their classmates and teachers – wore camo clothing. At lunch time, there was “target practice” in which students tried to knock over plastic water bottles by throwing tennis balls.

The planned activities for the rest of the week look like this:

  • Tuesday: A hay-bucking contest. Everyone is encouraged to wear an “ag” hat.
  • Wednesday: A milk-drinking contest. The attire is blue and gold — the FFA colors.
  • Thursday: A wood-stacking event. Plaid is the outfit of choice to honor lumberjacks.
  • Friday: Kiss a pig day. Most of Denair High’s teachers will have a jar in their classrooms. Students will deposit loose change. Whichever teacher collects the most has to kiss a pig.

“It’s a fun way to advocate for ag and get the whole campus involved,” said first-year teacher Madison Weigel.

DHS Principal Outlines Changes in Grad Requirements, Ag and AP Courses

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Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Students at Denair High School could have stiffer graduation requirements, a revamped agricultural sciences curriculum and additional access to Advanced Placement classes in the next school year.

Principal Alecia Myers unveiled her ideas Thursday night at the meeting of the Denair Unified School District board. She came to Denair in July from the Milpitas Unified School District in Santa Clara County. She told the board that she has spent considerable time evaluating the high school curriculum, talking with staff and students, and analyzing various improvement options.

A key part of her proposal toughens math and foreign language requirements before students can graduate. Trustees signaled their support Thursday, but took no action. Public comment will be accepted at the March meeting, where the board could adopt new graduation standards.

Today, Denair students must take two years of math before graduation. The new requirements would add a third year for students in the class of 2018. Myers said the third year could be an AP class or a consumer algebra course focused on balancing a checkbook, understanding credit and applying for a loan.

“I thought it might send students over the edge,” Myers said, “but they were like, ‘Yeah, we need that.’ ”

Another reason to beef up the math requirements, she said, is because juniors take standardized state tests upon which school and district ratings are based. If students are not enrolled in math as a junior, those exams become more difficult.

Students in the class of 2020 also would have to take one year of a foreign language in addition to a year of fine arts. Today, Denair allows a year Spanish to meet the fine arts requirement. Separating those dovetails with CSU and UC entrance requirements, Myers explained. Continue reading “DHS Principal Outlines Changes in Grad Requirements, Ag and AP Courses” »