On Friday, April 29 the Academic Pride Assembly signified the end of Academic Week, celebrated students who won awards and entertained with a couple other events like the Brain Bowl and science experiments from IB chemistry students.

Jordan Samuels kicked off the assembly with the reverberating National Anthem. Mr. Alderman and Ms. Suttich hosted the assembly and spoke about the meaning of the week.

Throughout Academic Week, students qualifying in these categories, Tigard Pride, Most Improved, 3.75 GPA or higher, Service, and Attendance were taken out of class to have a special treats provided by the school. The assembly also highlighted other students accomplishments and struggles they have overcome.

Seniors that never missed a day of school (unless it was school related) throughout their four years at Tigard High School were recognized with a plaque. The five students were, Alexis Keat, Joseph Edergton, August Anderson, Trinity Diec, and Kenny Luong.

Senior, Rachel Haning exhibited the qualities for the Turnaround Award and talked about her comeback after sophomore year. This award can motivate anyone who is struggling to recognize that there is always hope, and you can turn things around at anytime.

To entertain the crowd IB Chemistry Seniors, Tiffany Chu, Tianna Coburn, Lukas Dumestre, and Marie Piatski presented an experiment. The science experiments happened towards the beginning, with fire shooting out of tubes and goo being made out of hydrogen peroxide.

“The explosions are so cool! Definitely making this assembly exciting,” Vanessa Escobar, a freshman exclaimed at the sight of the experiments.

When the raffle was announced, every student crossed their fingers hoping for their name to be drawn so they could receive several gift cards and candy. “Ah, why didn’t I win? Those prizes look amazing!” said Marina McClurg, a freshman who was disappointed at the end of the raffle drawings.

The Brain Bowl had three rounds and each grade had a chance to win the pride for their grade, along with getting the grand cup that was filled with candy that would be shared among their team. Although the freshman and sophomores made a good effort, the juniors and seniors triumphed, with seniors Samuel Campbell, Marie Piatski, Cameron Oldham and Delan Huang winning in the end. It was an anxious event between the contestants, with questions consisting of everything from history to psychology to sports.

Besides the exciting entertainment in the assembly, a hovering question stood in every student’s head, “Is there going to be a shooting?” A day before the assembly occurred a rumor that a shooting was going to happen spread rapidly through social media.

The Tigard Police traced the rumor to its source, determined it wasn’t credible and Mr. Van Fleet sent email to parents assuring them everything was safe. In the email it said, “[…] We want to let you know again that Tigard Police immediately investigated this matter and found the responsible students. Police determined there was no credible threat. Tigard High remains a safe place for students.[…]” Thankfully, the day went by without any further incident and the students had no reason to worry.

The Academic Pride Assembly was full of cheering, proud students, and fun moments.

Academic Winners were:

Department
Recipient
Business
Ashley Osburn
Foreign Language
Mariah Summers
Math
Lizzie Kent
Performing Arts
Sam Austin
Physical Education
Gabby McGaughey
Science
Clarissa Au
Social Studies
Delan Huang
Technology
Sameer Raviprakash
Visual Arts
Elise Conroy
Language Arts
Marie Piatski