Anyone who enjoys “The Cat in the Hat” and other tales by Dr. Seuss will get a chance to see their childhood stories come alive.

Shawano Community High School’s music and theater department are bringing “Seussical the Musical” to its hallowed halls next week, beginning with a Wednesday matinee and continuing through Feb. 3.

The main plot follows Horton the Elephant and tells how he discovers a speck of dust populated by Whos. While protecting the Whos from a group of folks who don’t believe anything living could exist on dust, Horton is left with an egg to watch over after the irresponsible Mayzie LaBird decides to take off and pursue other things.

The Cat in the Hat serves as narrator, and there’s even appearances by Gertrude McFuzz, Yertle the Turtle, the Sour Kangaroo and the Grinch.

It’s not the first time locals have had the chance to see “Seussical.” The Box in the Wood Theatre Guild performed the musical in July 2014, while Gresham Community School and Bonduel High School both performed the junior version in 2016.

The main difference from the previous three productions is that SCHS will have a full orchestra to play the music that the student actors will sing. All told, almost 90 students are involved in this production, on the stage, in the pit or behind the curtain.

The material is more familiar to the cast due to the timeless appeal of Dr. Seuss books, but the show’s score was a little challenging at first for the orchestra, according to director Jonathon Kent.

“They weren’t afraid to use all the major keys,” Kent said. “Usually in the shows, anything beyond five sharps or five flats, they don’t get into.”

“Seussical” was selected because it was a show that could be cast easily at SCHS, according to Kent.

“My talent pool, unlike a community production where the talent can come from all over, is here,” Kent said. “Even though we have students from the middle school and Olga Brener and some of our homeschoolers, 90 percent of the cast comes out of the high school. Knowing who I have available, presumably, decides what kind of show we want to do.”

Kent knew he would need a younger boy to play the curious and adventurous Jojo, but he surprisingly found two. Sixth-grade student Rutger Johnson will play Jojo in the Wednesday and Friday shows next week, while George Buerman, who played one of the Banks children in last year’s “Mary Poppins,” will portray the Who boy in the Thursday and Saturday shows.

“This is the first time since ‘Les Miz’ in 2005, where we had two boys,” Kent said. “We have two very strong boys this year.”

“Seussical” also appealed to Kent because of the catchy songs, like “Oh, the Thinks You Can Think” and “Alone in the Universe.”

“This show is loaded with earworms. They keep coming back to you,” Kent said. “The kids have adapted to the songs fairly quickly.”

Most of the cast has been diligent about memorizing lines and songs, Kent said, with only a couple of minor exceptions. He noted that the lighthearted tone has helped.

“There’s no deep drama in this show,” Kent said. “This is a feel-good show because, in the end, Horton, who is being persecuted, is exonerated, and everybody’s in love with everybody.”

The stage is two levels for “Seussical” with the upper level, decorated in bright colors and background similar to the art in Seuss’ books, for the Whos, while the lower level is reserved mainly for Horton and the other jungle characters. Because the Whos are tiny in comparison to Horton, the show includes a giant, constructed magnifying glass to “see” the Whos clearly, Kent said.

“The couple or three times I’ve seen this show, it’s very difficult to understand that you’re going to Whoville, so we’ve made our upper level of our set our Whoville,” Kent said. “Certainly, when someone else is on the stage, our Whos are in Whoville.”

This will be the final musical directed by Kent, the high school choir director who is retiring in June. Including “Seussical,” Kent has directed 19 musicals at the school.

“It’s time,” Kent said. “Being in the wheelchair has made some things much harder. I’ve had to use words a lot more to explain what I want them to do, and it’s so much quicker to show them what I want to do.

“There’s part of me that’s sad about that, but there’s part of me where I’m OK with it more with the disability more than if I didn’t have it.”

For the second time in a row, the Shawano Community High School Jazz I band won the Purdue Jazz Festival in the small-school division, outscoring 14 other bands from four states.

“We knew the competition was going to be stiff; we just went out and played like Shawano,” said senior tenor sax player Marcus Welander.

The 28th annual festival was held Jan. 19-20 in West Lafayette, Indiana.

Shawano handled its opener “Feetbone ’’ with swing and joy, with solos by junior Adam Piantek (piano) and senior Hunter Krolow (trumpet). The Hawks then performed Duke Ellington’s “Banquet Scene from Timon of Athens,” featuring Kori Halstead (alto saxophone) performing in the style of Johnny Hodges.

“This music takes a lot of soul to play right, and I think our band really pulled it off and played with swingin’ passion,” said Krolow.

The band finished with the Chick Webb tune “Lindy Hoppers Delight,” featuring Welander, Krolow and fellow seniors Nathan Meisner (trombone) and Morgan Briske (clarinet).

“To put this in context, we tell the kids to compare this to high school sports,’’ said Christopher Kent, the Shawano director. “Winning at a festival of this quality and competitiveness tells the kids where they rate next to some of the best bands in the Midwest. This is a huge win for us.’’

Kent said the students have really stepped up and accepted the challenges put in front of them this year.

“We are tackling a different style of music, and they have really worked hard and focused,” said Kent.

Halstead was chosen as the outstanding soloist in the room. Kent said Halstead did a tremendous job on a very demanding piece, something the judges appreciate.

“You just don’t come across high school players who sound like she does,” Kent said, adding that a key component of a top band is having several players who can stand out in the solo arena. “All the soloists are strong.’’

Shawano has three competitive events left in 2018: Rolling Meadows, on Feb. 24; the Shawano Jazz Festival on March 10; and the University of Northern Colorado jazz festival on April 20.

Shawano’s Jazz II band made an exemplary showing in its first competition of the year, finishing fourth out of 13 bands and missing third place by only one point. Led by sophomores Haley Lucht (trumpet), Sage Tomashek (trumpet) and Sam Schulze (tenor sax), Shawano earned a division 1 rating. The band is working hard in preparation for Rolling Meadows.

It’s not the word that gave Meghan Wondra the win, but “Finally!” succinctly described her experience with the 2018 Bonduel School District spelling bee.

The eighth-grade Bonduel Middle School student, after years of coming close, won the bee Thursday after spelling the words “petulance” and “endeavor” correctly in the 23rd round. She got the opportunity after seventh-grade student Carter Schroeder misspelled “subterranean” and finished in second place.

Wondra said she has come close several times to winning the school bee, coming in third in 2017 to Abby and Erin Timler. The Timler sisters had a stranglehold on the Bonduel bee for four years, with Erin winning in 2014, 2016 and 2017, and Abby winning in 2015.

Erin Timler is now in high school, and the spelling bee cuts off at the eighth grade. Abby Timler was anticipated to be the winner, but she came in fourth Tuesday after misspelling “fluorescent.”

The first word to stump a Bonduel speller was “cattle.” “Lazily” and “shelves” also flustered students in the early rounds.

The fifth round of the bee caused a mass exodus, with only six spellers remaining. Words like “handiwork,” “testament” and “hoarsely” sent spellers off the stage in that round.

When asked for her reaction to winning the bee, Wondra exclaimed: “Finally!”

“I’ve been really close all these years,” she said. “Ever since fourth grade, I’ve gotten a trophy, and these last two years, I’ve taken third. I really wanted it this year, so I practiced a lot more.”

Wondra said she spent several weeks preparing for the bee this year, whereas she waited until two days before in previous years. It seemed to help, as she said she didn’t have any difficulty spelling the words she received or knowing word definitions in the vocabulary rounds.

Wondra anticipated it would be a three-way battle between her, Timler and Schroeder and was surprised when Timler bowed out early.

“Now I have to study even more,” Wondra said.

Although many in the crowded hall were surprised that Timler wasn’t in the top three, Jennie Beaumier, the district’s spelling bee coordinator, said she had a feeling Wondra would come out on top.

“I asked her about it, and she said, ‘I feel like I’m going to win,’” Beaumier said. “She had studied very hard, and she cares a lot about it.”

The regional spelling bee will take place at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 13 in Sousa Hall at Bonduel High School. The winner from that bee will go on to the state spelling bee in March.

Divas, lots of dancing and the pursuit of a dream make up the premise of “42nd Street,” which will be performed four times at Pulaski High School beginning Friday.

The annual musical will make use of some talented dancers and showcase the road to stardom in the 1930s. It is based on the novel written by Bradford Ropes, which the 1933 film was based on.

If the show is familiar to those in the Pulaski area, it should be — “42nd Street” was the first musical performed in the current high school building, which opened in 1999.

Amy Tubbs, the assistant director for the current production, pointed out that this show will be light years ahead of the 1999 show, which she was involved with.

“The biggest thing is our knowledge,” Tubbs said. “When we first moved into this building, we had never used a fly system. The lighting board was more complicated. The sound system and everything was more complicated. We didn’t know much.

“Everything still takes time, but at least we know what we’re doing.”

The show starts with Peggy Sawyer, who is seeking her first big break on Broadway, arriving late for her audition at a New York City theater. Although one of the other characters, Billy Lawlor, believes Peggy could bypass the process, she is promptly shooed away by the choreographer.

Peggy comes back to retrieve the purse she left behind and meets the other girls in the show. They invite her to join them for lunch, and Peggy demonstrates one of her dance routines, which is witnessed by the director, Julian Marsh. The director decides there might be room for Peggy in the show, after all.

The dream soon turns into a nightmare when Peggy is bumped into by another cast member during one of the performances, and she knocks lead actress Dorothy Brock to the ground, causing her to break her ankle. Initially, Peggy is fired after being blamed for the accident, but when no one else can be found to take over for Dorothy, Peggy is asked to return and learn her role in less than two days.

The musical features a variety of popular songs, including “Lullaby of Broadway,” “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” and the title “42nd Street.”

The school chose “42nd Street” to take advantage of the dance routines. Last year, the school performed “Oklahoma!” where there was some tap dancing involved, and “42nd Street” has similar routines, according to Tubbs.

“The tap dancers were ready to tap right away and raring to go,” Tubbs said. “This cast is super hard working. They’re kind to each other and encouraging of each other. It’s the opposite of the show.”

Director Kathy Brown agreed that there were some talented dancers in the show. She noted that there is more dancing than anything else in “42nd Street.”

“This show fit the people we knew were auditioning,” Brown said. “We felt comfortable casting it based on the people who are available to audition.”

There are more than 100 students in the show, from the cast to the crew to the live orchestra. Brown encouraged the cast to look at videos on YouTube of the original film and other pieces from the 1930s to help them relate to the language, history and nuances of the era.

“It’s so much different than when I was directing it 20 years ago, compared to now,” Brown said.

Two scholarships are available again this year to college-bound seniors in Shawano County under a program that opened its doors for applications this week.

Scholarships, Inc., a nonprofit organization that provides assistance and encouragement to area students as they explore higher education opportunities, is currently accepting scholarship applications from area high school seniors.

Applications are due by April 6.

The Albert & Mary Rhoades Foundation awards several $2,500 two-year, merit-based scholarships to seniors graduating from high schools in Shawano, Brown, Door, Outagamie, Waupaca and Winnebago counties.

To be eligible, applicants must:

• Attend a fully-accredited four-year college/university in the United States in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree.

• Enroll in college full-time (12 credits or more per semester) in fall 2018.

• Pursue a major in the arts, humanities, religious studies, education or select social sciences.

Final scholarship recipients for 2018 will be recognized at the Scholarships, Inc. Lamp of Knowledge Celebration, which will be held on Wednesday, July 25, 2018, at the KI Convention Center in Green Bay.

Students can apply online by visiting www.scholarshipsinc.org/scholarships.

Liz Moehr, Pulaski High School family and consumer science teacher, is a 2018 Greater Green Bay Chamber Golden Apple award winner.

Moehr was notified of the award during a surprise gathering Wednesday morning at her classroom. Dan Bredeson with Humana, one of the Golden Apple sponsors, walked into Moehr’s classroom followed by crews from WLUK-TV and the chamber to record the moment.

Each year, the Golden Apple Awards program improves community awareness of the quality of education in the Greater Green Bay area by recognizing high standards of professionalism, leadership and innovation in teaching with the Golden Apple Awards. Seven recipients are selected annually through a multi-level screening of anonymous applications and personal interviews. Selection criteria are based on the National Board of Professional Teaching standards, which identify the essential knowledge, skills and dispositions expected of experienced, quality teachers.

Moehr has taught food classes at Pulaski High School since 2002. In addition to teaching, she is also advisor of ProStart, the National Restaurant Association’s student organization. She holds a bachelor’s degree in family and consumer science education K-12 from the University of Wisconsin-Stout and a master’s degree in learning with an emphasis on technology integration from Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

She was previously a Northeast Wisconsin Golden Apple Teacher of Distinction recipient in 2010 and 2011.

She is a National Restaurant Association ProStart advisor; Fox Valley Technical College Culinary Arts Program Advisory Council member; Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Hospitality and Culinary Arts Program Advisory Council member; Family and Consumer Science Department leader; Technology Integration within Family and Consumer Science; and Experience Greater Green Bay co-chair.

She has received many awards including the Wisconsin Restaurant Association Educator of the Year; National Restaurant Association James H. Maynard Award; Wisconsin ProStart Educator of Excellence Award; FCCLA Ten Years of Service Award; Pulaski Area Community Education Community Service Award; and Sullivan University Hot 100 Hospitality Programs in the United States program recipient.

She lives in De Pere with her husband, Dan, and children, Caleb, 11, and Elia, 9.

“I feel incredibly honored and blessed to receive this Golden Apple,” she said. “I still am speechless hours after I was graciously surrounded by award presenters, my administration, and my family.”

Moehr is doing what she loves, she said, teaching students life skills they can use in their future careers, whether that be in the food service industry or any career that requires communication, literacy, and problem-solving skills.

“I am surrounded by phenomenal students who challenge me to challenge them and in the end, we all are better for it. Thank you to the Golden Apple selection committee, my administration, and my amazing fellow FACS teachers. I couldn’t be more grateful,” Moehr said.

Moehr is the 41st PCSD teacher to be recognized with a Golden Apple award since the program’s inception in 1994.

This year, nearly 140 PCSD teachers received Golden Apple nominations. Of those, six were named Teachers of Distinction. Besides Moehr, they are:

• Daniel Anderson, Pulaski High School science teacher

• Corinne Galligan, Hillcrest/Fairview Elementary School music teacher

• Linda Gantz, Lannoye Elementary School third-grade teacher

• Craig Piczkowski, Fairview Elementary School fifth-grade teacher

• Jessica Rosenberg-Fredrickson, Sunnyside Elementary School art teacher

The 25th-annual Golden Apple awards ceremony is 5:30-9:30 p.m. April 18 at Radisson Hotel and Conference Center, 2040 Airport Drive, Green Bay. It will also be broadcast on WLUK.

For the first time in five years, there are more students coming into the Wittenberg-Birnamwood School District through open enrollment than leaving.

This year’s enrollment includes 133 students entering the district from elsewhere — a big improvement from last year — and 126 students leaving for other districts.

Under Wisconsin’s public school open enrollment program, parents can apply for their children to attend school in a district other than the one in which they reside. If parents want to move their children to another district for work, child care or religious purposes, they typically can do so — and state funding moves with them.

“The cost for open enrollment is between $7,500 and $12,000 per child,” Wittenberg-Birnamwood Superintendent Garrett Rogowski said.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, a student’s transfer will cost a district approximately $7,055. That figure goes up to $12,207 for a student in special education, as those students typically require additional personnel and resources and incur more costs.

The breakdown of open enrollment students in Wittenberg-Birnamwood for the past four years is as follows: 2013-14, 81 students entered and 89 left; 2014-15, 80 entered and 96 left; 2015-16, 81 entered and 114 left; 2016-17, 106 entered and 124 left.

In addition to family logistics, students attend and leave districts for reasons such as academic programming, resources and extra-curricular offerings.

Districts that can offer many amenities oftentimes do well with open enrollment numbers. Rogowski said.

Over the past two years, a group of 35 community representatives and Witt-Birn district staff members have held several meetings to create a long-term vision for the district. The plans could definitely affect open enrollment numbers, according to district officials.

The committee’s proposals included upgrades to buildings and grounds, a plan for academic success and opportunities for student engagement outside of academics.

Although it would cost about $22 million to fund the committee’s full wish list — which includes upgrading technology labs, bringing the seventh and eighth grades to a new area of the high school, building an additional gym, enlarging the music area and making the two elementary schools pre-kindergarten through sixth grade — a districtwide survey indicated that residents will only support a referendum of roughly $6 million to $10 million.

Building maintenance, reconfiguring entrances for higher safety standards and expanding technological and agricultural education were cited as top priorities.

The open enrollment application period has opened for the 2018-19 school year, and information is available on the state Department of Public Instruction website.

Students at Pulaski High School are getting some real-world training for careers that will leave them better equipped to step into a well-paying job after graduation.

The Raider Products program is providing hands-on experience in welding, woodworking and auto mechanics that students and teachers alike say will help launch their full-time career.

The high school held a media day Wednesday to give the community a glimpse at the program, which began in the metals shop and has been expanded this year to the woodworking and auto shops.

Woodworking instructor John Pitzen said Raider Products started in the metals shop and has expanded this year to wood and auto products.

“The basis of all those Raider Products is to give the kids real-world experience, and with that we treat it as a business,” Pitzen said. “Our customers have been in-district (the facilities and grounds department), it has been community members approaching us, it has been organizations — for example, we just talked to the Lions Club last week, and we are helping them make a float for the Pulaski Polka Days Parade.”

Customers contact the teachers, but the students take it from there.

“We go ahead and design it, give them a quote, and we go ahead and make it,” Pitzen said.

Jerad Marsh, the automotive teacher, said the shop has done everything from small engine repair to fixing starters.

“We have three diferent days that we’re able to have the class,” Marsh said. “We organize it just like we would a shop: We have a shop manager, we have two lead mechanics, we have five different groups, we have a kid that takes care of parts orders, parts look-up, that kind of stuff, and we go from there.”

The metal program, overseen by Max DeHut, has built soccer goals, grills, and a sap cooker and sap cans for maple syrup. This spring’s big project will be building a shelter or mobile dugout for the soccer program.

Although it’s technically a class, students need to apply to get a position in Raider Products just like any business.

“That’s one of the really neat parts of the class — just because you sign up doesn’t mean you’re gonna make it,” DeHut said. “You submit a resume, you’ve got the interview part, you have to make that cut.”

Some of the students in the program are also in the youth apprenticeship program at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College and working part-time for area businesses.

“They’re basically honing their skills here,” DeHut said.

Matt VandenLangenberg, a senior in the woodworking program, has a part-time job with a cabinet maker in Freedom and said he enjoys the work enough to keep going after graduation.

“I think I’ve found my niche, and I think I’m just going to keep sticking with it,” he said.

The Raider Products program has been helpful in preparing VandenLangenberg for the business world.

“You work right with the customers and get that one-on-one, the real-world experience,” he said, “even to the point where if, after this, if I want to move on to my own business or something, I have that further training because of this.”

Another benefit of being in Raider Products is a merit scholarship program. Each student has the potential of earning an equal portion of the net profit in the form of scholarships.

Eighty percent of the company’s net profits are set aside for the scholarships, which can be applied toward any post-secondary institution that aligns with an approved manufacturing career pathway, or reimbursement for costs related to professional training programs.

The other 20 percent of Raider Products net profit goes back into the program itself.

Tegan Griffith, a Wittenberg-Birnamwood High School alumnus and military veteran who is featured in the new PBS film “American Creed,” will lead a town hall discussion following a free premiere screening of the film Monday at the high school.

The event also includes an interactive discussion and a free appetizer buffet.

The screening begins at 5:30 p.m., and doors open at 5 p.m. No RSVP is required.

In “American Creed,” former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, historian David Kennedy and a diverse group of Americans come together to explore whether a unifying set of beliefs — an American creed — can prove more powerful than the issues that divide society. This new documentary presents stories that remind people of the ideals that hold Americans together.

Griffith, a Marine who left active duty as a sergeant in 2009 after serving in Iraq, grew up in Wittenberg. The producers of “American Creed” learned of her story thanks to her advocacy work with the nonprofit group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA). She plans to graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in May, majoring in communications with an emphasis in public relations.

Other participants in the film include noted author Junot Diaz, Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon, the co-founders of both progressive and Tea Party political groups, several second-generation Americans, and an elementary school principal with Creek Indian ancestry.

“I think the American ideal of citizenship is about service to others, either through military service or volunteerism or advocacy,” Griffith says in the film. “Even if I don’t necessarily agree with their opinions, I still appreciate them because that freedom is the fabric of my uniform. You put that uniform on to protect their right to do that. That’s what it means to serve the country.”

“American Creed” premieres on Wisconsin Public Television at 8 p.m. Tuesday. For information, visit americancreed.org.

WPT is a service of the Educational Communications Board and the University of Wisconsin-Extension.

Wisconsin Public Television is available on WPNE-TV Channel 38, Green Bay, and WHRM-TV Channel 20, Wausau.

All Menominee Indian School District parents, guardians and community members are invited to attend the district’s Parent and Community Impact Aid Forum, which will be held Wednesday at Menominee Indian High School. The event will start with a free dinner at 5 p.m., followed by a presentation, question-and-answer period and drawings for gift cards.

The event is part of an ongoing communication process required for the district to receive Federal Impact Aid. At the forum, attendees will hear the results of a district-wide survey that was conducted last fall to determine the highest learning needs in the district.

“More than 500 people responded to the survey, which is a strong response number,” said Superintendent Wendell Waukau. “This information is valuable to our planning process.”

After compiling the survey results, an advisory group of parents, tribal and school district officials met to discuss and recommend changes for the district. The forum will give community members an opportunity to ask questions and make comments on the process and programming.

“We hope we get a good turnout for this event,” Waukau said. “As a district that relies on Federal Impact Aid to help provide a strong education for our students, we need engaged parents and the community.”

For information, call 715-799-3824.

County Materials has donated $16,500 for concrete work at the planned Red Raider Field of Dreams baseball/softball complex, which is part of Phase II for the Pulaski High School project.

The Marathon-based company produces construction and landscape aggregates.

Bids for this part of the project are expected to be opened soon, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony to begin construction is planned for later this spring. The softball/baseball complex will be built to the east of Saputo Stadium.

“We are grateful for the generous support from the Sonnentag Foundation for Phase II of the Field of Dreams project,” said Janel Batten, Pulaski High School athletic director and Field of Dreams steering committee member. “This donation helps push us closer to our goal.”

The baseball/softball portion of Phase II is expected to cost $2.2 million, with about $1.65 million yet to be raised. Additional Phase II work will occur after the baseball/softball portion of Phase II is completed.

Phase II includes two baseball fields, two softball fields, three more tennis courts, additional practice fields and re-excavation of the Pulaski Community Middle School soccer complex.

The $3.2 million Phase I of the project was completed in September 2016 and was fully paid off by grants, pledges and in-kind contributions of materials and labor by November of that year.

Students and staff at Sacred Heart Catholic School in Shawano held their own closing ceremonies Monday to wrap up a Winter Olympics physical education unit.

Under the guidance of physical education teacher Sue Kenfield, students had the opportunity to participate in modified versions of several Olympic sports, including curling, speed skating, luge, hockey, ski jumping and biathlon, while also learning about the importance of team spirit, sportsmanship, kindness, honesty and hard work.

Some Sacred Heart students were awarded medals for their efforts on Monday, which was also a special pajama day to kick off Read Across America Week 2018. All students were applauded, just the like real Olympians in South Korea, for giving their best effort.

Heather Wuske, a science teacher at Marion High School, has been selected by Ecology Project International to participate in an eight-day teacher fellowship in Baja Mexico.

The nonprofit organization is a field science and conservation group that partners scientists with local and international students and educators in ecologically critical environments in Costa Rica, Ecuador, the Galapagos, Belize, Mexico, Yellowstone and Hawaii.

The fellowship, now in its sixth year, will bring Wuske and a small group of teachers from across North America to Magdalena Bay on the Pacific coast for a turtle ecology program and lessons on incorporating field studies into the classroom. The group will also explore the cultural heritage of the city of La Paz during the program, which runs March 3-10.

Since 2005, Ecology Project International has worked with more than 10,000 students in their Baja Mexico program. For information on the project or to apply for next year’s fellowship, visit www.ecologyproject.org/fellowship.

Most high schools don’t want their students to let their minds drift in class. At Shawano Community High School, the practice of drifting is encouraged — in automotive class, anyway.

The Shawano Community High School Drift Club recently completed modifications to a Legends race car, which is now a drift car on display at The Automobile Gallery, 400 S. Adams St., Green Bay.

The club formed when Patrick Polk, track manager at Shawano Speedway, approached high school automotive instructor Jeremy Hodkiewicz about starting the program and modifying a race car for drifting in 2016. One of the most popular forms of racing, drifting is an “on the edge” style of racing that traces its roots back to Japan in the 1970s. Drivers force the car into a controlled slide through corners with a combination of speed, style and showmanship.

By its second year, the drift club had expanded to 15 Shawano students. Club members and their parents purchased a used 5/8-scale, 1930s-style Legends race car. The students spent months stripping down the car, making minor repairs and performing the necessary refinements to turn it into a drift car. Among them, the front end was widened by 3 inches, and 1 inch of wheel space was added, as was a hand brake for controlled sliding. A 1200cc Yamaha FJ motorcycle engine completed the package.

With financial support from local businesses, the SCHS Drift Club has graduated to the intermediate track and is sanctioned for the national INEX racing series.

Green Bay’s Automobile Gallery is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educate, inspire and share the passion of the automobile with the community and U.S. car enthusiasts. Vehicles from all eras are on display in their showroom. For hours and information, call 920-437-9024 or visit theautomobilegallery.org.

Seventeen area men have become ready for trucking industry employment since summer 2016, thanks to training at the College of Menominee Nation in partnership with Fox Valley Technical College and Menominee Job Center. Employment is the program’s goal, and the success rate among the corps of graduates is strong, according to Miranda Gollnow, career services specialist at the center.

Gollnow added that for one recent graduate, success has not only meant work with a premier trucking and logistics firm, but also being featured in company recruiting materials.

When Gresham resident Stefan Fuhrman completed Schneider National’s orientation training earlier this year, he ended up in the right place at the right time for an impromptu photo session. The picture of Fuhrman holding his certificate of training was snapped and shared widely by Grailing Jones, Schneider’s director of employment network development.

In addition to Fuhrman, who is a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee tribe, graduates of the trucking program include area residents John Erdman and Joshua Marsh; Eric Boucher of the Oneida tribe; and Menominee men Robert Dess, Kenneth Dodge, Weston Fedenberg, Patrick Firgens, Craig Grignon, Greg Jacobs, Luis Kakkak, Clifford Olson Jr., Clarence Olson, Alex Peters Sr., Shannon Tucker, Adam Waukau Sr. and Jeremy Wescott. All earned the Class A commercial driver’s license certification, which is required for over-the-road driving of commercial use tractor-trailer trucks.

The four-week session is led by an instructor and uses a tractor-trailer rig from Fox Valley Tech’s transportation program. Applicants for future sessions at the Keshena campus should obtain a commercial learner’s permit, hold a driver’s license, be age 18 or older, and be able to pass physical and drug tests. Menominee Job Center works with applicants in obtaining necessary certifications and determines whether applicants are eligible for Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act assistance with tuition and pre-certification costs. The workforce act is funded by the Bay Area Workforce Development Board for aiding in job search and placement, assessing skills and barriers to employment and providing labor market and career skill enhancement.

Eligibility information is available from the Menominee Job Center located in the Community Technology Center on the CMN campus, N172 state Highway 47/55, Keshena.

Fairview Elementary School third-grade teacher Megan Santi was notified Thursday in a surprise ceremony at the school library that she is the winner of this year’s outstanding early career educator award by the Wisconsin Association of Teacher Education.

She will be among other WACTE honorees at an upcoming awards tea held in Madison on April 8.

Santi, a second-year teacher and a 2016 graduate of St. Norbert College with a major in middle childhood/early adolescence education and a minor in language arts, said she was speechless and surprised when a group consisting of Pulaski Community School District superintendent Bec Kurzynske, Fairview principal Niki Napralla, Reid Riggle and Tynisha Meidl, both St. Norbert College associate professors of teacher education and co-chairs of teacher education, and Santi’s parents, entered the school library to give her the surprise news.

“I feel so lucky to be chosen and recognized for doing something I love so dearly,” Santi said. “Not only has St. Norbert college prepared me and help shape me into the educator I am today, but so have the outstanding educators I am surrounded by each day at Fairview Elementary. I could not ask for a better place to be doing what I love most — teaching!”

Santi has distinguished herself as a driven, reflective and student-centered educator, said Fairview principal Niki Napralla. “She is innovative and collaborative in her approach to reaching all learners to ensure engaging learning opportunities. She has developed strong relationships with her students while helping them to become their best selves. Megan is an asset to our school community and is truly deserving of this award.”

“We are thrilled that Megan has been recognized by St. Norbert College as an outstanding early career educator,” Kurzynske said. “In her work with our Fairview students, Megan shares her passion for teaching and learning in innovative experiences each day.”

WACTE is a professional organization composed of the Wisconsin institutions that prepare individuals for teacher licensure. Its educator preparation programs offer diversity in size, focus, and delivery, but all are designed to prepare quality teachers for Wisconsin’s schools. WACTE is an affiliate of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education.

The Bonduel High School show choir will be having its annual show choir revue on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. in Sousa Hall at the school. This year’s theme is “Geronimo!” a song made popular by the Australian indie pop band Sheppard.

The show consists of a variety of popular music from Billy Joel and Journey to songs from the hit Broadway musical Hairspray. There are several solos being sung by seniors, including an exchange student from Brazil.

There will also be a pasta dinner on Saturday, serving between 5:30-6 p.m. before the show. Cost for the dinner is $7, which includes the $1 admission cost for the show.

Bowler High School hosted a solo and ensemble competition Feb. 17. Bowler had 26 entries receiving a first rating, of which 15 qualified for state. Twenty entries received a second rating, and one received a third.

Class A state entries include the following:

• Percussion trio: Landan Kroening, Kade Hartleben, Noah Bestul

• Trombone duet: Nathan Montez, Jacob Bratz

• Trumpet choir: Maranda Brei, Austin Slater, Logan Thiex, Skye Breitrick, Bailey Grosskopf, Aubrey Wisnefske

• Saxophone choir: Reanne Kietlinski, Brock Strassburg, Ireland DeRoos, Brooke Thiex, Ira Rudestill, Crista Peters, Keegan Pingel

• Low brass choir: Nathan Montez, Jacob Bratz, Lane Schultz, Donnie Edwards, Dakota Pingel, Jackson Pingel, Nicholas Malueg

• Brass choir: Maranda Brei, Austin Slater, Bailey Grosskopf, Nathan Montez, Jacob Bratz, Dakota Pingel, Lane Schultz, Nicholas Malueg

• Polka-heritage ensemble: Alissa Rickert, Alyssa Strassburg, Lily Wisnefske, Brooke Thiex, Sarrena Peters, Nicholas Young, Lisa Stemler, Reanne Kietlinski, Brock Strassburg, Ireland DeRoos, Ira Rudesill, Crista Peters, Isley Welch, Keegan Pingel, Maranda Brei, Austin Slater, Logan Thiex, Skye Breitrick, Nathan Montez, Jacob Bratz, Lane Schultz, Dakota Pingel, Nicholas Malueg, Jada Waters, Bailey Grosskopf, Kellen Pingel, Landan Kroening, Kade Hartleben, Ezra Spencer, Noah Bestul, Zach Fehrmand, Maya Thiex, Kaleb Demaskie, Adin Brei

• Vocal solos: Maranda Brei, Isley Welch, Nathan Montez, Noah Bestul

• Theater vocal solos: Maranda Brei, Reanne Kietlinski, Isley Welch

• Men’s vocal ensemble: Nathan Montez, Logan Thiex, Zach Fehrman, Noah Bestul, Adin Brei, Isley Welch, Ezra Spencer, Zach Young

The state qualifiers will compete May 5 at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Gresham Community School will be taking theater lovers south for its next musical, far enough south that they might feel the wind sweeping down the plain.

The school will bring the classic musical “Oklahoma!” to its stage next week with three shows from March 22-24.

The show is set in Oklahoma in 1906, when it was a territory and one year before it became a state. It is based on the play “Green Grow the Lilacs,” written by Lynn Riggs.

However, the musical itself was written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein, their first, and debuted in 1943. It is the second consecutive year that Gresham has performed a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical after performing “The Sound of Music,” the final collaboration between the two.

“We wanted to try something set in America,” said director Heidi Cerveny. “This is right around the turn of the century.”

This year’s musical performance features 19 students from grades 6-12.

As with “The Sound of Music,” the school is performing an abridged version of “Oklahoma!” which will be an hour long. The abridged story, part of the Getting to Know series set up specifically for youth performers, focuses primarily on the romance between cowboy Curly McLain and farm girl Laurey Williams, although there are moments when the secondary couple, Will Parker and Ado Annie, are featured.

As the show opens, Curly desires a date with the fair Laurey, but she initially turns him down, feeling he waited too long to ask her to the box social, and accepts an invitation from Jud Fry, a lonely and disturbed farmhand. Later, confused by her feelings for Curly, she takes a “magic potion,” which is actually smelling salts, and experiences a bizarre dream that makes her realize that Curly is the man for her.

In the second act, Jud is determined to hold onto Laurey’s affections and tries to outbid all the other cowboys for the basket of food Laurey prepared for an auction to help build the local school. Curly finds a way to outbid Jud, selling his saddle, wagon and gun to win the basket — and Laurey’s heart.

The musical features more dancing than previous Gresham shows, but Cerveny said the batch of students she found for the show had some background and dancing and easily learned the moves.

“We wanted to incorporate the choreography, and it was just something different for the kids to learn,” Cerveny said. “I think it’s important for them to get exposure to a variety of different genres.”

The show has received a lot of community support as the school has made the musical an annual thing, and Cerveny said the community almost expects the musical to be done each year, no matter what. A lot of the set props have come from area residents, according to Cerveny, including the old butter churn used by Aunt Eller.

“Some of the older stuff was hard to find, but a lot of the farmers still hold on to some of that stuff,” Cerveny said. “We had some community members come in and help us paint the set on a Friday night.”

Even with the abridged version, most of the original songs are in the show, including the title song “Oklahoma!” and “Oh What a Beautiful Morning,” which opens the show. Cerveny noted that the songs are shortened to fit the hour show.

“The scene where they’re wanting to hang Jud is not in there,” Cerveny said. “It’s a little more kid-friendly that way.”

Area students have a few weeks to complete their entries for the 2018 Packers Student Art Contest, the winners of which will receive a $5,000 donation for their school and have their artwork displayed on Lambeau Field’s club levels next season.

The theme of this year’s contest is “100 Seasons of Packers Football.” Students are asked to create a piece that tells the story of the NFL team’s history — such as its victories, defeats, comebacks, traditions, generations of fans, etc. Submissions of paintings, drawings, prints, digital art, mixed media or collage will be accepted through April 19. The final artwork size must be 16-by-20 inches and fit comfortably inside a standard frame.

Eligible artists include students in grades 6-8, grades 9-12, or students attending a university or technical college at the time of submission. One grand prize winner chosen from each of the three categories will receive a $5,000 donation to his or her school’s art program, as well as an invitation to an annual Lambeau Field gala in July.

For full contest rules and guidelines or to submit an entry, visit pckrs.com/artcontest.