By Maria Kihega

A lot of people believe that there are only two way to earn a scholarship, athletics or academics, but they don’t realize that there are scholarship for some very rare activities. For instance, there is a $500 scholarship in Michigan for owning a llama that can be renewed each year of the student’s higher education career.  Maybe there’s one like that for Indiana?

There are also scholarships for “marble shooters,” people who compete in marble competitions and show off their marbles skills and tricks. For example, there are scholarships from $1,000-$2,000 for winner who compete in a four-day marble tournament in Wildwood,  New Jersey. That isn’t a game that comes to mind when you think of competition scholarships!

If you’re tall and insecure about it, don’t be: there’s a chance you could be offered a $1,000 scholarship from the Tall Clubs International Scholarship Program. This prize goes females 5’10 and over and males who are 6’2 and over money for college.

Even though prom is the night to dress in fancy suits and dresses, there are couples that dress in duct tape instead. They compete in shows in which judges review their duct tape clothing on the basis of workmanship, originality, use of color, accessories, and amount of tape used for the chance of each individual to get a $3,000 scholarship. Perhaps Greenfield-Central would be interested in adopting this at our prom?

Last on our short list, there is a chance for students to earn a $5,000 scholarship if they pass the Common Knowledge Scholarship Test, which is a series of random questions about random things. Look into these scholarships and others-who knows what wacky way you can find to pay for college?

By Maria Kihega

Since graduation is right around the corner, many seniors have been deciding where they want to go for college, some have already applied, and some received scholarships to go to a college. There are a handful of seniors at G-C that are on an athletic scholarship to a college, but two students, Jamie Beaver and Rachel Irbe, have earned substantial scholarships to go to college while playing the sport they love.

“I’m super excited to play for East Michigan. I feel like everything I’ve worked so hard for has finally paid off,” said Irbe.

“Trine offers a lot of what I want to do with my future and the best part about it is that I get to do what I love,” said Beaver.

The last match of Irbe’s high school career resulted in 21 kills, 33 digs, and 3 serve receptions at G-C’s second volleyball match for sectionals. Beaver’s last soccer game ended with a defeat against Fishers 2-3.

“I will always remember my teammates and the amount of support I got while playing for G-C that got me where I am today,” said Irbe.

“I know my teammates will come out and support me during my college career and I will do the same for them. I won’t ever leave them behind me,” said Beaver.

Other seniors such as Amanda Flora, Zach Bishop, Tommy Brock, Savannah Girolami, Tate Hall, and Darcie Huber all have athletic scholarships and G-C wishes the best for these students as they continue on their path of sportsmanship and adulthood.

by Megan Warren/Staff Writer

College Checklist

Whether seniors like it or not, college is coming. Most seniors have made their decisions for where they are going and how they plan on living, but many have not started their plan of attack to pack and bring every necessity.

Of course the usual toiletries, extra jackets, and two sets of sheets with be stressed when packing, but this checklist has been formed to remind those on their way to their new home of things looked past when packing, but will be 100% useful.

Number one on this list is a power strip. While outlets will be awaiting you, a block of six extra power sources certainly will not go used. This could make it so that mini fridge or microwave will be able to live in harmony with your charging laptop without battling for the same outlet.

The next looked-past necessity is duct tape. When struggling students need to fix something, duct tape will certainly do the trick. Many college grads themselves have explained their duct tape stories on universityprimetime.com.

“I had broken my drawer handle,” an anonymous story teller explained, “I wasn’t sure how to put a new knob or anything back on, so I used the next best thing. Duct tape.” This story is one of many handy ways to use duct tape that could inspire the inner low-cost innovator in anyone.

The third up on the list is simply an umbrella. It will totally be useless until you absolutely need it. A day that decided to torrentially downpour right before your class that is neatly placed the farthest away from your dorm will really put a damper on your morning. Umbrellas are easy to keep, easy to store, and easy to maneuver. Plus, you can pull a brigade of friends with umbrellas and stay drier than ever.

Last on this must have list would be a first aid kit. You never know when you will get bumps or scrapes let alone if your floormates decide it would be a great idea to skateboard down the hallway and flips their board. This, again, will be an item that will not always be in use, however, it will be incredibly useful when it is being used. This just needs to be the necessities like bandages, gauze, tape, tweezers, and quick snap ice packs.

This short list will help a massive amount in situations you were not quite ready for, and are not your everyday needs.

Seniors of Greenfield Central were asked what they were most excited for while preparing for college. Tyler Kennedy, 12, is looking forward to some new technology for his dorm. “I am excited to buy my new laptop for college!”

Kennedy explained, “I haven’t decided what type of laptop to purchase, though. I need to remember to pack an alarm clock with me! I tend to sleep through my alarms so I need something loud enough to wake me up.”

Katey Addison, 12, was also asked what about her life preparing for her dorm life at Ball State and while she is unsure about who she is rooming with, decor and room setup has been on her mind. “Pictures! I have so many to put up. I plan to hang them with clothespins on wire throughout my room.”

College is right around the corner for the class of 2016. The time for checklists and a slew of new items is upon us.

by Maria Kihega/Staff Writer

Cougar Connection was a seventeen minute homeroom that many students and teachers enjoyed, whether it was because of the teacher they had or the relationships they had with the other students in that room.  CC has been retired this year due to longer learning blocks and more time with the new technology that we are provided with, but there may a glimmer of light in the tunnel. There has been talk among administrators and and the Cougar Leadership Team about bringing CC back.

“There has been talk about bringing Cougar Connection back, but there hasn’t been a for sure decision,” said Noah Ramsey, 10.

“Cougar Connection making a comeback has been taken into consideration many times, but there is still a debate where we either bring it back and cut off class time or keep rolling with the schedule we have now,” said Mr. Jeff Jackson, Social Studies Department.

“The administration is still on the fence about having it next year, but it will be revisited again whether it’s in the near future or a long time from now,” said Mr. Brent Oliver, assistant principal.

Cougar Connection time was originally designated for work on homework, reading, etc. while the teachers take attendance and check their grades. It was also made to create a bond between the student and teacher.

“I loved Cougar Connection. I definitely think that it should come back and I’m pretty sure a lot of other students want it back too,” said Ramsey.

“I did enjoy my CC class so I would not mind bringing CC back,” said Mrs. Sarah McCall, Math Department.

Even though it would be nice to have CC back, there is a curiosity of something being given up in order to bring it back. On the first day of school this year, it was said that CC was retired in order to have the Macbooks. The question is, would we have to give something up in order to bring CC back? Would there be any reason to bring it back?

“If we brought it back, it would be so that students can form a relationship with a teacher over the four years that they are here. This relationship will hopefully help students, give students a teacher they feel comfortable going to with questions throughout high school, and ultimately help more students graduate because they have a constant teacher pushing them along the way. If we did not bring it back it would probably be because most students saw that time as not important in their day and often skipped class. So many students were out roaming the halls during CC. Teachers struggled to ever get their classes to do anything that they asked,” said McCall.

“Class time would have to be shortened down to have time for Cougar Connection,” said Ms. Jill Jenkins, English Department.

A good majority of students and teachers would love to have Cougar Connection back. It gives more time for homework, reading, and a good bond between the teachers and students, it took a nice break during the school day, and teachers would also check grades at the end of every week to update the students on their classes. It remains to be seen what will happen with this 17-minute period.

By Maria Kihega, Staff Reporter

High school can be hard enough on its own, but some students have a unique problem because they go to GC, not in their home district. It can sometimes be a little tough dealing with not seeing friends from school as often, or making new friends around your area, but there are advantages to it, too.

“An easy thing about living outside of Greenfield is that I got to meet new neighbors and kind people that may not go to my school, but they live in my neighborhood and it’s always nice to meet new people,” said Ethan Starkey, 10.

While for Starkey the move to his new home in the Mount Vernon district provides a new community for him to experience, Chloe Love, 11, says that living in New Palestine has allowed for her to interact with different students that are her own age.

“I’ve gotten to know a lot of new friends and I see it as a good thing to not see them at school, because it would make it a much better feeling of seeing each other when we both get home,” said Love.

Because of the inherent obstacle that living out of district presents, these student commuters often resort to solutions such as meeting up with their friends half way, or scheduling events for certain days to make life easier. Especially with inclement weather, the drive from point A to point B requires a bit of forethought, as Starkey explains.

“I’m just starting to drive and especially in the winter, it gets in the way a lot. It may be one of the most frustrating things to deal with. Also, whenever my friends and I want to make plans to hang out, we always have to make plans in Greenfield which is awful for me, because I have to make a drive all the way out there,” said Starkey.

Whether it be in finding alternative solutions for hanging out with friends, or providing extra time from point A to point B, these students have managed to work around their alternative locations. The commute to G-C might not always be easy but these students are making it work.