Category: Showcase

  • Track Takes CIF

    Track Takes CIF

    The Poly boys and girls track and field team competed at CIF finals at Cerritos College. In a close finish for the team title, the girls won another CIF-Southern Section Championship. The girls track team won its eighth consecutive CIF title in the sport

    The girls started off the meet with the 4×100 meter relay. Poly holds the national record in this event, and has the second fastest time in California this year. The relay competed better than expected, and, aided by a strong third leg by Junior Maya Perkins, crossed the finish line in first place (46.22 seconds).

    The athletes competed for placing, which added valuable points.

    Senior Je’Neal Ainsworth was a vital part to the team’s success. Ainsworth grabbed valuable points, winning the triple jump with a new personal record of 36 feet 8 inches. She also scored points with her fourth place finish in the 100-meter hurdles (14.68).

    “To help the team win a title, I felt valuable,” said Ainsworth.

    Trackrabbits also placed well in the 100 meter dash, with Perkins, freshman Ariyonna Augistine, and sophomore Kenyla Miles placing fourth, sixth, and seventh, respectively. Sophomore Melissa Tanaka placed eighth in the 1600m (5:11.97), and many others scored points in high jump, long jump, and triple jump.

    Senior Chris Polk was the only Poly boy to qualify for CIF finals as an individual. Polk finished eight in the 800-meter race, with a time of 1:57.34. The 4×400-meter relay finished in fourth place with a time of 3:18.52. It consisted of senior Chris Donawa, sophomore Zion Bowens, junior Cameron Brown, and senior Chris Polk. Unfortunately the relay was disqualified for a lane violation.

    Despite the abrupt end to his track season, Chris Donawa remained positive.

    “My team always pushed me to do my best and be the best that I can be. It’s hard to be a ‘rabbit, so I always held my head up high and put my best foot forward, win or lose,” said Donawa.

    “[Winning] was very exciting for the team as a whole. We were doubted by others going in,” said head coach Crystal Irving

    The team will continue their path to the California State meet, and races next at the CIF Masters meet at Cerritos College on May 30. The girls are defending state champions, and have won the state championship 14 times in total.

  • Poly’s Choir Performs Winter Concert

    Poly’s annual Winter Concert was held on Wednesday, Mar. 4 at Cabrillo High School’s auditorium at 6:30pm.

    Despite the new location due to the auditorium renovation, Poly’s choirs still performed excellently.
    They showcased a wide variety of songs, such as Chamber’s “Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye” and Chorale’s “Hit Me With a Hot Note.”

    Each choir performed between three to four songs per set and dismissed the traditional intermission, due to the separation of the Grace and Glee Choirs and Traditional Choirs.

    Chamber’s set included three songs: “Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye,” “Sleep,” and “Ain’t Got Time to Die,” in which one of the two freshmen in Chamber had a solo.

    “It felt great because I know that not a lot of other freshman get the chance to perform in front of an audience,” said freshman Eric Hatch.

    “I felt so blessed.”

    The audience cheered during Jazz One’s rendition of the popular Portuguese song, “Magalenha,” in which junior Sam Hale, senior Rex Lee, and sophomore Jovanh Pham had solos.

    The concert also featured other soloists, such as senior Matthew Oca, who featured in the Jazz number, “Georgia On My Mind.”

    “I had so much fun performing with [fellow choral members],” said Oca.

    “The concert was really great and I felt honored to have received a solo.”

    Choir members and soloists dedicated time preparing for the Winter Concert months prior to the event.

    Hours of practice and a series of rehearsals preceding the concert contribute to the show’s success year after year.

    Meanwhile, the second half of the concert, hosted by the Inspirational Glee and Grace choirs, took place on Thursday, Mar. 5 in the Choir Room at Poly.

    Grace and Inspiration Glee performed pieces such as “Lean On Me,” “All You Need is Love,” and “Stand Up for Love.”

    The theme for their concert was Martin Luther King Jr. and social justice, which was evident in their song choices.

    “We had a lot of people show up,” said senior Christian Song.

    “My favorite songs were the ones we did with Inspiration and Glee, because I felt like we all were as one unit, and I also felt like a lot of people were touched by the performance.”

    This concert also featured several pieces of original spoken word poetry, which was well-received by members of the audience. The next and final concert, the Spring Concert, will take place sometime this May.

  • Jackrabbits at Japan Bowl

    Jackrabbits at Japan Bowl

    12 Poly students participated in levels 3 and 4 of the annual Japan Bowl competition. The competition took place at Loyola Marymount University on Saturday, Mar. 7.

    Poly’s team competed against Stevenson High School, Venice High School, The Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies, and Campbell Hall, finishing in 3rd place in level 3 and 2nd place in level 4.

    Watson Sensei, AP Japanese teacher and coach of the Japan Bowl team, made sure that her students were ready for the competition.

    To prepare for the event, the Poly team members studied trivia in categories such as Japanese history, characters, idiomatic phrases, “flora and fauna,” and pop culture.

    “I was interested [in Japan Bowl] because, as a student of Japanese, I’m always looking for opportunities to improve my language skills and pursue things that would allow me to learn more than just what’s in class,” said junior Olivia Hayes.

    Venice High School, Stevenson High School, and Poly made it to the the level 4 championship round.

    There was also an individual round as well as a toss up round, where competitors raced to buzz in their trivia answers.

    The competition is designed to challenge students in a variety of areas of the Japanese language.
    The activities test participants’ abilities in applying what they have learned in the classroom to fast, spontaneous trials.

    The teams were given points and tested on their pronunciation, accuracy, spelling, and speed. “I learned a lot and had fun. Plus, I got to have experience working in a team,” said Hayes.

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  • Poly Debate Headed to State

    Poly Debate Headed to State

    The Poly High debate team participated in a Congress legislation debate. The event was held at Schurr High School in Montebello, CA on Saturday, Mar. 7.

    “Besides the fact that one of our participants got sick in the third round, everything was great!” said speech and debate coach Brett Alexander.

    Eighteen schools participated in the debate. Poly walked away with several great performances, but none quite like that of senior Elijah Saucedo. Saucedo finished in 7th place out of 48 participants.

    The top 9 finalists qualify for State Championships. Saucedo has been a finalist in all 3 of Poly’s League tournaments this year, finishing with the highest cumulative score in the final rounds.

    “He had been doing great thus far in the season, so I pretty much expected him to do really well [in this debate],” said Alexander. Saucedo delivered an enthusiastic debate focusing on illegal immigration, no-knock search warrants, three-parent children and international environmental policy.

    In order to prepare for the debate, Poly’s team rehearses their introductions and as well as the various elements of their topic prior to the competition. This helps to build confidence and readiness for the opponent’s potential arguments and counterarguments.

    Alexander does much in the way of preparing his team, from questioning their defense points to giving tips on public speaking and communication skills. Saucedo had more to emphasize on his performance and handling his nerves.

    “I try not to get too nervous,” said Saucedo. “In terms of performance, I felt like I did well enough to deprive my opponents of sleep!”

    The state tournament, Poly’s most important debate of the year, will be held from April 17-19 at Vista Murrieta High School in Murrieta Valley near Temecula.

  • Econ’s VITA Project In Full Swing

    Poly’s VITA program undergoes its busiest times as the 2015 tax return season comes to an end.

    VITA, short for Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, is an IRS- backed school program that allows people of lower-income (up to $58,000) to get their taxes done for free by student volunteers.

    The program was originally established 15 years ago but made its way to Poly 3 years ago with the help of teacher Daniel Adler and student Jamie Gracie.

    The program is held on Mondays and Fridays from 3:00- 5:00 and Saturday mornings in the Hicks Gallery.

    Interested parties must book appointments either by phone or on their official website http://lbpolyvita.weebly.com/. Volunteers are taught how to file federal and state income tax returns either through an online training program or classes by Mr. Adler.

    “It does take time to learn [the process of filing tax returns], but I’m glad to be able to provide such a valuable service,” said Nathan Bousfield, a student who participates in VITA.

    VITA has been a successful endeavor. With an average of 15 returns filed per day, Poly’s VITA has completed over 300 returns this year so far, greatly surpassing last year’s total of about 200 returns.

    VITA usually ends with the IRS tax filing deadline (which is April 15 for this year) but this year’s early Spring Break may force the program to close prematurely on March 28.

    Adler has plans for VITA to be more expansive, with the introduction of a dedicated app and the integration of the Affordable Care Act into the program.

    “I think [the VITA program] is the perfect combination of community service and education because the students learn so much and the community benefits from taxes done right,” said Adler.

  • One Big Deed For Senior Jackrabbits

    This year, one of Poly’s own on-campus clubs, “One Big Deed” is setting out to conquer not just one but several big deeds. In order to show their compassion towards the Poly community and to take advantage of an opportunity to help, the “One Big Deed” club plans to raise enough money through fundraising, donations, etc. to be able to pay for deserving seniors’ final high school year events. These will include cap and gown payments, grad night tickets, yearbooks, and prom. “We reach out to seniors who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford all these things in their senior year,” said president of the “One Big Deed” club, Destin Bigsby. School counselors will recommend which of their seniors are eligible and in need of the financial assistance the club will offer. This way, many students will be able to fully enjoy their senior year with less of a financial burden on themselves and their families. Once recommended by their counselor, the recipients are asked to write an essay as a form, or an “application”. “One Big Deed” will be notify tthese respective seniors later on this year. The club doesn’t aim to assist seniors at Poly exclusively; “One Big Deed” reaches out to all the other schools in the Long Beach District. “Last year we chose seniors from all over the Long Beach community,” said Bigsby. “One Big Deed” is hoping to take it even further this year by fundraising much more through busniesses to be able to pay for even more seniors this year, in addition to going around our local areas asking for donations.” “One Big Deed” is making rapid progress, and accomplishing not just one but many big good deeds to be able to give students in Long Beach a memorable senior year experience.

  • MUN Takes Nation’s Capital

    MUN Takes Nation’s Capital

    From Wednesday Feb. 11 to Sunday Feb. 15, twelve members of Poly’s Model United Nations club traveled to Washington D.C. for the North American Invitational Model United Nations (NAIMUN). During their trip, students were able to visit the capital, see the White House, House of Representatives, and Senate buildings, as well as meet California’s 47th congressional district representative Alan Lowenthal. The trip took students to several other national landmarks around D.C. and gave them a chance to experience “government in action,” said senior Julia Jaynes, president of MUN. The trip itself was arranged and coordinated by Jaynes, who kept in contact with NAIMUN, the organization the sponsored the visit, and helped with scheduling. “I wanted to make sure we got to have an awesome trip, especially for the seniors [in MUN],” said Jaynes. Mr. Adler, the club advisor and chaperone, also accompanied the group. While Poly did not win their overall bracket, there were several students recognized for their ability during the invitational. Seniors Nate Bousfield, Asa Mazor-Freedman, Christian Mesa, and Nick Elliott received awards for their achievements in the invitationl. Bousfield and Mazor-Freedman received commendations while Mesa and Elliott recieved recognition as outstanding delegates. This trip marks one first of many that the MUN club hopes to take in years to come.

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  • Poly Returns To Library Conference for 100th Anniversary

    The 100th annual California State Library Conference took place at the San Francisco Airport Hyatt Regency Hotel from February 5th to February 8th. The focus of the conference is to share methods and ideas to improve school curriculum and performance. Poly has always maintained a strong presence at the annual event dating back to the first meeting in 1915. Violet Gersham, Poly’s librarian in 1915, was one of the original 33 school librarians throughout the entire state of California to attend. This year’s conference opened with a speech from Michelle Luhtala, the department chair of New Canaan High School Library. From then, the over 600 librarians in attendance partook in various educational lectures and demonstrations. A total of 66 sessions, ranging from integrating common core into school curriculum to speeches from famous authors and politicians, such as former Arizona governor Bob Wise, were available to the attendees. Mrs. Oehlman was Poly’s representative for the event. She, along with 8 other librarians from the LBUSD, attended all 66 sessions and traded notes. One particular presentation that stood out to Mrs. Oehlman was the student response system, “Kahoot!”. Kahoot! lets teachers evaluate students through questions given on students’ personal smartphones. Mrs. Oehlman says, “It was so neat to me that Violet Gersham went to the first conference 100 years ago, and now I got to go. I feel so honored to be able to carry Poly’s legacy and continue the fight for our students’ education.”

  • ASB Plans Inaugural Spring Formal

    ASB Plans Inaugural Spring Formal

    ASB picOn Thursday April 2, Poly will host its first annual Spring Formal. This year’s theme is “A Night On the Red Carpet”. The dance will take place from from 8 to 11 PM at the Old Ranch Country Club in Seal Beach. Although the formal is scheduled for a Thursday evening, school will not be in session the next day. “Because seniors have prom, we noticed that there wasn’t really a formal dance for underclassmen,” Junior Class President Emily Ngov said. The responsibility of decorating, planning, and making decisions has been appointed solely to the Junior Senate. At the event, Student Commission will provide a variety of treats and activities for guests. There will be appetizers and refreshments served throughout the night, including smoked chicken, beef skewers, veggie egg rolls, and even a gelato station. DJ Sayso will be turning the tables, playing songs of all music genres, encouraging guests to dance along. For those who prefer to avoid the dancefloor, Sanford Studios will be taking pictures of the guests at a free photo area. “In order to buy a ticket, students will have to fill out a form to get cleared by the banker and the book room,” said junior Kelly Chap. The dance extends an invititation to students outside Poly as well. If people who do not attend Poly wish to come, they must be under 21 and fill out a separate form to buy a ticket, which will be available in the activities office. Tickets are scheduled to go on sale starting Tuesday March 10. Students are advised to purchase tickets from the banker as early as possible as ticket prices will rise each week. Between March 10 and March 13, tickets will only be $40. However, they will cost $45 from March 17 to March 20 and $50 from March 23 to March 26. They will cost $60 from March 30 to April 2, so students should not wait until the last week of sales, as there are also a limited number of tickets that will be sold. Student Commission has invested significant effort and enthusiams in this year’s Spring Formal, and expects that it will be enjoyable and momorable for all who attend.ASB picASB pic

  • All District Mixes It Together

    All District Mixes It Together

    Poly music students participated in the annual All District Concerts, which were held from January 29 to February 4 at the Terrace Theater as well as in Milikan High School’s auditorium.
    Both concerts featured spectacular nights filled with impactful, full orchestra pieces, such as “Jupiter” and Dvorak’s “New World Symphony.” Both pieces were well received by the audience, leading to the concerts’ overwhelming success. Students from all levels, including different middle schools and high schools in the district and even the professional Long Beach Symphony Orchestra, prepared extensively to provide such memorable performances.
    The All District Concert is different from other concerts in that it is inclusive of every high school and middle school in the district; however, only the top 100 students who audition are accepted to represent the top musicians in the district.
    This year also featured the Side-by-Side Concert with the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra (LBSO), which occurred throughout January 29 and 30 and only happens every two years. At this concert, the All District players performed alongside the LBSO, playing for an audience of about 12,000 4th and 5th graders total.
    “Playing next to professional brass players, especially when we played “Star Wars,” is a learning experience you only get once in a lifetime,” says senior trombone player, Michael Franco, “This All District was the best one I have ever been in by far.”
    At the Milikan All District Concert held on February 4th, which was open to the public, senior Concertmaster Jeffrey Lam received the prestigious Fred Ohlendor Memorial Scholarship, which is rewarded to seniors who exhibit exceptional musicality and leadership.
    “I was surprised to receive it,” said Lam, “And very honored as well.” When asked how he felt about the performance, Lam said, “We did pretty well, (I’m pretty cynical) so that says a lot by itself. Despite the challenging repertoire, it came together well.” Lam adds, “It was a wonderful experience and a good way to end my last All District performance.”

  • 2015 Jackrabbit Pageant: Hares and Heiresses

    2015 Jackrabbit Pageant: Hares and Heiresses

     

  • Water Polo Fails to Mater

    Water Polo Fails to Mater

    This year our Poly water polo team successfully advance from the Moore League to CIF playoffs, unfortunately we were eliminated in the first round by Mater Dei. On November 12, our water polo team played its last game of the 2014 season ending in a 19-2 loss against Monarchs. Coming into the game it was tough being that the opponent had a 16-3 overall record for the season. In the first half of the game it seemed the Jackrabbits couldn’t respond to anything the Monarchs threw at them, by allowing 7 goals in the first quarter and 3 in the second. In the third quarter the Jackrabbits created a spark when sophomore John Claridy scored a goal allowing the Jackrabbits to get on the board, even though the Monarchs scored 5 goals of their own. In the final quarter of the game hope was kept alive when sophomore Patrick Murray scored another goal for the Jackrabbits, but the Monarchs responded with 4 goals closing out the game 19-2. With this loss the Jackrabbits were eliminated from the playoffs and played their final game of the season.