Category: Showcase

  • Don Norford Welcomed into Hall of Fame

    The legendary football player Don Norford was inducted into the CIF-SS Hall of Fame on Oct. 23. He is well-known for the numerous CIF-SS and CIF state titles he’s won for Poly and has been named by ESPN as the top high school coach in the nation for football and track.

    No other coaches have accomplished this feat, making the nomination all the more significant.

    “I really hold this award close to my heart,” said Norford. Throughout his career, Norford has mentored many kids, many of whom have gone on to have successful athletic careers. One of the famous athletes mentored by Norford is Willie McGinest, who has gone on to win 3 Super Bowl rings, as well as Mark Carrier, who was named the NFL’s Rookie of the Year.

    Some of the kids mentored by Norford actually lived under his care. He made sure to give them with the attention and support that they needed.

    “[Mentoring is] really important for the kids, and you’ve got to show that you love them,” said Norford. “Don’t coach if you don’t love kids.”

    When coaching, Norford tries to show student athletes the same respect and encouragement that he would for his own children, being consistent in his encouragement and persistent with them in their athletic pursuits.

    “Along with the support for them comes the desire to do anything you can to make the kids succeed,” said Norford.

    His goal in mentoring and coaching is to build relationships that will be meaningful beyond a child’s athletic career. Norford aims to instill values that will follow his players off the field, or track, as well. The wisdom and understanding that Norford imparts on them, which he hopes they pass on for generations, characterizes his mindset when coaching.

    “[In coaching], it’s not necessarily about a man’s wisdom but God’s wisdom,” said Norford.

    This wisdom certainly served Norford well in his own athletic career, as well as the true track race that he continues to grind upon today. Successful in every which way, Don Norford can celebrate his induction into the CIF-SS Hall of Fame with pride.

    Editor’s note:  This article was mistakenly attributed to Maria Palaroan in the print version of this story.  We apologize for the error.

  • Seniors Manage Transcripts with Parchment

    Seniors Manage Transcripts with Parchment

    With the college application process rapidly underway, seniors at Poly are paving paths to their dream schools. One of the greatest resources at their disposal on campus, the Career Center, is promoting a new program, Parchment.

    Parchment is an efficient way to receive and send transcripts to the colleges of seniors’ choice.

    Parchment is essentially one site where users can organize and manage their transcripts for colleges via the Internet. This eases an otherwise complicated process of submitting a complete application to each school.

    Mr. Reza, our now full-time Career Center advisor, has been going from classroom to classroom introducing this new program to Poly seniors.

    Users can even see when the college admissions offices have received and viewed their transcripts upon arrival, helping to rid some of the stress involved in sending a college application.

    “It is a much faster process and will benefit all students who register,” said Mrs. Womack of the Career Center.

    Parchment is just one of many useful tools that Poly’s Career Center offers students. Forms, flyers and more are available in digital folders on the College/Career Center page in School Loop. Financial aid, scholarship forms, and volunteer opportunities are just a click away.

    The Parchment program is available to assist any student in their first steps of the college application process.

  • Poly Rallies Up Another Win

    Poly Rallies Up Another Win

    Poly kicked off the football season with a pep rally last Thursday, August 28 at Chick-Fil-A in the Towne Center.

    Chick-Fil-A hosted the Poly Football team, cheer squad, marching band and commission for the 5th annual fundraiser pep rally to get everyone in spirit for the upcoming football season. The event featured performances by the cheer squad and marching band as well as Chick-Fil-A’s Cow mascots.

    “It was a lot of fun. I think it brought up a lot of Poly Spirit and the cheerleaders had fun performing for the crowd,” said junior cheerleader Miranda Deguzman.

    Aside from the spirit squad and band performances, the festivities included a DJ and many audience participatory activities like musical chairs and line dancing. One of the Chick-Fil-A cows broke out into dance to entertain the crowd in the time between the spirit performances and the audience activities. The event also acted as a social event before the end of summer rolls around.

    “I thought the rally was really fun because it gave me the opportunity to show some spirit and catch up with some friends,” said junior Hannah Alicia. “I think it really reflected the Poly spirit and we should have rallies more often.”

    It is not yet announced how much money was raised but Chick-Fil-A will provide Poly with the check soon.

    “We had a lot of people that came out, the crowd was excited, and Antonio Pierce made an appearance,” said Poly’s new Activities Director, Ngoc Nguyen. “He is very high energy and brought a lot of spirit with him. He really pumped up the students.”

    Pierce is Poly’s new head football coach as well as a former New York Giants Superbowl Champion and a current ESPN analyst. He envisions that the student section in the football stands will be a huge party every Friday night.

    The rally proved to be a success because the team pulled to a win at an away game against Crenshaw last Saturday with a score of 54-14.

  • A New Tradition, A New Dynasty

    A New Tradition, A New Dynasty

    The Poly football team had a strong performance in their season opener against Crenshaw, winning 54-14, at Mission Viejo High School, led by first year head coach Antonio Pierce. The Jackrabbits debuted their new Adidas uniforms. A notable addition is the word “TRADITION” on the back of the jersey, with “Scholar” and “Champion” on the arm sleeves.

    Senior quarterback Josh Love showed accuracy with short passes, going 15-18 for 235 yards. Love also displayed his mobility, running two touchdowns in himself. Junior receiver Jackie Jones showed off his nimble feet, dodging opponents and creating first downs.

    Senior running back Jeremy Calhoun was the top rusher on the ground, accumulating 90 yards on the ground in the first half.

    The team played strong in the first half, having all scores generated by the offense. All six drives by Poly in the first half turned into touchdowns. Entering halftime, the team led 34-7.

    “We wanted to finish the game as a team and a family,” said Coach Love at halftime. “The coaches wanted the team to finish strong, and continue to play aggressively.”

    The coaches were very satisfied with the offensive production in the first half.

    “The rotation was great, and play calling was great,” said Coach Love. “The offensive coordinator made great adjustments

    “Biggie” Marshall said the key to Poly’s defense during the game was continuously attacking the ball.

    “The D line had precision, and the linebackers filled the holes,” said Marshall.

    Many players experimented with different positions throughout the game. This included Omari Lyles at running back, Iman “Biggie” Marshall at receiver, Joseph Wicker at defensive tackle, and Gabe Rivera at left tackle.

    Because of the seniors that left last year, new players are filling them. 4 of the five starters on the offensive line are having their first starts on varsity. Additionally, John “Juju” Smith’s positions at receiver and safety are being replaced. Jackie Jones should fill the receiver position this year. Kitu Humphrey is projected to fill the safety position.

    Throughout the second half, the second string players received significant play time, including senior quarterback

    Additionally, the defense was relentless, having nine sacks throughout the game. Joseph Wicker, who had six of the nine sacks, put constant pressure on the Crenshaw quarterback, Dalton Anderson. In all, the Jackrabbits won 54-14, with 402 all-purpose yards.

    “We were playing really fast. We executed and dominated,” said Jeremy Calhoun.

    The next game in Poly’s preseason is against Narbonne tonight at Veteran’s Memorial Stadium. These two teams last met in the 2012 preseason, when the Gauchos beat Poly 56-0, one of the worst losses in Poly history. The Narbonne game is a “blackout” (a game in which everyone is encouraged to wear black). Black t-shirts will be sold at the game for $10.

  • Jackrabbits Attend Red Cross Development Camp

    Jackrabbits Attend Red Cross Development Camp

    Five Poly students attended the Red Cross Leadership Development Camp (LDC) held in Pilgrim Pines during the first week of August.

    This year, seniors Vivian Huynh, Amanda Pham, Kevin Wei and junior Riana Butler were selected as delegates to attend LDC.

    For five days, delegates actively participated in sessions in which they cultivated core leadership skills such as public speaking, professional development, and diversity awareness.

    “I loved every single minute of it, and I definitely plan on coming back again,” said senior Kevin Wei.

    Many delegates from previous years continue to attend the camp annually and become staff members of the camp.

    Staff members, all of who are mostly high school or college students, spend copious time and effort to plan the camp sessions for attending delegates. This year, senior Irene Ear volunteered to become a staff member after attending the leadership development camp last summer.

    “People come back to staff all throughout their adult life just because [LDC] is just that meaningful. As a staff member, my eyes were opened to better understanding life and the people around me,” said Ear, who is also president of Poly’s Red Cross Club.

    The Red Cross Leadership Development Camp formed friendships that will last a lifetime, and most importantly, it developed leaders who will make a difference in their communities.

  • Jackrabbit News Brief: Summer 2014

    Jackrabbit News Brief: Summer 2014

    Ferguson protests

    Protesters flooded the streets of Ferguson, Missouri, demanding justice for the death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown and the police officer who fatally shot him. Following the shooting, members of the Ferguson peacefully protested for over two weeks, but unrest escalated when police forces began using tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds. The shooting has spurred national debates about racial profiling and police brutality. The FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice have committed to conduct an investigation related to the shooting.


    California drought

    According to government officials, California has lost 63 trillion gallons of water in the past 18 months. Water levels in lakes and reservoirs have reached historic lows. The dire water situation has been compounded to unusual heat and record-low rainfalls. With thousands losing their jobs in the agricultural sector and food prices skyrocketing, California’s agricultural business remains to be the biggest victim of the drought. California lawmakers recently sent a package of bills to Governor Jerry Brown; if approved, these bills will allow the state to begin regulating the groundwater supply for the first time.


    Ebola outbreak

    An epidemic of the Ebola virus has affected five countries in West Africa. With 1,552 deaths confirmed by the World Health Organization, the 2014 outbreak has been marked as one of the largest Ebola outbreaks in history. Odds of survival stand at about 50-50; however, two American aid workers were the first patients to be successfully treated for the Ebola virus in the United States. Although there isn’t a cure or vaccine for Ebola, a number of experimental drugs are currently under study such as ZMapp and TKM-Ebola.


    Iraq crisis

    The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is an offshoot of Al-Qaeda, and it has been labeled as a foreign terrorist organization by the United Nations. ISIS’s mission is to create an Islamic state governed by a hard-line interpretation of Islamic law; however, ISIS bears no mercy to those who stand in its way. ISIS has ransacked towns and villages in Iraq, making sweeping territorial gains. They also brutally massacred religious minorities. In response to this, the U.S. deployed air strikes against ISIS; tens of thousands of Iraqi Yazidis were successfully evacuated after seeking refuge in the Sinjar Mountains.

  • Slideshow: Class of 2014 Attends Senior Prom

    Slideshow: Class of 2014 Attends Senior Prom

    The Class of 2014 attended their Senior Prom at the Park Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles on Saturday, May 24th. In previous years, the venue for prom had typically been the California Science Center. However, the Class of 2014 vigorously fundraised for the past four years and fortunately had enough funding to afford a more elegant venue. “Senior year was the best year of my life. I can honestly say that prom was my greatest high school experience at Poly; it sealed the deal,” said senior Marcel Rodriguez. For some seniors, senior prom was an event that they had been looking forward to since they were freshmen. For many, it was more than what’d they imagined. “Prom exceeded all my expectations. I made memories that I’ll cherish forever,” said senior Ryan Riehl.