FALLING INTO HOMECOMING

By: Ava Fox & Taylor Mix

Leaves are starting to fall and the weather is getting chillier, fall is around the corner and so is homecoming. The football game is coming up, the theme has been announced, the homecoming court has been chosen, and excitement is filling the halls as the dance approaches. This year’s homecoming is October 17th and the theme is “Fall into you”; there will be autumn themed decorations. The dance will take place in the high school gymnasium starting at 7pm and ending at 10:30pm. It’s a great experience to hang out with friends, have fun, get dressed up, and of course dance!

This year’s homecoming court was announced in September. The two freshman are Ava Culver and Mason Cunningham; the sophomores are Adrianna Shinsky and Drake Longgood; for the juniors it’s Connor Buchowski, Chloe Quick, Thomas Kennerk, Jennifer Mix, Andrew Wolanski, and Aubrey Wilke, lastly the seniors are Jenna Canale, Jazz Cresong, Courtney Giller, Daniel Clint, Elise Kennedy, and Hunter Nutter. Wolanski shared his feelings about being on this year’s court, “I feel really good about it, I was a bit surprised at first, considering there was some competition between the nominees.” Being on court is fun, a little competitive, and a great opportunity to show some school spirit. 

Homecoming can be a special event in many ways other than just the dance, such as pictures, parties, and dinner. Kennedy stated, “Going to dinner with my friends before the dance…and the after homecoming parties are the best; we do one every year with my friends.” This shows that the whole day, not just the dance, is an exciting event and a great time with friends.

SERVING TOWARDS TRIUMPH

By: Logan Blankenship & Landon Youel

At just 13 years, tennis is one of the youngest sports at Southeast high school. The first year for the Southeast team started back in 2013, and the team would go 2-7. After many years of competition, this year the girls finished with a record of 8-7, with key wins over Salem, McDonald, and many other strong competitors. The team is led by head coach Jill Wallace, Linda Smith, and senior captains, Isla Zinz, Caroline Sherry, Natalie Kemble and Miranda Timko, with sophomore Lucille Crawford having a breakout year, going 15-2 in the regular season.

Southeast tennis has been improving at rapid speed, and is always looking for new members. The girls had a great run this time, especially after the loss of five seniors from the 2025 season. Wallace stated, “Considering that half the team this year were first years, we did pretty well with an overall winning record.” Next year the team will lose 4 seniors, but retain key players, who will get even better. The goal for next year is to make it to districts. Good luck next year, Lady Pirates.

DRIVING TOWARDS SUCCESS

By: Colton Dillon & Tyler Shaw

The boys’ golf team ended their season after a hard fought match in the district finals. They had a phenomenal season with multiple accomplishments and many things to be proud of. They finished their season with the most decorated year in history. As a team, they were the first ever to qualify for the district tournament, they were back to back MVAC champions, they had a 313 MVAC tournament score record, and the JV team has had back to back undefeated seasons. They were led by senior Cole Bruno, who came in 3rd place in sectionals. Bruno says, “as a team they improved on many things.” Bruno also says his most memorable moment of the season was winning the MVAC as a team. 

The boys’ golf was not the only Southeast team that had an amazing season. The Pirate girls’ golf team also had an outstanding season, finishing with a perfect 26-0 season. The lineup for this unstoppable team are juniors Samantha Morgan, Jennifer Mix, Lily Hayes, Kristen Dillon; sophomore Emily Morrison; and freshmen Ava Fox and Ivy Tittle. As one of the captains, Morgan commented on the team, “As a team we really improved on working together.” The team advanced from sectionals to districts, and on Tuesday putted their way to States.

Although the sport itself is paramount, the team camaraderie and bonding are just as significant. Morgan stated, “One of my favorite parts about being on the golf team is my teammates. I also love getting McDonalds after a great match.” The Pirates have had an amazing season this year and the season is continuing this Sunday at Firestone country club for the State Championship.

SHS SPOTLIGHT

CLUB SPOTLIGHT

By: Seth Dillon & Joey Jares

English Club

If you’re looking to open your mind and expand your imagination, the English club is perfect for you. Led by English teacher Rebecca Leeper, English Club is a passionate community where literature, writing, and art collide. Perspectives of narrative, informational, and poetry writing styles are analyzed, and interpreted by members. 

English Club gives you a chance to open up a book and use your imagination instead of sitting on technology. Most teenagers don’t give a second thought passing by a book, but this environment allows you to learn how to understand the importance of reading and literature. Leeper says “The best way to describe English Club is creative, fun, and artsy ”. This place provides a safe environment to embark on a journey full of literacy. 

Last spring, the English Club attended the English festival at Youngstown State University. This festival is composed of neighboring schools . Leeper says the kids could win ”money, books, t-shirts, and scholarships ”. They get to participate in things like educational games, compete in writing responses, and newly added art show.

The English Club wants to expand to a wider audience around school. Get involved by attending an English club meeting every month; this is your chance to explore new ideas in reading and writing. See Leeper for more information about the Southeast English Club. They’re always open to new members.  

Student Council

True leadership is about demanding initiative, leading by example and the ability to bridge the gaps of communication between diverse groups; Student Council embodies these qualities. Driven by a shared vision, the members of Student Council step forward from the rest and embrace the challenge of bettering our school in many ways. Two events that this group impacts are homecoming and teacher appreciation week. They can also be seen rebuilding and cleaning the campus to make it a more optimal environment for students to learn and thrive.

During Homecoming, they proficiently plan for months on the theme and decorations that will come together to make a fun, whimsical night for all students. During Teacher Appreciation week, they try to make day to day life easier for the teachers by giving them a complimentary breakfast and lunch, and miniature gifts that are made to show gratitude towards teachers. The members are Elizabeth Dills as president, Olivia Briant as vice president, and Zoie Brooks as secretary. Previously, students had to be elected, but this is no longer the case. Anyone who would like to support the school can simply sign up. Carrie Edwards is the conceptual physics teacher,chemistry teacher, science club adviser, and student council adviser.  As student council adviser, she helps members of the council with managing money for projects and giving advice for future agendas. Dills would like to welcome anyone who would like to join by saying “Student council is a great way to get involved with the school, show leadership, organize activities, and make our school an even better place”.

BEHIND THE INK

By: Shelby Ace & Rebekah Smythers

Art is a living and breathing entity that takes shape through many different mediums. Water colors, acrylics, oil, ink wash are just a few that we may see color our halls here at Southeast. Though there are many classes to join under the strategic eye of art teacher Amber Schuch, the focus of this piece will be the happenings in 2D2 art class. 

2D2 is a class that focuses on drawing, painting and printmaking. The art class is currently working on ink washing. Ink washing is a technique of painting that started in Eastern Asia. Ink washing is a method of painting by using diluted black ink in various places forming a picture made on contrast highlights whilst only using one monochrome color. It is usually used to make gradients and portraits of landscapes along with floral themes. 

Recently, the art class ventured outside to use nature as references for their ink washing pieces. Some of the items that were used as inspiration were the trees, a light pole, and the Southeast High School sign. Schuch stated that by using nature and one’s surroundings it “…helps students practice observations”. Schuch explains that her class is, “…very open to trying new things even if it is not their preference.”  Her goal is to challenge and push students outside of their comfort zones to provide new perspectives. We witnessed Schuch’s patience as she was rotating around each group of her students checking in on them, making sure they were doing well. Schuch clarifies that she really loves art that is experimental, “…where you are just trying things and seeing what happens. It’s very freeing to not know the outcomes sometimes!” 

While going outside to work, the students were on a time crunch. The art students had varying opinions on the immediate deadline, some stating “…It helps see the full picture instead of just looking at one tiny part” while other students stated “…It’s just more stressful rather than having a longer period of time to do it.”   Whether deemed helpful or not, all the pieces looked fantastic.   

In the art display case, you can see how different students interpret the project and the task, along with many other projects the class has been working on. Take a stroll down to the art wing, and view these unique Southeast compositions.

HOMECOMING PROPOSALS: LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT?

By Abi Lenze

As Homecoming approaches, there has been an increase of students publicly asking one another to the dance at sporting events, at school, or at one of their homes. These “homecoming proposals” are unnecessary, expensive, and create more stress than is needed for the task at hand.

Asking someone to a dance should not require a poster, flowers, or an audience. Simply saying “Do you want to go to homecoming with me?” with a yes or no response is enough. In most cases, the two people have already established that they are dating, or at least talking by the time of the proposal. They already have plans arranged to attend the dance together, so fabricating a big proposal is unnecessary. 

Homecoming proposals can also put a ridiculous amount of pressure on the person being asked. You are often surrounded by friends, being recorded, and face-to-face with a poster that you know took both time and money to create. Peer pressure is embedded in a public proposal, which makes saying no very hard. 

There is also pressure on the person making the sign to get it right, with many signs having a cheesy message like “I can’t bear to go to homecoming without you”. The proposal is expected to be creative, original, and heartfelt: living up to these expectations can be a difficult feat.

Trend encourages people to compete with each other. One person brings flowers, so the next person needs to bring flowers and a stuffed animal. Then the next person needs to do something more extravagant to make the person receiving the sign feel important. A poster by itself is usually not enough anymore, requiring high schoolers to spend at least $20 if not more on these proposals. Girls have also begun to expect these posters, rather than be appreciative of receiving them. 

Asking someone to Homecoming, even with a poster, can be an overall positive exchange between two students. Due to increasingly high expectations placed on both parties however, it has quickly turned into something to brag about rather than a heartfelt ask. It begs the question of whether students continue the trend because they want to, or if it’s because they feel like they have to.

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