MPISD – News

Collage (left) Connelly Cowan and Taryn Thurman, (top right) Reid Pinckard, (bottom right) Caroline Rose

Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPHS Speech and Debate team members advance to nationals

Four Mount Pleasant High School Speech and Debate team members have advanced to the national tournament while three others are alternates. It came after three long days competing against eighteen East Texas teams at the National Speech and Debate Association District Tournament. The National Qualifying tournament was held February 20-22 on the campus of the University of Texas at Tyler.

In Cross-Examination Debate, the team of junior Taryn Thurman and sophomore Connelly Cowan claimed one of only two qualifying spots out of 18 entries. It will be their second trip to the national tournament. In 2019, the team of Cowan and Thurman finished in the top 58 out of 180 teams at Nationals. Thurman is the daughter of Tris and Stephanie Thurman, and Cowan is the daughter of Collin and Kelly Cowan.

In Lincoln Douglas debate, junior Reid Pinckard took one of only three advancing spots out of 35 entries and will make his second appearance at the national tournament. In 2019, Pinckard competed in extemporaneous speaking at Nationals. He is the son of Ritchie and Amanda Pinckard.

In Congressional Debate, senior Caroline Rose was one of the top six speakers in the House out of 62 entries and will make her first appearance at the national level. Rose is the daughter of Kevin and Tracie Rose.

Cowan and Pinckard qualified for the national tournament in multiple events. Cowan also placed 1st in Congressional Debate in the Senate and placed 2nd in International Extemporaneous Speaking. 

Pinckard placed 2nd in U.S. Extemporaneous Speaking. At the national level, students are only allowed to compete in one event because of the sheer size of the tournament.

Three team members earned alternate spots and may get to compete in a qualifier that cannot attend. Alternates in the CX debate are the team of junior Ryan Sharp and sophomore Taylor Hubbs, and both are alternates in extemporaneous speaking. Junior Kylie Hedge is an alternate in Big Questions debate.

“Every year, we keep getting better,” said MPHS Speech and Debate Coach, Cody Morris. “These students really put in the work this year and dominated. Once again, we are taking four students to Nationals. As a team, we finished tied for 2nd in overall sweepstakes. With eighteen of the most competitive schools in our region in attendance, we tied with All Saints Episcopal, a private school in Tyler. I am very proud to coach these students, and I cannot wait to watch them compete on the national stage.”

The NSDA National tournament will be June 14-19, 2020, in Albuquerque, NM.

 

Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPISD Child Development Center now accepting applications

The MPISD Child Development Center (CDC) is accepting applications for the 2020-2021 school year. The CDC serves children 0-5 years old in high-quality preschool classrooms, as well as pregnant mothers. Applications can be picked up at the CDC at 1602 West Ferguson Road or printed at www.mpisd.net/cdc/. The CDC serves Titus County children Monday-Friday from 6:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Call 903-575-2092 for more information. 

 

Front row – L-R, Jacinto Barboza, Alexis Bello, Jose Flores, Christian Flores, Erick Salazar, Gabriel Perez.

Back row – L-R, Francisco Pina, Jaime Pena, Uzziel Perez, Enrique Ramos, Javier Bello, Jr., Jorge Palacios, David Garcia.Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPHS Electrical Technology students advance to the state

Thirteen Mount Pleasant High School Electrical Technology students competed in the SkillsUSA District competition on February 7-8 in Waco, TX. All thirteen have advanced to the Texas SkillsUSA State competition in Corpus Christi held April 2-5, 2020.

In the Electrical Construction Wiring competition, Jacinto Barboza placed 1st, and Francisco Pina placed 2nd. This “hands-on” contest requires the students to follow a set of wiring instructions/plans for electrical circuits and conduit bending. The students have approximately four hours to complete their wiring assignment created by Texas State Technical College Electrical Instructors. It will be the second trip to the state event for Barboza.

In the National Electric Code Testing event, Christian Flores placed 1st, and Jose Flores placed 2nd.

In the Electrical Exhibit competition, MPHS qualified ten students on three different teams for state and swept the category. The exhibit must have a notebook that contains the electrical working drawings, detailed description of work done by the students in paragraph form, a write-up with a list of materials, current receipts, any materials donated, steps followed in completing the exhibit, and the students’ resumes. The presentation must meet the industry standard for creativity and neatness and is judged on the degree of difficulty and must comply with the 2017 National Electrical Code.

Placing 1st was the team of Jorge Palacios, Pina, Enrique Ramos, and Erick Salazar. The team of Alexis Bello, Jaime Pena, and Gabriel Perez placed 2nd. And taking 3rd place was the team of Javier Bello, Jr., David Garcia, and Uzziel Perez.

“These students put in a lot of extra time and worked very hard to get ready for area competition, and I am thrilled that so many are going to State,” said Tim Davis, MPHS Electrical Technology instructor, and SkillsUSA Advisor. “They are now focusing on preparing to compete at State against students from across Texas, including students from Career-Tech magnet schools. I know they will be great representatives of MPISD and the Mount Pleasant community.”