MPISD – News

Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPHS fishing team qualifies for State

Three Mount Pleasant High School Fishing Teams were back on the water on Saturday, April 17, at Lake O’ the Pines for the Texas High School Bass Association (THSBA) Regional tournament. MPHS qualified one team for the state tournament. To be eligible for state, teams in the East/Northeast/Central Region had to finish in the top 88 out of 223.

Seniors Mya Clark and MaKayla Houchin finished in 56th place out of 223 teams at regionals with three fish weighing 8.92 lbs. and will advance to state.

Also competing at the regional tournament were seniors, Zane Phillips and Tyler Welborn. They finished 96th with three fish weighing 6.59 lbs. The freshmen Clayton Miller and Cody Slone finished in 117th place with two fish weighing 4.85 lbs.

Clark and Houchin will represent MPHS at the THSBA State Tournament at Belton Lake on May 14 and 15.

1st Place | 2nd place

3rd Place | Best of Show

Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPHS Culinary Arts cake competition

The Mount Pleasant High School Culinary Arts department held its first annual cake competition at MPHS on Friday, April 16. The event was open to all students and staff members at MPHS with plans to add a Gingerbread House contest in the fall and to open the competition to the Mount Pleasant community in the future.

Senior Cecilia Garcia earned Best of Show honors for her island cake made of chocolate cake, chocolate ganache, and gelatin.

Juniors Isabela Banda, Jasmin Ramirez, and Maritza Castro took 1st place for their “Up” themed cake.

Juniors Zuli Mejia, Joanna Velasquez, and Briseida Solis won 2nd place for their “Coco” themed cake.

And MPHS Algebra teacher, Candice Berend, placed 3rd with her “Wizard of Oz” themed cake.

Judges for the competition were Chef Brenda Young and MPHS culinary alumnus, and current NTCC culinary student Isai Baltazar. Donating prizes for the winners were Army Staff Sergeant Trevor B. Meek, Marine Staff Sergeant Mitch Seneff, Texas Army National Guard Sergeants Caleb Ingram and Allie Hacic, Herschel’s, Jo’s Downtown, and Gamestop. The MPHS Career and Technology teacher provided special assistance, Donna Davis, with decorations and plants supplied by MPHS Horticulture teacher Susie Hearron.

Chef Kathleen Anker teaches the MPHS Culinary Arts classes.

The MPHS Regional Champion Speech team (L to R): Taylor Hubbs, Ryan Sharp, Connelly Cowan, Isabella Greco, Reid Pinckard, Anthony Orellana, coach Enrique Martinez

Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPHS UIL qualifies for State

The Mount Pleasant High School UIL Academic team competed at the Region 2 AAAAA UIL Academic Meet on April 16-17, with some students competing at Whitehouse High School and others competing online. Overall, MPHS is sending three students to State with three others claiming alternate spots.

The Mount Pleasant High School Speech and Debate team claimed the team Regional Championship, outscoring fifteen other teams in Region II. Individually, in Informative Extemporaneous Speaking, junior Connelly Cowan claimed the Regional Championship with senior Ryan Sharp placing third, advancing them both to the State meet. In Persuasive Extemporaneous Speaking, senior Isabella Greco placed second and advanced to State, with senior Reid Pinckard placing fifth and claiming a state alternate spot. And in the Lincoln Douglas debate, sophomore Anthony Orellana placed fourth and is an alternate to State. Enrique Martinez coaches MP Speech and Debate. 

In Calculator Applications, senior Miguel Segura placed fourth and is a state alternate. Osias Hernandez coaches the Math teams.

The online UIL Speech State Meet will be May 25-26.

Brice Team One  |   Brice Team Two

Brice Team Three  |  Corprew Team One 

Corprew Team Two

Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPISD students compete in Robotics

Five teams of students from the E.C. Brice and Corprew Elementary campuses competed in the Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) virtual Robotics contest at the beginning of March. Two teams earned accolades for their creations.

The TCEA Whirli-bots Motion Commotion Robotics contest challenged students to create their own Robotic Whirli-bot. They were using Robotics Kits purchased through a grant from the MPISD Education Foundation, the students designed and built their Whirli-bot and made a video to showcase their creativity.

Brice Team One earned the Best Design Award in the Grades 3-5 division.

Team members Evie Dominguez, Jaylen Gutierrez, Corbin May, and Chelsi Campbell created a multi-geared robot efficiently using one motor to create two spinning rectangle frames as a unique whirligig.

Corprew Team One earned an Honorable Mention award in the Grades 3-5 division. Emili Carrillo, Christian Maldonado, and Jassy Pena-Petatan created a unique horizontal whirligig using one motor and several axles connected with spinning end pieces.

Brice Team-Two made up of Sage Jordan, Katie Snider, and Edgar Moreno, made a music-themed whirligig that used a unique combination of flexible tubes and spinning gears.

Brice Team-Three made up of Abigail Wooten, Christian Martinez, and Ian Brown, paid tribute to our firefighting heroes. Their whirligig was on fire with a fireman trying to put out the flames.

Corprew Team-Two made up of Francisco Equihua, Juliet Luna, Ana Martinez, and Nathan Martinez, created a bright blue whirligig with a large gear and a carefully balanced motor narrow base.

The MPISD Robotics teams advisor, Jamie King, said, “This is the first time for our elementary robotics teams to be recognized in a TCEA competition. We could only achieve this with the help of the MPISD Foundation Grant we received last year that allowed us to purchase the required robotics kits for the competition. We are so thankful for the MPISD Foundation and the wonderful learning experiences we can achieve as a result of the heartfelt support it gives our students!”