MPISD – News

2023 MPHS RYLA participants Angelina Hernandez and Cecilia Phan

2023 MPHS RYLA Senior Staffer, Reese BallContact: Kelly Cowan

MPHS students chosen for Rotary Youth Leadership Award

Locl Rotarians chose Mount Pleasant High School juniors Angelina Hernandez and Cecilia Phan to attend the Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) weekend camp after an application and interview process with local Rotarians. The camp was held February 24-26 at Clements Scout Camp in Athens, TX. Students from high schools in the 41 clubs in Rotary District 5830, which is Northeast Texas and part of Oklahoma, were invited to participate.

Upon arrival, they placed Hernandez and Pan in groups of 15-20 students and participated in icebreaker activities that fostered a sense of team building. Through the activities, students worked on leadership skills such as trust, communication, listening, problem-solving, and speaking to others. The weekend they have culminated in a ropes course challenge that included zip lines, a rope bridge, and climbing a telephone pole, where the students had to use their newly developed leadership skills. 

MPHS senior, Reese Ball, participated in RYLA as a junior and was asked to return as a senior staffer, an honor bestowed on a tiny, select group. Ball will have the option to return as a staffer every year that she is available.

Mike Hall, RYLA chair for the Mount Pleasant Rotary Club, said, “Through RYLA, students form lasting relationships and develop leadership skills and a servant outlook that is unrivaled by other programs. As a Marine, I went through the Crucible, which is 2 ½ days of simulated warfare after 13 weeks of training where our leadership skills are tested. RYLA does all that in a single weekend. I have seen RYLA change students’ lives. Kids who had no idea how to be a leader have come out of RYLA as leaders.”

MPHS has the application and interview process available to all juniors once per year. Therefore, current sophomores interested in attending RYLA should look for the application when the 2023-2024 school year begins.

Fashion Design teacher, Margaret Bradley, explains the Fashion Design program pathway

Health Science students Zulma Mejia and Saul Alvarado talk to an incoming freshman about the MPHS Health Science program options

MPHS teacher, Josh Blackstone (right), assists a student and parent with course selections for 2023-2024

Assistant Principal Kelli Glenn (right), answers questions from new freshman Conlee Johnson (left) and his parentsMPHS Tiger Expo

Mount Pleasant High School held its annual Tiger Expo on Thursday, March 23, from 5:30-7:00 pm for incoming freshmen. Teachers and students set up booths in the old gym for eighth-graders and their parents to preview elective options and talk to coaches, directors, and sponsors. Then, the incoming freshmen entered the main academic building, where an advisor helped them choose their 2023-2024 school year courses.