Members of the MPHS UIL Academic teams

Contact: Kelly Cowan

MPHS UIL competes at Pine Tree Invitational

The Mount Pleasant High School UIL Academic team opened its spring season on Friday and Saturday, January 12 and 13, at the Pine Tree High School Jar of Dirt UIL Invitational in Longview. MPHS placed third out of 24 schools, with three events taking first place overall team honors.

Individual results:

• Spelling (1st place team): Sophie Greco 3rd, Jenny Luna 5th, Brissia Alvarez 6th 
• Calculator Applications: (1st place team) Nathaniel Martinez 2nd, Luke Thurman 3rd, Clinton DeBord 4th
• Mathematics (1st place team) Nathaniel Martinez 2nd, Clinton DeBord 3rd, Yahaira Piña 4th 
• Current Events: Natalia Aspeitia 5th 
• Ready Writing: Sophie Greco 3rd, Brissia Alvarez 5th
• Literary Criticism: Jenny Luna 5th, Brissia Alvarez 6th
• Social Studies (2nd place team): Estven Perez 2nd, Yahir Garcia 5th, Karen Hernandez, Aidyn Chavez
• Number Sense: Ethan Sanchez 4th, Andrew Guerette 6th 
• Copy Editing: Brissia Alvarez 5th
• News Writing: Idania Castanon 3rd 
• Feature Writing: Idania Castanon 2nd
• Editorial Writing: Idania Castanon 6th
• Headline Writing: Brissia Alvarez 6th 
• Informative Extemporaneous Speaking: Angelina Hernandez 2nd 

The MPHS UIL Academic teams will host the MP Tiger Winter Invitational on January 26 and 27 as they prepare for the district meet. Gina Crouch (UIL Coordinator, Spelling, and Current Events), Osias Hernandez (Math, Calculator, and Computer Science), Gabrielle Robbins (Literary Criticism and Ready Writing), David Clark (Accounting and Social Studies), Lara Martin (Debate), John Whitten (Journalism), Kim Cox (Journalism), Larry Russell (Science), Randy Ballard (Number Sense), and Misty McCrumby (Extemp, Prose, and Poetry) coach the teams.

Tiger Doll Captain Genevieve Rubio (left) and Tiger Doll Director Jaton Broach

Mount Pleasant High School Tiger Doll Captain performs with All-State Dance Team

Mount Pleasant High School Tiger Doll Director Jaton Broach attended the Texas Dance Educator’s Association (TDEA) Conference at The Marriott Marquis Houston from January 10-13. Dance educators from across the state attended workshops, professional development sessions, and movement classes in various forms and styles of dance.

Tiger Doll Captain Genevieve Rubio represented MPHS as a TDEA All-State Dance team member, featuring 264 dancers from across Texas. Their director or teacher nominated each to attend the convention and participate in master classes taught by guest teachers. Dancers also attended a college team showcase highlighting opportunities to dance after high school, a college expo with information on various universities and their programs, and a vendor expo featuring over 100 travel, dancewear, fundraising, and competition vendors. Their experience culminated in the All-State Dance Team performance on the convention’s final night.

“I was so grateful to represent Mount Pleasant High School as the All-State Dancer at the Texas Dance Educator’s Convention,” said Rubio. “It was exciting to showcase my passion and dedication to dance. I also enjoyed meeting other All-State dancers from all over Texas and learning from master teachers.”

Rubio is the daughter of Meagan Smith. She plans to attend a four-year university in the fall and study law.