Maple Plain
EDUCATION
Orono speech team boasts middle school national champ
Oliver Berg, a seventh-grader from Orono’s Speech Team, was crowned Middle School National Champion in Storytelling at the National Speech and Debate Association’s 2024 National Tournament in Des Moines, Iowa. Berg, a student at Delano Middle School, competes on the Orono team as a result of a cooperative agreement between the Orono and Delano school districts which allows Delano students in grades 7-12 to compete on the Orono Speech team, since Delano does not have a speech program. Berg had a stellar first season, placing 8th in the State tournament in Creative Expression this season. Berg is Orono’s second Middle School National Champion in Storytelling in the last three years; Maya Haugen won that title in 2022. Also competing at Nationals were Madeleine Dore in Humorous Interpretation, McKenna Monger in Dramatic Interpretation, and Maya Haugen in Storytelling, a supplemental category. Both Monger and Haugen broke to Octafinals.
Sanders dominates mat at Edison Summer Slam
The Twin Cities wrestling community came together on July 12 for the 2024 Summer Slam, hosted at Edison High School in Minneapolis. On the day of wrestling, Park Center’s Jackson Sanders represented the Northwest Suburban area at the event. Summer Slam is an annual fundraiser for the Edison High School wrestling team to support their expenses. The event, which was free but encouraged donations, included a barbecue for attendees and a slew of wrestling matches that included high-level high school wrestlers and collegiate wrestlers. ...
Opinion: Diversity is everyone’s responsibility
As a student of color, I have often felt an added pressure to be the one to broach issues of diversity and equity. It can feel like it is my responsibility to speak up, my responsibility to lead the way and my responsibility to present these concerns in a way that makes everyone else feel comfortable.
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