Indiana Area Senior High School

IHS AMBASSADORS

By ELLA MOSCO

The IHS AMBASSADORS are a vital group in our school. Every year the Ambassadors reach out to teachers for recommendations of students that have the potential to become an ambassador. From there the students who were recommended, receive an email to let them know that they were recommended to be an ambassador for IHS. 

When asked what exactly an ambassador is, Maura Knepper described the responsibilities of the ambassadors. “IHS Ambassadors is a program that mainly works to welcome and support incoming new students and 9th graders. When a new student enters the district, they are assigned ambassadors who will welcome them, show them around the building, be there to answer questions, and take on the role of a first friend and someone who can be looked to for support and guidance at the school. We also run the beginning of the year 9th Grade Orientation and Welcome Day at which we welcome incoming 9th Graders and new students to the Senior High. Our team includes around 70 students in 10th, 11th, and 12th grade, and we are currently in the process of onboarding and training the next group of Ambassadors.”

Ambassadors play a big role in keeping the school community all together, in ways most of us couldn’t. To become an ambassador you have to have important characteristics. Knepper explains important characteristics they have, and how the onboarding team selects the students who would be best of fit to the group.

 “Ambassadors recruits on a teacher recommendation basis, through which students who are recommended by one or more of their teachers as someone who is kind, trustworthy, and willing to go out of their way to help others have the chance to attend an information meeting, meet current ambassadors, and then apply to become an ambassador themselves. Following that, our Onboarding team reviews applications and selects the next class of Ambassadors. The selection process, which is currently underway, is very competitive, and we know we often have to turn down many worthy candidates as we only accept 25-30 of those who apply to become ambassadors. Having been selected, new Ambassadors are paired with older Ambassador mentors who will guide and support them as they take on this new role in our school, specifically by running a mock tour that gives them the chance to practice welcoming a new student and showing them around the building under the guidance of an experienced Ambassador. Inductees also attend a training meeting where we cover what they should expect as an ambassador and different topics and scenarios that are important to be prepared for.”  

Junior Ambassador Caleb Campbell commented, “Ambassadors come from all sorts of different friend groups, interests, and programs at IHS.  During the onboarding process, we always try to get a wide variety of people whether they be an athlete or drama member so they can help new students that may have similar interests.  Some important traits to have as an ambassador are empathy, kindness, respect, and reliability just to name a few.  I’m always an advocate of our ambassadors being really reliable and being able to respond to emails about new students so we don’t have to scramble to find an ambassador.  Being able to persevere even after being rejected or pushed away by a new student is another really important quality too.”

“If you’re interested in learning more about what the IHS Ambassadors do in our school, feel free to reach out to our advisor, Mr. Neil, our President, Isaac Myers, or Vice President, Maura Knepper.”

You May Also Like...

IHS JV Baseball: mid-season update

By GABI ISENBERG It’s spring, and that means it’s baseball season. Since the end of March, the IHS boys’ junior varsity team has been taking wins left and right. This season, the IHS JV baseball team has won nine games and lost one. They were undefeated until recently, losing a close game against Punxsutawney. Having an undefeated season up until then motivated the team as a whole. Freshman Hunter Kunkle stated, “We knew that we could win a game and that we worked so well as a team. It also brought us together so that we could play better. When one person had a bad day, we knew that we could count on someone else to make it right.” This season, the baseball teams have proven that this sport is more than just a sport – it’s a family. In March, Todd McGee, a close family member of the program,

Read More »

IHS seniors continue tradition of decorating lockers

By ELLA BARLEY Seniors at Indiana High School decorate their lockers to express their interests and hobbies. Many seniors involved in sports and extracurricular activities express that onto their lockers. Sports teams also have underclassmen from their team decorate the seniors’ lockers.  Senior Abby Huey states, “My underclassmen decorated my locker for my senior night of volleyball. This was really sweet of them to know they went out of their way to create an amazing locker I get to call my own. I feel like more students here at IHS should decorate their locker to make it more their own and to brighten up our hallways.” Many seniors decorate their lockers to express themselves. The decorations often show what sports they play or what school activities they participate in such as clubs or extracurricular activities.  The lockers show school pride around IHS. They have a positive impact on students at

Read More »

IHS softball swinging into the season

By SYDNEY ANDERSON IHS softball is back for the Spring Season and the varsity team is currently going strong. With more games to come, more excitement and competition is expected.  The team practices everyday after school, working on drills to help with batting practice and fielding. Practices are led by head coach Harold Wilson and with assistant coaches Holly Myers and Mike Zimmerman.  The team has had an incredible season, going 11-3 overall. The team has been doing well, with only two losses in the section. “My softball season is going great so far, hence our winning record. I am expecting our team to go far in the playoffs this season and win many games,” one of the varsity pitchers, Addie Stossel comments.  The team has had some tough competition this season, but this isn’t intimidating the girls. The players work hard through practice and have high hopes to do well. With

Read More »

The Last Of Us show review

By LIZZIE OLSEN The Last of Us starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey has taken the world by storm with the two’s amazing acting and chilling new take on the zombie apocalypse genre. The show is based off of the video game The Last Of Us which launched in 2013, and so far the fans are impressed. I will be discussing my personal opinion on the show along with others I have gathered from the students of IHS. I have not played the video game yet, but from what has been said there are some key differences that have been pointed out.  To begin, the storyline revolves around a man named Joel Miller, played by Pedro Pascal, who lost his daughter during the initial outbreak twenty years ago from the present plot. Junior Victoria Gallagher discusses how Joel is her favorite character, “Joel has to be my favorite because he is

Read More »

IHS drama department brings to the table another play: “The Nit Wits”

By SKY STEVENS The Indiana Area Senior High School Drama Department gets ready to set the stage for yet another seat-grabbing play, “The Nit Wits,” this upcoming weekend.  Opening night is this Friday, May 5 at 7:00 pm, and will play for one more night at 7:00 pm on Saturday, May 6. Ticket prices range from $6-$7 depending on the location of seating; VIP tickets are being sold for $10 each. What makes this play stand out from the past ones put on this year is not only the story but the fact that “The Nit Wits” is a farce. “Farces and these types of plays need the audience. The audience is the other cast member,” show director Mrs. Leah Lyons comments. Taking part by coming to the showings and giving the cast members the laughter needed to contribute to the show itself is all Lyons and the cast ask

Read More »

Community service becomes a requirement for seniors 

By MEGHAN RUMMEL Seniors at IHS are now required to have a minimum of five community service hours completed by May 1  in order to graduate on time.  Community service has always been encouraged in the past, but it has now turned into a requirement. Several students are worried about how they are going to execute these hours, while others already have theirs done. IHS has provided several opportunities for students to get their hours finalized, as well as regular check-ins from teachers and staff members to see where students are and what their plan is.  On February 21, IHS held a community service fair called “Volunteers Have Hearts.” This was done with the help of Mrs. Juart, Mr. Brocious, Mr. Perkovich, Mrs. Marusa, Mrs. Manning, and Mr. Johnson. At this fair, students were given the opportunity to talk to several local organizations that offer community service. Some of these

Read More »