WELLS PRESS

Computer-animated rendering of Catoosa's new pre-K-5 elementary school

by Connor Russell

Sixty-two percent of voters in Catoosa voted in favor of the bond proposition on the Oct. 10 ballot to finish construction of Catoosa's new elementary school. This successful passage by state-mandated super-majority followed an identical ballot proposition Feb. 14 that fell less than 10 votes short of the required 60 percent.

"We did it," said Catoosa Superintendent Robert Schornick. "Thank you to the many Catoosa voters who went to the polls and voted yes."

The $9 million bond will be put toward funding an addition with 14 early-childhood classrooms, an innovation lab and a media center. The money will also help teachers fund school supplies and materials needed in their classrooms. This ensures that all of Catoosa's pre-K through fifth grades will be served in the same building.

A trip to the theater -- just down the hall: Actors from the Lyric Theatre Thelma Gaylord Academy performed on stage in Wells Four-Seven's multi-purpose room exclusively for Wells fourth and fifth graders. [photo by Rhyan Oakes]

by Izzy Holmes and Laveah Robertson

Lyric Theatre Thelma Gaylord Academy of Oklahoma came to Wells Four-Seven Sept. 19 to perform a play called Cinderella: A Literary Tale Interactive to the fourth and fifth grade.

Wells fourth grade teacher Angela Gardner said that the play helped students who are learning “story elements that we worked on, like characters, setting, and plot. It is good that students can be taught and be entertained at the same time.The fourth and fifth graders enjoyed this play, and I think it was a great idea to do this and help them learn more about story elements."

The play tells the story of Cinderella but different. Fifth grader Payton Philips said, “I thought it was going to be like the actual movie, but it wasn't because it didn't have the stepmother and other parts of the movie that were supposed to happen.”

"Even though the play wasn't just like how most of the students thought it would be, that is also good because a lot have watched Cinderella and would already know the storyline," Ms. Gardner said. "So switching it up some would have people entertained and wanting to know what's going to happen while they are learning."

Thelma Gaylord Academy is located in Oklahoma City. The academy has taught thousands of students since it started in 2001. Many of the academy's students have gone on to careers in Hollywood, on television, and Broadway.

"They are a great theatre academy and are very good at entertaining, " Ms. Gardner said.

Indian Pride: Wells sixth graders Carson Waymire (left) and Mia Thompson (right) led the Catoosa contingent in a JOM parade Oct. 9 in downtown Tulsa. [photo by Karley Reich]

by Karley Reich and Bella Borum

The Johnson-O'Malley -- or JOM -- program through the federal Bureau of Indian Education sponsored a field trip to downtown Tulsa Oct. 9 for area students of Native American heritage, including several from Catoosa schools.

The students, elementary to high school grades, marched in a parade and got to learn more about their culture. Students ate lunch and watched dancers in ceremonial dress. Lots of the kids got lemonade and ice cream.

Organizers intended for the parade and other activities to be a fun and educational experience for all of the kids. The event featured stands with jewelry that people made.

Many of the kids said they enjoyed seeing all of the Indians dress up with bells. Some students said seeing the Indians all dressed up really helped the kids of JOM understand their culture a little bit more.

Cool mustache: Wells Special Olympics coach Laura Franklin, posing at the "Monopoly Wars" hallway display behind the gym, demonstrates how to wear her merchandise.

[photo by Anna Smith]

by Anna Smith and Jaidyn Swarer

Although Wells’ Special Olympics team on a daily basis doesn’t do very much, the team is more competitive than one might think. When it is sports season, the team works hard and does well.

“For example, during bowling season we have practices once a week and a tournament twice during the semester," Wells Special Olympics coach Laura Franklin explained. "That competition is over until winter games in January when we’ll go again,”

Sometimes the team will have skills competitions. During basketball season the middle school does basketball skills instead of actual basketball like high school.

“Every time we go, we get medals, so I think that's pretty good," Mrs. Franklin said. "It's usually first or second place, and I'm very proud of them.”

Oklahoma’s Special Olympics organization is located in Tulsa. Special Olympics regions for competition are divided by “countries,” so Catoosa is part of the Green Country region.

The coaches will go to a calendar and look and see what competitions are available for their region, Mrs. Franklin said. Catoosa’s team has started bowling, “and last year we did cornhole,” she said. “In the spring this year we added basketball skills.”

Wells is doing a fundraiser for its Special Olympics team. It is a mustache war. Students in grades four through seven can buy paper, stick-on mustaches, competing against each other for the most mustaches purchased.

“We decided to do a grade level competition, and the mustaches were supposed to be five dollars each. But I decided that was a little bit much for middle school, and our kids are younger than some, so we went down to a dollar each,” Mrs.Franklin explained.

The team is raising money for hotel, travel and registration expenses, bus drivers, and anything the Special Olympics team has to pay for when the athletes do their competitions.

by Dakohtah Jordan and Jasmine Tucker

Veterans Day is a holiday Americans celebrate each Nov. 11 to honor the military men and women who have fought for our country and our freedom.

“We have Veterans Day so that we never forget the sacrifices that the men and women of our country have made for us to earn our freedom and our rights,” said fourth and fifth grade music teacher David Franklin.

Wells Middle School will host Veterans Day assemblies Thursday, Nov. 9 in The Dome. The fourth and fifth grade choir will perform numerous patriotic songs.

Mr. Franklin said he plans to invite a guest speaker from the Marine Corps and a color guard to present the colors. Mr. Franklin also said that local veterans will receive special recognition at the assemblies.

The assembly for fourth and fifth grade is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. The sixth and seventh grade assembly is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m.

Thanksgiving is a popular holiday in the United States. Thanksgiving is a holiday to be grateful for one another. Most people celebrate Thanksgiving together and eat.

Our families personally don’t celebrate Thanksgiving. Usually for us Hispanics around this time of year, we celebrate Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Dia de los Muertos is a time to recognize our loved ones that have passed.

We celebrate Dia de los Muertos like the characters do in the Disney movie Coco. We usually celebrate it on Nov. 1 and 2.

For this specific holiday we make ofrendas. An ofrenda is a table with pictures of our loved ones, candles, drinks and food. Sometimes we place a loved one's favorite drink, food, or an object/item they liked.

Also we all get together and eat. Usually we eat tamales con champurrado, or at least my family (Jailin's) makes that. Usually we go to church to honor our loved ones, but not all people do.

Record Breaker: Fourth grade archery student Travis Buendtner attempts to accomplish on the range what the message on his T-shirt suggests. [photo by Kynadi Carl]

by Hailey Spears and Kynadi Carl

Wells students will be competing in archery this coming winter for the second year. It's at the Tulsa State Fairgrounds during December, January, and February and includes fourth and fifth graders. Sixth and seventh graders also might be added, head coach Craig Hampton said.

“It's a sport that makes the kids very disciplined in what they're doing,” Coach Hampton said. “It makes them focus more on something that we are losing a little bit because of the computers and stuff like that.”

On Wells’ archery team, “You have procedures and things that you have to do, so it's neat to see the kids get into that,” Coach Hampton said. Catoosa will be competing with Owasso and other schools in Oklahoma. In class, they will take the top 16 students to a team and then the draft team will start practicing on Wednesdays after school from 4 to 5 p.m.

“There might be a sixth or seventh-grade team this year," Coach Hampton said. "And if we have enough shooters that are pretty good, we might end up having two teams in fourth and fifth grade. It just depends on how well we do.”

Wells' volleyball team hosted its home matches in the Catoosa Indians Activity Center.

[photo by Eva Ortiz- Becerra]

by Kamdyn Scott and Kamryn White

Catoosa’s junior high volleyball season ended Sept. 25 with a third place finish in a tournament hosted at Catoosa. The sixth/seventh grade volleyball season ended with a record of 8-15.

Head coach Konner Johnston said he really loved his team no matter what the score was. “I wouldn't say I like to refer to the L's as losses,” Coach Johnston said. “I look at them as lessons.”

Coach Johnston also said that among those lessons were his team’s struggles with communication, and “being on the same page as a team a lot throughout the season,” he said.

He also recognized his “standout students" on the team, including sixth graders Taylin Garrison, Claire Rawls, and Bentlea Richison. His standout seventh graders were Olivia Calvin, Anna Smith and Presley Rodela.

Many of the volleyball girls said they were sad to see the season end. “I am going to miss volleyball,” said seventh grader Lily Robertson. “I really like volleyball and enjoy it because it's one of my favorite hobbies, and I am really excited for next year.”

A great day for a ballgame: Catoosa jr. high softball hosted Edison on a clear, dry day back in August. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't always that cooperative this season.

by Karley Reich and Bella Borum

The middle school softball team ended 2023 with a winning season. The team competed to a record of 4 wins and 3 losses.

“The girls learned a lot and got a lot better offensively speaking,” said middle school softball coach Skyler Ellis. “They got a little bit more consistent at putting the ball in play. It was nice to see we really battled towards the end.”

Some unfortunate thing that did end up happening was the cancellation of several games this season due to the weather. Otherwise, the girls had a great season, Coach Ellis said.

[photo by Nevaeh Alexander]

Catoosa's seventh grade football team played to a record of four wins and four losses in 2023 while picking up experience and lessons to apply in '24 and memories for longer than that.

Despite the even record, head coach Joe Brown has been quick to express pride in his players. "We had an unbelievable team this year," he said. Assistant coach Rick Alexander added that he liked teaching seventh grade football this season.

For center lineman Jason Watkins, he's still thinking about playing. "I like to tackle on the football field," he said.

Asked about his favorite teammate, cornerback Kameron Pratt said, "If I had to pick my favorite football player? Evan Boulware."

Players to look for on the field in 2024

Wells Press staff: Anlli Alcudia-Avalos, Nevaeh Alexander, Bella Borum, Kynadi Carl, Jailin Duran, Harlee Fox, McKenzie Hargrove, Izzy Holmes, Dakohtah Jordan, Brooklyn McAnally, Yanely Olvera-Stephenson, Eva Ortiz-Becerra, Karley Reich, Laveah Robertson, Connor Russell, Kamdyn Scott, Anna Smith, Hailey Spears, Jaidyn Swarer, Jasmine Tucker, Kamryn White ... Send inquiries to kmcanany@catoosa.k12.ok.us