The Mineral Point Kiwanis Club honored its April Students of the Month at its meeting Tuesday, April 7 at the Pointer Cafe.
The students, who are members of the senior class, are selected for this honor through a voting process by staff at the school, and their biographies are written by themselves.
Kyla Sprain
Kyla is the daughter of Steve Sprain and Bren Radtke. She has one brother, Micah, and three sisters–Lydia, Anyka, and Mariah.
She has been in band for eight years now where she has done marching band for the football games, parades, and pep bands at the high school basketball games and tournaments. She is currently a member of the Key Club. In the Key Club she does community service activities such as multiple highway cleanups, setting up an Easter egg hunt, concession stands at athletic events, and a school-wide community service day. She is also a member of the Math Team and Science Club.
Outside of school, Kyla participates in the Folklore Village Festival Band once a year and was a volunteer counselor at UW-Whitewater’s Junior Wheelchair Basketball Camp last year, which she plans to do again in the future. She worked at Reynolds’ Livestock in the past and is currently employed at Brewery Creek in Mineral Point. Some of her hobbies include reading, listening to music, and hanging out with friends.
After high school, Kyla’s plan is to attend UW-Platteville and receive a degree in Secondary Education with an emphasis on Special Education.
Someone that has impacted Kyla’s life in a positive manner is her band teacher, Mr. Matt Nevers. He has always been very motivating to Kyla and encouraging her to do her best in all of her activities in and outside of her schoolwork. Going into high school, Kyla was quite timid, but Mr. Nevers was great at getting her to understand that she could achieve anything she set her mind to and helping her become a more confident person. He has helped her to rise to first chair clarinet and assisted her in becoming a good enough player to participate in the SWAL Honors Band and the Tri-State Honors Band.
Finally, Kyla would like to thank the Kiwanis Club and congratulate Tammi on becoming the other Student of the Month.
“Since coming in as a freshman, Kyla has grown tremendously as a player,” said Matt Nevers. “She started down in the 3rd clarinet section and has progressively moved up in the section every year, to end up where she is now, our first chair clarinet. She holds the most important position in the band as she is responsible for giving us our tuning pitches every day. When she gives us the pitches, the band must match them exactly, or we will not sound our best. Kyla has also been responsible for getting several students who quit band in middle school to rejoin in high school, and then she has volunteered her own time to get them caught up after not being involved in the program for awhile. She will be missed after this year.”
Tammi Williams
Tammi is the daughter of Paul Williams and Shannon Nelson. She has three older brothers who have all influenced her while growing up. She has only lived in Mineral Point for five years, but can proudly call this her home.
Tammi is involved in World Cultures Club, Math Team, Science Club, and Key Club. She has spent most of her high school career either in the art room or in science classrooms. She quickly realized she would want to go into a science related field after discovering her passion for the sciences. The passion for science didn’t stop her from pursuing her passion in art either. Tammi has been interested in art since middle school. Once high school came around she started really pursuing this hobby. Four years later she has a stronger passion than before for 2D art.
Tammi has been greatly impacted by many things in her life, the biggest being her youth group. She started going to youth group her freshman year and hasn’t looked back since. Tammi has been greatly influenced by her youth pastor and all the other teenagers in her youth group. The youth group is her second family. She has been able to go on three mission trips with her youth group and other youth groups in Wisconsin. These mission trips have changed her for the better and give her a more realistic outlook on life.
Tammi has been greatly influenced by many teachers–one in particular is her Spanish teacher, Dianna Rogers. She has pushed Tammi to be the best student she can be. Tammi has been able to take three years of Spanish with her teacher and even do an independent study with her. Tammi has learned a lot from her teacher and has been able to confide in her during times of struggle and get a different opinion on a situation. For all this, Tammi is thankful for her teacher.
Tammi plans to go to Southwest Technical College next year to get her general education done, and then plans to transfer to a university and continue her studies. She hopes to reach the doctorate level in her studies of psychiatry so she can help make a difference in this world.
She would also like to thank the Kiwanis Club and congratulate Kyla on becoming Student of the Month.
“I have enjoyed working with Tammi for the past four years,” said Andy Palzkill. “Tammi and her family met with me during my first week on the job at MPHS as they were transferring into our district. It has been a pleasure to watch Tammi grow into an outstanding student and a great person. She has always been focused on her future and has a great plan for her post-secondary and career endeavors. Tammi will be successful in the future because she knows how to plan ahead and she is willing to work hard to accomplish her goals.”
New to the Student of the Month program this year is a book donation to the school library by the Kiwanis in honor of the students.
“I chose The Poetic Underground by Erin Hanson,” said Sprain. “The reason I chose this particular book of poems is because Erin Hanson is a fantastic author. She speaks many truths through her writing that everyone can relate to in some way. I would highly recommend this book, even to people who don’t consider themselves readers, because it is easy to connect to on many levels.”
“I chose Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton,” said Williams. “I chose this book in particular because it kept me interested the whole time I read it. This book has many components to it that makes it great. I think that this is a great book for people who struggle reading because it’s an easy read. While it might be fiction, I believe it’s always good to have a little magic in your life.”