Panther Press

New Teacher - Toni Connelly

2017-11-16T15:37:00.000-06:00

This year we have a new teacher for the 6th Grade, Ms. Connelly.

Ms. Connelly was a junior here at ACS. She took Mrs. Gilbreth's English class and learned a lot of skills for her career. When she heard about the job opening at ACS, she wanted to be part of the family here.

One of the things that keeps Ms. Connelly smiling and enjoying her job is her students. "My students are hilarious and they are my favorite part of the job." said Ms. Connelly. One of the fun things about Ms. Connelly's students is their love for bringing

her Snickers because that is her favorite candy. So, ACS students, bring Snickers for Ms. Connelly when you pass her by! She will be really happy if you do!

Back to school

2017-09-28T15:27:00.001-05:00

It is back to school season, which also means that we are welcoming students back to start another great year! Together we will create a year full of productivity. We are trying to improve and strengthen our relationships with Christ as a community here at ACS. We always welcome new students with open arms, and make them feel like home. We are looking forward to make this 2017-18 school year full of happiness and enjoyment.

First High School Pep Rally

2017-09-28T15:12:00.000-05:00

The ACS Panthers had their first pep rally of the 2017-2018 school year on Friday, September 1. The pep rally was for the football game against Irving Faustina at Weatherford Christian on that Friday night. The cheerleaders decorated the gym with Moana-themed leis and posters and students were encouraged to wear Hawaiian-style shirts. The football team was excited for the game and the cheerleaders were ready to cheer for them.
Go Panthers!

Fall Theatre Production-Arsenic and Old Lace

2017-09-07T14:54:00.000-05:00

Are you interested in theatre? Do you enjoy stories about old women poisoning lonely old men? Then the ACS Theatre fall production of Arsenic and Old Lace is for you! This semester we have a fantastic cast beginning to put together a show that will be one to remember. Come see Arsenic and Old Lace on October 20-21 at Abilene Community Theatre and you will not be disappointed!

Emma! A Pop Musical

2017-05-18T09:20:00.000-05:00

On Easter weekend, middle and high school students put on a musical for the ACS community. Both high school and middle school students had been working since early February to put together Emma!: A Pop Musical, and it was a wonderful success. The students involved did an amazing job and had a blast showing off their hard work and talents to everyone who came to see it. On both Friday and Saturday night, friends and family packed out the theater. A concession stand themed around the Highbury mathlete team sold snacks and "I heart Frankie" buttons to those in attendance. The ACS theater program had a great year, and they thank everyone who supported them and allowed them to put on these shows this year.

Senior Charge

2017-05-15T07:52:00.001-05:00

Senior Charge

The seniors were happy to share their thoughts about the school, students and teachers on intramural day. They thanked the teachers who taught them lessons in both knowledge and life. They gave advice to other students like "don't walk on the mud and make the classroom dirty" and similar things. This kind of advice makes us laugh and we cannot agree more.

In the Band Hall, many emotions were around. Seniors were excited about leaving high school, and at the same time, they were sad that they had to leave their siblings to go to college. Although we know that we will see each other again, there are still some emotions about leaving their families, their school, and the life that they are used to.

Band and Choir Trip 2017

2017-04-28T08:23:00.001-05:00

This past weekend, ACS choir, One Voice, and band students took a two day trip to Dallas for the annual band and choir trip. On Friday, the students got to shop at Grapevine Mills Mall and enjoyed a nice dinner at Rainforest Cafe. The next morning, choir and One Voice competed at Custer Road United Methodist Church. One Voice was awarded a rating of superior, and choir a rating of excellent. Choir also received the best in class award. Afterward, the students grabbed a quick bite at Hard Rock Cafe and headed out towards Group Dynamix. There the students got to play glow-in-the-dark dodgeball, archery tag, and climb a ropes course. This choir trip was one for the books!

NASA at ACS

2017-04-06T08:35:00.000-05:00

Two weeks ago at ACS, a renowned NASA astrophysicist, Dr. Amber Straughn, came all the way from the Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland to speak to students during 7th period on Thursday. Her name may ring a bell, because her niece, Eva Straughn, is a sophomore here at ACS. During her talk, she spoke of both the stars in our galaxy as well as galaxies that go beyond current scientific discovery. Perhaps most interesting of all, however, was the information she shared regarding the current development of the James Webb Space Telescope that is currently being produced by NASA. This telescope is a large infrared telescope that has the potential to change knowledge of the universe as we know it. Using this telescope and current scientific knowledge, researchers will be able to study events that occurred years in the past, including the merging of galaxies and the development of our solar system. She wrapped up her talk by sharing opportunities that both high school and college students have through internships with NASA. Afterward, she answered questions one on one with students, providing a very personal ending to her extremely engaging speech.

No Horse Town

2017-02-01T21:25:00.001-06:00

On Saturday, January 21, at Cullen Auditorium on ACU's campus, ten ACHS students performed a one-act by Lindsay Price entitled No Horse Town. No Horse Town is about a boy who struggles to do what boys of Heywood do to become men—crossing the street. A parade and lifelong fame result from success, but at what cost? It's dank; it's dark; and it's cold on the other side of the street.
This comedy was presented as part of a competition between Christian schools stretching from Oklahoma to Houston. The judge awarded the show a rating of superior. Aidan Beck and Alys Bruton earned the honorable mention medal, and Zeke Merchant won the best actor out of the entire competition.
The cast gave an encore performance for the whole school on Wednesday, January 25.

ACS Theatre Spring Musical Announcement

2017-02-01T21:15:00.000-06:00

Do you love romcoms? Do you enjoy music? If you do, you might want to check out ACS Theatre's spring musical, Emma! A Pop Musical. It is a musical based on the 18th-century novel of the same name written by Jane Austen. This modern adaptation includes music from popular artists such as Katy Perry and Whitney Houston. The plot follows a high school senior as she tries her best to find true love for her friends while being unsure about her own future. Auditions are this Saturday, February 4. The show will be on April 14th and 15th, so be sure to mark your calendar!

Humpty Dumpty...Got Dropped Off a Roof?

2017-01-12T15:31:00.001-06:00

To people driving by the school on Thursday January 11, it may have seemed like the teachers had lost their minds because multiple juniors were seen standing on the roof of the secondary building. However, this was a part of a physics project that had been a week in the making.
For their project, students were assigned the task of creating the safest apparatus possible for a raw egg to survive being dropped off of the top of a 13 foot tall roof. Younger students look forward to participating every year. After the drop, scores were calculated using the size and weight of the apparatus, the accuracy of the drop, and the condition of the egg following its fall.The purpose of the project was to teach the concepts of impulse and moment. The highest scores were a 15 in the Conceptual Physics class and a 27 in the honors class, with the winner in each class earning a $20 prize from Mr. Pyle.

Theater Design Club

2016-12-06T15:27:00.000-06:00

With the opening of the new school year on the Abilene Christian Schools campus, the school welcomed a new extracurricular club. Initiated by Holly Brant, the Theater Design Club meets during 8th Period on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. During class, students learn the basics of theater design involving costumes, props, and set design. Throughout the year, the students will have the opportunity to create costume and prop designs for several school events like Grandparent's Day and the upcoming spring musical, "Emma." The theater design club crafted the costumes for the Pre-K and Kindergarten students for their Grandparent's Day performance. The Theater Design Club is excited to continue creating designs for future theater productions.

Fall Changes

2016-12-01T15:40:00.000-06:00

This fall has brought many changes at Abilene Christian Schools. One Monday morning, students were surprised to discover two brand new changes to our campus. The first of these was the concrete bridge reaching from the secondary side to the cafeteria. Timothy Coates, a sophomore here at ACS, demolished the old bridge and poured concrete for the new one as well as new concrete slabs in parts of the sidewalk. In the past, there have been many issues with the old path flooding. It was nice to see the school finally offering a solution to an often over-looked problem.

Although this was good to see, it was even more shocking for the students to see the newly installed security cameras around the campus. Monitoring the hallways, parking lots, and locker room, the cameras were installed for the security and well being of students. Both staff and students alike appreciate the extra security these cameras bring to our school.

Providing Pumpkins

2016-11-29T15:32:00.000-06:00

Several weeks ago on Tuesday, October 18, many ACS students went to participate in unloading pumpkins for the DRI pumpkin patch. Cason Pyle arranged our school's participation in unloading the pumpkins. Pyle had previously worked with DRI, and a friend asked if any students were willing to unload pumpkins. When asked if he enjoyed having ACS students participate in the event, Mr Pyle said this: “Absolutely. I think it’s always a good thing when people get together and serve.” He also said that he would love for our community to continue to be a part of this service project in coming years.

Live Comedy Improv Show

2016-11-27T18:03:00.000-06:00

The Abilene Christian Theatre Department returned with a new type of show this fall! On November 3, students in grades six through twelve participated in a comedy improv show at Abilene Community Theatre. Improv is an abbreviated form of the word

Blue Team

Timeout (Green) Team

Pink Team

improvisation. In this type of show, actors do not know what they will be doing onstage or the subject of their skits before the night of the show. They practice different types of games, which include applications of different strategies like saying "yes and" to what you are given in a situation and carrying it on. Audience participation was encouraged for deciding what happened on stage, so suggestions on situations and ideas for different things the students did on stage were taken from the audience. The show was a success and fun for everyone who was involved! Mrs. Jana Beck directed the show, and Mikayla Condra was the assistant director and the announcer during the show. Abi Chastain assisted Mrs. Beck as the referee during the show. Ethan Law ran the sound, Jaia Ramirez ran the lights, and Jessie Touchstone ran the follow spot. Braden Baker, Owen Fisher, and Zeik Presley sold concessions before, at intermission, and after the show. Emily Gumm, Mackenzie Bennett, Lily McCutchen, Avery McGlothlin, and Ainsley Roberts cheered for the players throughout the show. We thank everyone who helped to make this show a success!

Middle School Football 2016

2016-11-15T22:12:00.000-06:00

MS Panthers and Coaches

Roster:
1 Braden Baker
4 Austin Beckham
7 Vance Andrew
8 Elijah Gravitt
9 Zeik Presley
11 Harrison Smith
12 John Paul Gumm
13 Trevor Schwiethale
14 Owen Fisher
15 Stephen Rhodes
Head Coach Andrew Wise
Asst. Coach Jon Schwiethale

This year, our middle school Panthers went 3-3 in their football season! Seven eighth graders and three seventh graders made up this year's team.They defeated Trent, Rising Star, and St. Ann's and lost to Hermleigh, Midland Trinity, and Weatherford Christian. We are proud of the middle school team's progress and success during their season!

Renew

2016-11-10T15:25:00.002-06:00

This year, the theme for school is renew. It comes from Romans 12:2, which states, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." In order for us to do this, we must renew our relationship with God. Sometimes it is very difficult to not do what others around us do. We have a natural tendency to want to "fit in" and do what everyone else is doing. We all fall into this trap, and sin in order to try to be considered cool. We often will think that we know better than God, and will do what others tell us to do instead of doing what the Bible says. This is easy for anybody to do, whether they realize they are thinking this or not. This is why it is important to renew our relationship with God. It helps show that instead of being like the world, we want to be like Jesus. A renewal is not a single action we perform to be on the right page with God. Instead, it is a constant rededication to Jesus. It is, at it's core, a constant struggle with sin. There is nothing wrong with struggling with sin, because everyone will struggle with sin. However, what is wrong is when someone gives in to sin. Since everyone sins, this is why we have to renew ourselves before God.

"Shirley" Scrumptious!

2016-10-14T08:31:00.000-05:00

As many of you have noticed, the food in the cafeteria has recently been - well - better. That is because of Shirley Smith, the new cafeteria director. Raised in Missouri, she attended David H. Hickman High School in Columbia with a graduating class of 750 students. She then went on to William Woods University in Fulton, Missouri, where she obtained her associate degree. She then went to Columbia College where she started to get a teaching education. When she married, she and her husband moved to Abilene to live closer to her husband's job in Arlington, Texas.
Smith currently works for a company called Aramark, a large foodservice corporation. She found out about her job at ACS only two days before she started working. Her favorite part of the day is hanging out with the kids during elementary lunch breaks. She gets out from behind her computer and stool and converses with the eating children. "I enjoy the cooking, but I enjoy the kids more," Smith said. On a normal day, Smith arrives at school at 6:30 in the morning to prepare for the day. She first thinks about what to make for break. She normally provides pizza and a second item that she creates. She then creates lunch. "Sometimes I don't know how I'm going to cook something," Smith said, "but I just get back there and I just cook it because I don't cook by recipes." About every four weeks, the same food will appear in the lunch line. She asks herself every month, "What am I going to put in [the food] this time to make it different?" creating a unique taste each time. We can all agree that the food Smith produces is "Shirley" scrumptious!

Teacher Spotlight: Taylor Cockrell

2016-10-13T15:34:00.001-05:00

Contrary to the popular belief of many students, teachers are much like ourselves. They aren't robots that disappear when the school day ends. A prime example of this is Taylor Cockrell, the youth minister at the Hillcrest Church of Christ and newly-made teacher here at ACS.

During a quick interview, Mr. Cockrell stated, “My favorite season is summer. I enjoy summer because of the mission trips, camping, and many other events with Hillcrest. My favorite movie genre is comedy, I like the color orange, and my favorite food is steak- especially the rib-eye cut." Mr. Cockrell also likes to vacation to Taos, New Mexico. His favorite Bible verse is James 1:22 because, "it's direct and a good rule to live by."

Teachers are interesting people to get to know. Try to take the time to get to know your teachers.

Debate Club

2016-10-06T10:47:00.000-05:00

With the opening of the 2016-2017 school year on the Abilene Christian Schools campus, the school welcomed a new extracurricular club. Sponsored by Dr. Kristina Davis, the assistant professor of communication and sociology at Abilene Christian University, the debate club meets during 7th Period on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For middle school students and high school students desiring extra training, the debate club holds additional practice after school on Tuesdays. During class, high school students learn the basics of Lincoln-Douglas debate through flowing arguments and competing in practice rounds against one another. Throughout the year, the students will have the opportunity to attend regional debate tournaments, going head-to-head against students from other schools. If students win rounds of debate during the tournaments, they are able to accumulate points which could qualify them for the Texas State Debate Tournament or the National Debate Tournament.

On Saturday, September 24, members of the debate club attended their first debate tournament in Stamford, Texas. Several students chose to compete in Lincoln-Douglas debate, while others traveled with the club in order to support their teammates and learn from the competition. One student in particular demonstrated great success at the tournament. Senior Carisa Brawley won three rounds of debate, allowing her to advance to the elimination round in the semi-finals. As this meet was her first experience at a debate tournament, she commented, “It was intimidating at first, but I learned a lot from the competition.” The debate team hopes that they will continue to be successful in their future matches.

Athletic Banquet

2016-05-12T14:12:00.000-05:00

The ACS athletic banquet was held Tuesday, May 3rd. This banquet was held to honor all those who participated in sports this year. Students are given participation certificates. Coaches also picked people that had the attitude they want every player to have. That person received the Panther Spirit Award. The coaches also picked out the MVP, Best Communicator and Most Improved. The coaches also recognized all the seniors that played this season for all of their hard work.

Pine Cove Trip 2016

2016-05-10T14:21:00.000-05:00

This past April, the 5th grade at ACS was given to opportunity to go on the annual trip to Pine Cove Christian Camp. The 5th graders were lodged at the Timbers youth camp and enjoyed many fun campground activities near their cabins. The students participated in many camp activities, including; zip-lining, canoeing, a tour of the wildlife faculty and a ride on the barn swing. Archery, horseback riding, and canoeing were also on the agenda. Each night, camp counselors shared campfire stories and led the students in fun songs. The students returned from the camp with fond memories of the previous few days and were sad to leave.

Formal 2016

2016-05-10T14:14:00.007-05:00

On April 23, a group of high school students, complete with their stetsons and stilettos, attended the annual spring formal. Lytle Bend Ranch, an amazingly country set-up, greeted the teenagers. After their southern meal, they were encouraged to visit the photo booth or hit the dance floor. As the night drew on, door prizes were awarded to a few lucky winners. Spring formal of 2016 was definitely one to remember.

Destination Imagination

2016-03-09T13:43:00.003-06:00

On February 27, several ACS students were encouraged to think a little bit differently. In Red Oak, Texas, Destination Imagination held their regional competition. Two middle school and three elementary teams attended the event. Destination Imagination is a competition for students worldwide. The people participating are given seven challenge and they must pick one. This challenge prohibits all adult assistance. The students present their project at the regional competition. While attending the event, the teams are put into a room to complete another challenge in a certain amount of time. This challenge is called the instant challenge. The teams work together to find the best solution in the time given to them. All five of the ACS teams received awards. One middle school team and one elementary team, the Actors for God and The Riddlers, both won third place in their presentation and first place in the instant challenge. The other middle school team, CAB-F, and the two elementary teams, Abilene Imagination Team and Brainstorm, won medals for their presentations.

Coleman Haley Named National Merit Scholarship Finalist

2016-03-03T14:28:00.000-06:00

Coleman Haley from senior class has been named National Merit Scholarship finalist. He is one of the three students in Abilene area has been named finalists in National Merit Scholarship Program. The other two are from Abilene High School.

Coleman is the son of Al and Joyce Haley. He enjoys math, languages, computers and science classes. He also plays trumpet in school band. He has said he doesn't want to stop learning whatever he can get his hands on.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. High school students enter the National Merit Program by taking the PSAT/NMSQT test. About 15,000 finalists were chosen this year, with about 7,500 awards up for grabs.