By: Larry Eiden
Perhaps the most infamous Pioneer alumnus, Iggy Pop, once said “I was who I was in high school in accordance with the rules of conduct for a normal person, like obeying your mom and dad. Then I got out of high school and moved out of the house, and I just started, for lack of a better term, running free.” As Pioneer students anticipate their bright futures with a mixture of vigor and anxiety, it is important to remember the Pioneers that roamed the halls before us.
On October sixth , 63 Pioneer graduates were inducted into the Hall of Honor. Among the honored are entertainers Iggy Pop and Bob Seger; decorated fighter pilot Major General William Henderson, and world-class diver Bruce Kimball.
Students say they were surprised by the number of distinguished alumni Pioneer has produced. “It was very interesting to see alumni coming back to Pioneer,” said Ryan Herbert, a Pioneer twelfth grader. Fellow senior Jordan Vergollo added, “I suddenly realized that someday I could be one of the graduates standing on the stage.”
A high number of students felt inspired by the ceremony. According to Yasine Baccouche, junior co-chair of the Alumni Connections Committee of Student Council, which organized the assembly, that was the goal. “It’s important to honor these Pioneer graduates to both thank them for contributing to society and recognize what they have done to inspire Pioneer’s current students,” he said.
It should be noted the Hall of Honor was not erected overnight. Lorin Cartwright first came to Pioneer as an athletic trainer in 1980; in 1995 she became the athletic director and a assistant principal. Cartwright began the Pioneer Athletic Hall of Fame to honor sports heroes that attended Pioneer,but felt something was missing. “It didn’t feel right to me that we didn’t honor other alumni like artists, columnists, and filmmakers.” She explained the Hall of Fame was “single focus,” and there is more to our alumni than just athletics. In 2009, Cartwright began the project that would become the Hall of Honor. Although she took a recess from the project after her retirement in 2012, Cartwright returned to it.
Cartwright said the biggest challenge was motivating alumni to be more open about their efforts. “(The biggest challenge) was getting people to want to do it, people tend to be reserve about their accomplishments.” Cartwright says the goal of this project is to motivate students. She states, “These alumni didn’t know what they wanted to do after high school either.” Cartwright wants current and future students to acknowledge “hey I’m normal.’’
Brent Richards, the teacher advisor for the Alumni Connections student council committee, and the rest of the event’s organizers received a lot of positive feedback. There are possible changes they will discuss. One possible change is inducting more females. “women were definitely under-represented. No question, but not by intent,” said Richards. He thinks that a lot of women were not given the opportunity to excel in specific fields. Another possible change the recently inducted alumni suggested is allowing future inductees to be the keynote speaker.
Overall Mr. Richards said he was proud of the hard work students, staff, and alumni did to make the Hall of Honor turn out great. Further, the student body had a wonderful opportunity to seek inspiration from some of the most distinguished alumni that Pioneer high School has created.
Perhaps the most infamous Pioneer alumnus, Iggy Pop, once said “I was who I was in high school in accordance with the rules of conduct for a normal person, like obeying your mom and dad. Then I got out of high school and moved out of the house, and I just started, for lack of a better term, running free.” As Pioneer students anticipate their bright futures with a mixture of vigor and anxiety, it is important to remember the Pioneers that roamed the halls before us.
On October sixth , 63 Pioneer graduates were inducted into the Hall of Honor. Among the honored are entertainers Iggy Pop and Bob Seger; decorated fighter pilot Major General William Henderson, and world-class diver Bruce Kimball.
Students say they were surprised by the number of distinguished alumni Pioneer has produced. “It was very interesting to see alumni coming back to Pioneer,” said Ryan Herbert, a Pioneer twelfth grader. Fellow senior Jordan Vergollo added, “I suddenly realized that someday I could be one of the graduates standing on the stage.”
A high number of students felt inspired by the ceremony. According to Yasine Baccouche, junior co-chair of the Alumni Connections Committee of Student Council, which organized the assembly, that was the goal. “It’s important to honor these Pioneer graduates to both thank them for contributing to society and recognize what they have done to inspire Pioneer’s current students,” he said.
It should be noted the Hall of Honor was not erected overnight. Lorin Cartwright first came to Pioneer as an athletic trainer in 1980; in 1995 she became the athletic director and a assistant principal. Cartwright began the Pioneer Athletic Hall of Fame to honor sports heroes that attended Pioneer,but felt something was missing. “It didn’t feel right to me that we didn’t honor other alumni like artists, columnists, and filmmakers.” She explained the Hall of Fame was “single focus,” and there is more to our alumni than just athletics. In 2009, Cartwright began the project that would become the Hall of Honor. Although she took a recess from the project after her retirement in 2012, Cartwright returned to it.
Cartwright said the biggest challenge was motivating alumni to be more open about their efforts. “(The biggest challenge) was getting people to want to do it, people tend to be reserve about their accomplishments.” Cartwright says the goal of this project is to motivate students. She states, “These alumni didn’t know what they wanted to do after high school either.” Cartwright wants current and future students to acknowledge “hey I’m normal.’’
Brent Richards, the teacher advisor for the Alumni Connections student council committee, and the rest of the event’s organizers received a lot of positive feedback. There are possible changes they will discuss. One possible change is inducting more females. “women were definitely under-represented. No question, but not by intent,” said Richards. He thinks that a lot of women were not given the opportunity to excel in specific fields. Another possible change the recently inducted alumni suggested is allowing future inductees to be the keynote speaker.
Overall Mr. Richards said he was proud of the hard work students, staff, and alumni did to make the Hall of Honor turn out great. Further, the student body had a wonderful opportunity to seek inspiration from some of the most distinguished alumni that Pioneer high School has created.