The Ricebird Beat
Winter 2013
Howdy
ECMS
You’ve more than likely heard this friendly and familiar greeting
echoed down the hall a time or two; however, there is more to Coach
Mauch than just his upbeat disposition.
As an El Campo native, Coach Mauch had a great childhood
with two hard working parents and an older half-brother. One condition
he developed around 10 years old was migraine headaches. These aren’t
your regular “take two Tylenol” type of headaches. They are almost
disabling. Due to these, he set his goals to become a doctor – more
specifically, a neurosurgeon. If there was a way to understand these
crippling headaches or fix them, he wanted to be part of it. In order to
reach this goal, he voluntarily took history summer school classes before
he started high school, so he would have more schedule space to take
upper level math and science classes while still being involved in football
and band.
In addition to doing well in school, he also took sports very
seriously. As the son of a former Aggie football player, he also took to
the gridiron; he made varsity as a sophomore but was sidelined by a
broken hip. He gave it another try as a junior, but the lingering migraines
became too intense for him, and he came to the conclusion that taking a
constant pounding on his head that was already aching probably wasn’t
the best idea. But on a positive note, that only furthered his
determination to go into the medical field. Unfortunately, he later
discovered he had a weak stomach and that practicing medicine may not
be the best idea. Though his career ambitions changed, one thing that
never did was his love for Texas A&M University.
He graduated from El Campo High School in the top ten percent
of his class in May 1998, and in the fall of 1998, Coach Mauch enrolled at
Texas A&M as an Information and Operations major in the College of
Business and decided to join the Corp of Cadets. Being a member of the
Corp was an awesome experience for Coach Mauch. Not only did it
discipline him mentally and spiritually, it especially disciplined him
physically. In a year and a half, he lost 130 pounds while training in the
Corp.
While at A&M, he embraced all of the traditions that made it
great, and life was good! But in the spring of 2001, that all changed.
During an unseasonably cold spring break his junior year, he and some
friends decided to vacation in New Orleans, Louisiana. New Orleans was
known for being a lively city that never sleeps and always has something
going on. One night, Coach Mauch and his friends got separated from
each other. Not thinking much of the situation, he walked down a shady,
poorly lit path all alone. This was a decision he would soon regret. While
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in the alley, he was attacked from behind and viciously beaten and
robbed. His attacker broke his jaw, facial bones, shoulder blades, ribs,
vertebrae, and ruptured his spleen. He was left for dead. Fortunately, a
stranger found him the next morning and called 911. The doctors had no
way of identifying him, so he was issued a “John Doe” name. Luckily, the
gold ring on his right hand came through for him. His Aggie ring had his
name engraved on the inside, and through that ring, he was able to be
identified and his family and friends were able to be contacted. The
doctor informed him that if he wasn’t such a large-framed man, and if it
wasn’t so cold, he would not have made it.
The road to recovery was not an easy one. When he was at
home recuperating from his injuries, he was informed that a good friend
of his – and role model - from A&M had passed away in a head-on
collision with an 18-wheeler while driving to his hometown for Easter
weekend. As heartbreaking as that loss of a friend was, it made him
realize that everyone has a purpose and he still had a chance to fulfill his.
(By the way he was able to see one more football season.) In December
of 2002, he graduated from Texas A&M and was off to the “real” world.
His first job out of college was following in his dad’s footsteps as an
insurance agent in Victoria. After his New Orleans experience, he had no
desire to live in a large city. He enjoyed his work in the insurance
business, but his boss’s children helped him to realize that there was a
more important calling for him. He loved the impact he could make on
the lives of young people, so back to school he went for his alternative
teaching certification. For the past decade, he’s had a variety of roles in
education. He’s done a variety of positions within special education, and
he currently is an AVID and study skills teacher in addition to being a
coach.
Family is a very important element of Coach Mauch’s life as
well. Two weeks after he and his wife, Jennifer, were married, his
mother-in-law passed away. This just reiterated the importance of life
and finding your purpose. The Mauchs are also trying to make a
difference in the lives of children outside of school. They are currently in
a “foster-to-adopt” program and are directing their lives towards a
greater
goal!
Facts:
 Woke up every morning as a child to the Aggie War Hymn
 First trip to Kyle Field was at 3 weeks old
 His parents had a rule if you don’t do activities, you get a job!
So when he quit football because of migraines, he started
worked at Novak’s Meat Market and HEB.
What’s going on around ECMS
FCA
Student Council
FCA holds meetings on the first
Wednesday of every month. In FCA we have
guest speakers such as preachers and youth
directors from local churches. The speakers
we have had so far have been Matt Sweeney
(Grace Community Fellowship-Wharton),
Jerrell Barron (Pleasant Union Baptist Church
- Schulenburg), Joe Gallegos (Rescue ChurchWharton), and Paul Guthrie (First Baptist
Church-El Campo). Each meeting we come
together to spread our Christian faith with each
other. Whether you are a Christian or not, feel
free to join us in Ms. Cerny’s classroom! We
would love to see you there next meeting!
Recently, student council sponsored
“Operation Thank You”. Students, faculty, and
staff joined together and collected more than
1,000 non-perishable items!! All of these items
were donated for care packages to send to
soldiers who are currently serving overseas in an
effort to make their Christmas a little merrier.
In an effort to help students warm up on
cold mornings, student council has been selling
hot chocolate before school a few mornings.
The turn-out has been great! Listen for
announcements for upcoming hot chocolate
mornings.
Interact Club
Interact Club, the local service
organization, has been very successful lately. Their
most recent project, “Hunting for Hunger”, which
collected can goods and other nonperishable items
to donate to the Blessing Cup, was wrapped up and
completed before Thanksgiving. The “Pennies for
Polio” fundraiser generated over $550 just for
ECMS alone. The next project Interact is having is
“Who Cares?” This will raise money for pre-teens/
teens who are battling cancer or any other disease.
NJHS
Recently, NJHS sponsored the Wounded
Warrior Project. Each NJHS member sold three
pillowcases to send off to the warriors who were
injured during war. Over a thousand dollars was
raised. Currently, NJHS is working on one of their
major service projects. A selected number of
eighth graders are going to be chosen to go to
Garden Villa, and they will help decorate their
Christmas tree and pass out Christmas cards. The
residents there rarely receive holiday cheer, so
NJHS wants to make their Christmas this year a
little more special. There are more service projects
to come later in the year.
UIL
Hey kiddos! UIL is quickly approaching! UIL is a commitment, so make sure you are being
responsible and attending as many practices as possible. You know what they say, “Practice makes
perfect!” Make sure that you listen to the announcements to find out when and what time your practices
are. If you have any questions, the UIL director, Ms. Simmons, is available! We hope to see you at the
competition on January 25, 2014 in Bay City.
Million Word Club
Books are being checked out, pages are being read, and test are being taken… the million word club is in full swing!
Coach Brown, Kamryn Munos, Kristina Dippel, Albert Escamilla, and Krista Trevino are currently in the top five.
In addition to these five, there are fourteen more who have over one million words, and twenty-two others who have
reached over half a million words. Currently, there are 272 participants who have reached at least 100,000 words. If you’re
not currently participating in the million word club, there’s still time! Remember—reading twenty minutes a day should help
you get to one million words by the end of the year. If you want to catch up with the leaders, doubling up your reading during
your free time is a great way to start. So next time you finish an assignment early, don’t go to sleep or draw on paper...crack
open a book and go on an adventure.
Teacher Trivia
We sit in their classes, we say hello to them in the hall, but beyond their
ID tags are people with interesting stories and backgrounds! How much do you really know about your fearless educators? Test your knowledge!
Goodbye 2013. Hello 2014! As you welcome in a
new year, there are a few steps you can take to
make this the best year yet.
1. Has an identical twin
2. Graduated as high school valedictorian
 Do your homework- better grades come from
3. Has had stitches from roof of her mouth to the bottom
doing your work!
of her feet
 Stay healthy-better hygiene =better health.
4. Mother of 19 year old twin boys
 Be more organized- in school and out of school. Use
th
5. Married his girlfriend from 6 grade
your planners you get in your elective classes. Clean
6. Always wanted to play point guard in basketball for UT
out your binder.
7. Owns a moonwalk business
 Be prepared (i.e. pencils, notebook paper) – When
8. Has 5 chickens for pets: Cutie, Owl, Goldie, Brownie,
you’re prepared to work, you’re prepared to be
Blackie
successful.
9. Born on an army base
 Be nice - don’t be a bully. Make friends. Be positive.
10. Went to graduate school with Mrs. Stockton
Stay drama-free!
11. Has worked here for 25 years
 Don’t waste energy on gossip, issues from the past,
rd
negative thoughts, or things you can’t control. Focus
12. Raised chickens from 3 grade until senior year in high
on things where you can make a difference!
school
 You don’t have to win every argument! It’s okay to
13. Has a daughter living in Spain
disagree or even be wrong occasionally.
14. Graduated from high school in Naples, Italy
 No one is in charge of your happiness except YOU!
15. Went scuba diving in the Caribbean
16. Played in a Bach (piano) festival while at Baylor
17. Chosen as most athletic in high school
18. Had “school-a-phobia” when young, but is now a teacher
19. First member of his family to graduate from college
Answer Choices
20. Is partly Danish
Mrs. Willis
Mrs. White
Mrs. Wadsworth
21. Was on the pistol team at ATM
Mrs. Pope
Mrs. Jung
22. Always wanted to ride on a Zamboni (The machine Officer Debo
that is used on an ice rink)
Coach Humphreys Mrs. Farrar
Mrs. Gaines
23. Played golf in high school
Mrs. Stockton
Coach Cortez
Mrs. Lamberth
24. Worked at a pizza place in high school
Mrs. Hyer
Mrs. Meek
Mrs. Horak
25. Used to live on the San Andreas fault line
Coach Mauch
26. marched in the inauguration parade for George W. Coach M. Schoener Mrs. Dorotik
Bush
Mrs. Witcher
Coach Brown
Mr. Popp
27. Loves to sing karaoke
Coach C. Schoener Mrs. Hiltpold
Mrs. Wied
28. Her brother was fighter pilot in the U.S. Air Force
Mrs. Vallet
Mrs. Smith
Ms. Korenek
29. Used to be a news reporter
Mrs. Wilson
Mrs. Barbee
Ms. Cerny
30. Has a sister who also works at this school
Keeping Cooties Away
Christmas just passed, but some people are still in the
giving mood. Let’s keep those germs to ourselves! With people
out and about sharing their germs along with holiday cheer,
there is a greater chance of catching something contagious.
Let’s try to stay flu-free!
Yes, it may be fun to get an occasional day off from
school, but wouldn’t it be terrible if you were bundled up in bed
running 103 degree fever? Being sick isn’t fun, especially when
making up work is involved. STAAR testing is around the corner, so
that means it’s crunch time.
So do your part—spread cheer, not cooties!
Things You Can Do To
Stay Well:


Wash your hands—
Frequently!
Cough and sneeze into the bend of
your arm—keep those germs
contained.


If you have a fever, STAY
HOME!
Stay out of people’s personal space give people room!
Dress-code…it’s not that bad!
Some schools have them; some schools don’t. Dress-code may not seem like a ray of sunshine, but there are
many perks to it when you look at the big picture
Instead of coming to a new school and seeing kids dressed inappropriately (guys with pants around their ankles
and girls with shorts too short), you will see well-dressed young adults!
When students hear the words “dress code”, they tend to get frustrated. Yet, when adults come to our school,
they see nice, well-dressed young adults. How we dress also reflects on what our school represents, a rat hole or a
nice, smart school. What they also don’t realize is that if you plan on getting a job - whether it’s a lawyer wearing a suit,
a doctor who wears scrubs, or a checker at a grocery store – there will more than likely be some sort of dress
guidelines. The earlier you start preparing for this, the easier it will be to accept later on in life.
Another benefit of dress code is that it takes a lot of pressure off parents because they don’t have to
fork over as much cash for all of the top notch clothes and shoes. Instead they can keep it simple
with polos or spirit shirts.
So before you start groaning next time you go “school shopping”, realize that dress code
actually does serve a purpose.
A Humorous Tale...
The Green Bean
Once in a far off land, there was a lonely green bean named Noah – he was British. He lived in the deep
waterfalls of the West Indies. He had a rough life because he was the tallest green bean in the bunch, and he
always got picked on.
All of the green beans favorite sport was “tomato”, which in the human world it is “basketball”. Noah
was the best at “tomato”, and one day he showed all the other green beans up. He ran up to the “hoop” and just
slammed it in the hole.
Everyone’s mind changed about Noah. They saw his potential when he performed that action. Now
everyone has accepted him and his life was back on track.
Later in the years, Noah excelled in “tomato” and went on and made it to “The Hall of Soil”. Now he is the
most famous “tomato” player in the land…
Teacher Spotlight
Mrs. Rodriguez—Science Super Star
If you’re expecting to see Bill Nye the Science Guy when you walk through the door of room D109, you
would be sorely disappointed to see a bright-eyed and always smiling Mrs. Rodriguez.
All through school she enjoyed learning new subjects, especially science and math. Her kindergarten
teacher had the most influence on her as a child. She knew from then on that she wanted to be a teacher and
help kids grow and succeed in life. Her first year as a teacher she taught reading. She discovered that the subject
reading was not the subject for her. She decided that science was her true passion and had no doubt she would
pursue it. For the next four and a half years she has continued doing what she loves. She has even learned to
expect the unexpected which includes a student trying to kiss a frog and trying to blow up lungs with her mouth.
Although she loves teaching, her love of food has led her to want to travel the world and be a food
connoisseur or maybe even a food critic. She loves eating anything her husband makes
because he’s such an amazing cook! Who doesn’t love a home cooked meal?
When you look at Mrs. Rodriguez, you would never guess that she loves reading and
enjoys watching Marvel comic book movies. Her favorite super-hero is the incredibly
strong and invincible god with his powerful hammer Thor.
As you see you can never judge a book by its cover. You may never know what’s
inside.
The TrueMeaning of Christmas
At some point we have all been told, “It is better to give than to receive.” Christmas wasn’t all about
sparkly presents with big bows under the tree. The true meaning of Christmas is something much more. It all
started 2,000 years ago in a little town called Bethlehem when Jesus Christ was born. When the three wise men
heard about the birth of Christ, they each packed a valuable gift. They set out on their journey and followed the
North Star. When they reached the manger in Bethlehem, they proceeded to shower gifts upon Jesus Christ.
This led to the tradition of giving gifts to loved ones every year on December 25th.
During the holiday season, some people forget what Christmas is really about. Even though you may
not have had much to offer as far as material gifts, you still could have made the holiday season special for
others.
Over the holiday break, you might have baked a batch of cookies for your next-door neighbor, or made
Christmas cards for the elderly. One other thing may have done was visit the nursing
homes, such as Garden Villa. Also, you could have gone Christmas caroling to the
older members of your church or around the community. Even if your voice wasn’t
great, that’s okay! As Buddy the Elf reminds us, “The best way to spread Christmas
cheer is singing loud for all to hear!” Maybe you donated to a charity organization;
after all, every penny counts when it comes to helping others.
Don’t let the feelings of goodwill stop there. Just because Christmas is overdoes
not mean your merry cheer has to fade away. Your generosity can extend throughout
the year, and bring joy to everyone you meet. Make 2014 feel like a year of Christmas!
Do your part to make it a little better each day!
Book Reviews
Entertainment
Totally Disgusting
by Bill Wallace
It all begins with a small kitten named
Mewkiss. Besides having an awful name, she is
searching for a special person and her place in the
world. She encounters horrible experiences that she
has to overcome, and along the way, she comes to
grips with her name and actually learns to like it. She
realizes that others have issues just as bad, or
possibly worse, than hers. Middle school kids should
be able to relate to this story because they tend to
have a connection to overly dramatic situations with
flair of humor! This book will definitely bring a smile
to your face.
Ricebird Beat Staff
Writers:
Jerrid Berglund
Kinley Bubela
Reagan David
Kristina Dippel
Darian Dutcher
Savanna
Eggemeyer
Daniel Flores
Julian Fonseca
Bethani Gold
Jackie Granados
Luis Hernandez
Christine Hunt
Tony Janke
Sponsor:
Kalyn Jones
Mrs. Gadeke
Dustie Koudela
Ariana Lopez
Kierana Manis
Sarah Martinez
Jessica Nordeen
Jillian Owens
Kayla Rachunek
Crystal Raun
Wesley Schulz
Sydney Slattery
Elyssa Smith
Riley Todd
Skipping Christmas
by John Grisham
This year the Kranks have decided that they don't want
to deal with the crowded malls, corny office parties, horrible
fruitcakes, the unwanted presents, or stressful decorations. Just
this once, they'll skip this holiday altogether. Once they set sail,
December 25th, on a Caribbean cruise, there will be no need for
any of these distractions. They will soon understand that
skipping Christmas will be the biggest mistake that they’ve ever
made!
This book is relevant to middle school aged students
because it portrays the importance of celebrating Christmas with
your family. It sends the message of how stubbornness will never overcome something that is so important to yourself and others.
I would personally recommend this book to anyone who
likes a humorous, yet dramatic Christmas story that will leave
them with a warm feeling in their hearts.