Welcome back to this month’s review of Holliston High School clubs and activities. Apologies to my readers for the delay (primarily due to my SAT Prep). The month of November marked the end of the fall sports and beginning of the winter sports, and it was chock-full of festivities. For this article, I interviewed Om Patel, one of the three captains of the Holliston Robo-Panthers.

Tell me about yourself.

Hello, my name is Om Patel, and I’m a captain of the robotics team along with Sarah Walters and Brian Hagen. I have always loved to code, and I was able to learn java and sharpen my skills through the robotics team

What does the club do?

We participate in an international robotics competition called First Robotics Competition. We have to build a robot in eight weeks that can do specific tasks and compete against other teams around New England. We also build random robots to learn new skills when it isn’t competition season.

Is there anything exciting going on in the club right now?

Robotics has infinite possibilities and uses in the modern world. Our club provides a fun and inclusive environment where our members can learn about robotics. The club also builds teamwork and is a great way to make new friends.

How’d you get involved with Robotics Club?

I knew I wanted to do robotics, and I found the demonstration they did during the club fair interesting, so I decided to show up to a meeting. Everyone was friendly and inviting, so I kept going and became a part of the team.

What can the community do to be more involved with the club?

Kickoffs are happening at the beginning of January, and we will get the challenges for this year’s competition. After the kickoffs, we will start brainstorming and building our robot, which will be fun. We rely heavily on external fundraising and donations from local businesses to build the robots and compete, and we appreciate all the support we get from the community.

What is in the club’s future?

Although the pandemic threw a wrench in our plans, we have been on a roll since the competitions reopened last year. We were able to make it to the states for the first-time last year, and I hope with the proper guidance and leadership, we can make it even further in the future.

You can follow the Holliston Robotics Team on Facebook at: Holliston High School Robotics | Holliston MA | Facebook

News Around HHS

The National Honor Society (NHS) Senior Center dinner (see photo above) was great. NHS Members spent time with Senior Center members before an intense game of Bingo where contestants vied for 4 themed baskets. Senior Center members then got to see an early screening of Pippin.

The HHS presentation of Pippin was spectacular, with an amazing performance from Theater 370. One of the most outstanding parts of the play was the inclusion of a live orchestra that brought another level of depth to the musical. It’ll be exciting to see what is in store for 2023.

This year’s pep rally on the half day before Thanksgiving was eventful: featuring a pie eating contest among the teachers, a tug of war between the Juniors and Seniors, and the annual Football-Cheerleader dance routine. Students were encouraged to wear class colors and root for their classmates and teachers. The event aligned with the annual Thanksgiving football game against Westwood, when Holliston crushed Westwood 42 to 7, becoming the Tri-Valley League (TVL) Large Champions.

The Aristos Chapter of the National Honors Society will be holding a gift-wrapping event on December 15^th. For $10, members of NHS will wrap all of your gifts; all proceeds will go to support the Holiday Dreams Foundation.  In addition to this, members will make baked goods and cards for school faculty on the 19th.

Besides Christmas Break, the December schedule for school is pretty uninterrupted: the Service-Learning Craft Fair is on December 3rd, then the December 9th Progress reports, and a ½ Professional Development Day on the 14th. Vacation goes from the 24th of December to the 2nd of January—a bit deflating for students as the Christmas holiday and New Year’s Eve fall on weekend days.

The French students mentioned in the last article left in late October and Holliston students will be voyaging across the Atlantic to join them in the spring.

Administration

The installment of video cameras outside of bathrooms has been completed after the funds were recently appropriated at Town Meeting. The aim of the cameras is to hold students to a higher level of accountability, primarily as a result of the uptick in activities which violate school policy (i.e., drug use and their sale and hate speech/graffiti).

Students have varying opinions about the newly installed cameras.  While some are happy with the higher level of accountability, others feel that the issue is a community matter rather than strictly school-related and should be treated as such. 

Holliston Athletics Department via Twitter: Holliston Athletics on Twitter: “Beautiful morning for Thanksgiving football as Holliston hosts Westwood. Holliston has an early 6-0 lead. https://t.co/ql3FRnhV3y” / Twitter

Sports Updates

Fall sports have wrapped up, with Winter Sports having just started up. One of which will be interesting to see is the Wrestling Team that has just experienced a new coach right before the beginning of the season.

Sports team Standings as of 12/9/2022:

• Girls Varsity Cheer placed 4th at the TVL Cheerleading Competition
• Girls Varsity Basketball
  • First game is on December 13^th in Medfield
• Boys Varsity Basketball
  • First Game is on December 13^th in Holliston
• Boys Varsity Ice Hockey
  • Next Game is on December 14^th at the New England Sports Center
• Girls Varsity Swimming
  • Lost 74 to 86 in Wayland on the 8^th
  • Next meet is on December 17^th against Dover-Sherborn
• Boys Varsity Swimming
  • Lost 89 to 91 in Wayland on the 8^th
  • Next meet is on December 17^th against Dover-Sherborn
• Boys Varsity Indoor Track
  • Lost 43 to 51 against Hopkinton
  • Next meet is on December 23^rd against Ashland
• Girls Varsity Indoor Track
  • Lost 38 to 57 against Hopkinton
  • Next meet is on December 23^rd against Ashland
• Boys Varsity Wrestling
  • Next meet is on December 14^th against Concord-Carlisle
• Boys Varsity Soccer has ended with 10 wins to 6 losses with 2 ties
• Girls Varsity Soccer has ended with 11 wins to 8 losses with 2 ties
• Girls Varsity Field Hockey has ended with 3 wins to 16 losses with 1 tie
• Boys Varsity Football has ended with 9 wins to 1 loss
  • They made it to the final four for the MIAA Division 4 State Tournament
• Girls Varsity Volleyball finished with 6 wins to 13 losses

Thanks for tuning in, and I hope to catch your attention with next month’s article (which will hopefully be on time). Have a wonderful Holiday, and you’ll be hearing from me in the New Year! Go Panthers!