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Taylor Hargrove, a Lifelong Spartan

A journey to the pros…and back again.
by Michael Mankoff

    For Taylor Hargrove, who has been there and back, there is no place like home.
     “It was the spring of 1997 and our baseball team just beat Pueblo East in the State Semifinals. We then went up against a Pueblo South team for the 4A State Championship and lost 8 to 5,” recalled 1999 Thomas Jefferson Graduate Taylor Hargrove. As a sophomore in high school he dedicated most of his time to playing the game he loved, baseball; and many of his teammates did the same. The 1997 team composed of mostly sophomores had given up playing other sports to pursue the dream of a State Championship. Among these young men was Roger Ross, older brother of 2001 TJ grad and current Baltimore Raven Cory Ross.
    It was a series of unfortunate events that cost TJ the State Championship; however, it was the turning point in Hargrove’s young life. “It was the most devastating thing because my whole identity was placed into this sport,” he said. Baseball had defined him all his life; if he was doing well on the diamond then he was happy, if he was doing bad then he wasn’t happy. This holds true for the majority of student athletes, although Hargrove describes his infatuation as something greater. “We let our performance on the field dictate who we were as people. I received all my satisfaction from my success on the baseball diamond,” he said.
     However, Hargrove evolved with the help of his pastor Eric Hause and a Christian Evangelism conference he attended in the summer of 1997 in Washington D.C. It was an emotional ride as he committed himself to being a servant of God with the belief that he must give up his dream of playing professional baseball to do so. To Hargrove’s benefit, this was not the case. “Instead of using the gift God gave me to play for myself, for the first time in my life, I wasn’t playing for me but for God,” he explained. Now that he wasn’t playing for his own fame, stats didn’t matter to him, and the reason why he played was because it was God’s gift to him as well as his love for the game.
Read more

Howard Comes to TJ

This year Heaton's student teacher is a standout.
by Julia Harrington
photo by Manuel Perez

    This year Emily Howard has big shoes to fill as a student teacher to the beloved Gordon Heaton, but she has made her own mark and takes everything he has to teach to heart.
     Howard was born in Steamboat Springs in 1981 and with hopes to teach in an urban area, Thomas Jefferson High School is an ideal fit for her to do her student teaching. After graduating from Steamboat Springs High School in 2000 she continued her education at Colorado State University getting a Bachelors  Degree in Speech Communication while minoring  in sociology in 2003. She also has a Masters degree in Speech Communication with a focus in political communication. Howard shared with the Jefferson Journal what she has learned her experiences.
Thomas Jefferson Journal: How did you decide to be a teacher?
Emily Howard: My mom is a teacher, and many of my other family members are teachers. First I thought that there was no way I would become a teacher. In college I was studying political science and speech communication and wanted to become a lawyer. Then I went to graduate school and taught college classes for three years. I loved teaching there but I wanted to teach younger students. Before I had decided I wanted to be a teacher I worked for a marketing team that had many high-end clients, such as the Broncos and Qwest.  Although I made a lot of money and I enjoyed the perks, I knew that that wasn’t what I was meant to do. 
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Journal Spotlight: Scott Thomas

Thomas inspires enthusiasm in each student.
by Andrew Craig
photo by Manuel Perez

    Much like the plants in his green house, Scott Thomas, the sports trainer and life sciences teacher at Thomas Jefferson High School, undergoes a sort of photosynthesis; but instead of using the sun, he obtains his energy from his students.
    Scott Elton Thomas was born in Columbus, Ohio, and grew up in Vail, Colorado with his brother T.J. “Growing up in Vail is, or was, just like growing up in any other place,” said Thomas, who graduated from Battlemont High School in 1990 and subsequently attended CU Boulder as a biology and kinesiology major. After four years of rigorous study, he earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and kinesiology.
    “College was definitely a good experience for me. The social and environmental aspect of it was excellent. The academic experience was okay,” Thomas confessed.
  In 1998, a couple of years after Thomas graduated, he applied for the sports trainer position at Thomas Jefferson High School, and was hired. “I found it surprisingly easy to apply for this position. I wasn’t nervous or anything.”
    From 1998 to the spring of 2000, Thomas was a full time sports trainer at TJ. In the fall of 2000, he began his teaching career, after applying for the full time biology instructor position. Read more

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

One Missouri camp offered a life-changing experience to this TJ Spartan.
by Christina Danek

     TJ Junior Andrew Briss went to St. Louis last summer seeking volunteer hours for his college resume, but after one week as a counselor at Camp Rainbow, his whole perspective on life had been changed.
     Camp Rainbow is a week-long sleepaway camp for seriously ill children ages 6-13 years old. “The purpose of the camp is to give kids with cancer or blood-related disorders a week to be free from hospitals and their everyday life, so they can just have fun,” Briss explained. There the kids can escape from the everyday stress caused by their illnesses, and participate in a variety of activities that they would not normally be able to do, including archery, a challenge course, fishing, sports, drama and music.
     The camp is free of charge to the children and their families, and the Camp Rainbow Foundation relies on a staff of volunteers to make this possible. Members of the staff include professional adult supervisors, child life specialists, pediatric oncology nurses and physicians, as well as high-school-age counselors and college-age unit heads.
     Andrew found out about the camp through the temple that he goes to, and had heard good things about the experience. After volunteering at Camp Rainbow last summer, Briss is planning on returning this year. “It’s the greatest place on earth. It’s so much fun—seeing the kids smile.” Read more

A Man Outstanding in His Field

Gordon Heaton carries lessons from his childhood on a farm to his teaching.
by Christina Danek

    While growing up on a farm in rural Illinois, Gordon Heaton never imagined that he would one day be teaching a class of high school students about the Boston Tea Party; young Heaton planned on going into forestry or banking. Fifty years later, Heaton believes that he has truly found his calling in teaching. “It’s what I love to do. I believe that somehow I was meant to do this,” he says.
    It started one morning in early fall when a young Heaton walked into his first day of 11th grade at Jacksonville High School. The unsuspecting farm boy had no idea that his course was about to be changed, by a man named Mr. Moffatt. The educator was astonishingly passionate about teaching history, and spoke as though he recalled each event, and knew each figure, personally. Heaton recalls that the teacher used to refer to President Andrew Jackson as “Andy”, as if they were old pals. His use of humor in his teaching was also quite memorable, and Mr. Moffatt often had his students in stitches. Heaton took much away from that high school history class, and now does his best to express the same passion and humor in his own classroom. Stop by Heaton’s room sometime, and you may get to hear one of his history jokes, such as his account of the famous debate in “Roe v. Wade”: George’s Washington’s dilemma the night he crossed the Delaware with his troops. Read more

Teacher JeLynn Crane Will be Greatly Missed by TJ Community

Crane will start new adventure in North Carolina.
by Julia Harrington

    For eleven years, Special Education Teacher JeLynn Crane has been an inspirational figure in the TJ community, and she will leave behind a legacy of caring as she embarks on a new adventure in North Carolina. 

    Crane started working at TJ during the 1996-1997 school year. “I don’t feel like I chose to work here, I feel like this place chose me. It just kind of happened; this was my calling,” said Crane, who has not only taught special education, but she has also coached volleyball at each level. She has also supervised Student Council. “I have really enjoyed knowing JeLynn as a teacher and friend. She will be greatly missed by me and all of the students that know her,” said Senior Amanda Weaver, who has been an assist in Crane’s classroom since freshman year.

    “TJ has introduced me to an amazing population of students,” said Crane. Some defining moments of her career are when Unified Sports, a gym class with special education students mixed with regular education students, was featured on a 9news Cool School Edition. “We came early and they filmed us for the morning news. It was a very proud moment for me,” said Crane. Another memorable moment in her career was when a former student Adela Rice, was awarded a letter jacket. “Seeing our kids at things like prom makes me feel as though they are really accepted in the TJ community,” emphasized Crane. She takes great pride in her students and their triumphs, and enjoys seeing them as a part of the TJ community. Read more

Student Spotlight: Mitchell Mankoff

Name: Mitchell Mankoff
Grade: Freshman
Favorite Class: Intro to Literature
Favorite Teacher: Ms. Hudson-Raila
Favorite Movie: Borat
Favorite Food: Steak
What do you do in your spare time: In my spare time I play Halo 3 and Madden. I also like to hang out with my friends.
If you could live in another period time, which would it be: It would be the Jurassic Period, because it was the period of the dinosaurs.
If you could be a Character in a movie who would you be: I would be Ron Burgundy from Anchorman, because he is hilarious.

Michael M. Davis II Shines Brightly

Davis is looking to leave a legacy at Thomas Jefferson.
by Christina Danek

    Junior Michael Davis aims to find out what it takes to become a legend, as he makes a name for himself at TJ and in his community.
Davis’ interests range from business and broadcasting to media and music. “DECA is fun and teaches you marketing skills,” Davis said, “and Video Intern deals a lot with computers, technology and broadcasting, which is what I want to do.” Along with holding a DECA officer position at TJ, Davis is also part of Interact Club, and National Honor Society. Read more

Spartan Alum Gives Back

Former TJ student, Lyndon Knowles, honors Rose Romero-Young with a Scholarship in her name.

by Vince Crespin

    At Homecoming, September, 28 2007, it was only fitting that Thomas Jefferson’s biggest supporter and longest tenured teacher Rose Romero-Young would be recognized with an award from a very grateful former student.

    Period four started off as any other would for Young: take attendance, tell kids to sit down pay attention and watch the announcements. However, she was given a very pleasant surprise when she saw a former student of hers, Lyndon Knowles class of 1987, appear on the television screen at the end of The Spartan Edition. “I wasn’t sure what was going on because Mrs. Just came down to my room along with my husband, so I didn’t know what was happening. When I first saw him, naturally I was surprised, but I was also a little mad, because for him to be on the announcements he would have had to come into the school, so I was upset that he didn’t come by to visit,” Romero-Young said. Read more

Student Spotlight: Catherine Piccone

Name: Catherine Piccone
Grade: Senior
Favorite Class: Yearbook
Favorite Teacher: Mr. Silver
Favorite Movie: Billy Madison
Favorite Color: Pink
Favorite Food: My Mom Mary Jane's Cooking
What Do You Do in Your Spare Time: I chill with my friends and play Guitar Hero on expert, I'm the champ.  I also like to walk my weiner dog, Sammy, and read.
If you could pick to live in another time period which would you choose: I would choose to live in the 70's, because then I wouldn't have to straighten my hair, and I could sleep in.
If you could be a character in a book who would you be: Winne from Tuck Everlasting. I would like to fall in love and live forever. I would drink from the tree.
What's your favorite memory of TJ: My favorite memory of TJ has to be all the amazing times I have had with my friends, whether going to games or getting ready for dances, we always have a great time.

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