BY PATRINA PUN
Welcome back, Cougars! Featured here is our column highlighting important events and the inside scoop at QO, so that you can Keep Up With the Kougars!
TEACHER OF THE MONTH:
Have you ever taken AP Government or AP Comparative Government? If so, you may be familiar with social studies teacher Karen Jones! Not only is she a beloved teacher here at Quince Orchard High School, but she is also a tennis champion.
Jones was first introduced to the sport in 2019 through volleyball. She had played volleyball all her life and even took it beyond the collegiate level and to her adult life. Her volleyball friends were the ones who initially introduced Jones to tennis, and, from then on, she began to play in the USTA leagues without formal instruction or experience.
She quickly fell in love with the nature of the sport: the fast pace at which it is played and the importance of teamwork it signifies. As of just last year, she played on a North Virginia team that made it to the USTA National Championship and placed fifth place.
In order to make it back to the championship this year, Jones’ team specifically entered into a different league to compete down in Virginia Beach, as they had lost in the Northern Virginia league. However, her team demonstrated tenacity and resilience as they eventually placed 3rd in the nation. Ms. Jones claims, “There were so many tough/competitive matches that could have gone either way, and my teammates were amazing,” said Jones. “They told us there were over 1,500 teams in the nation that competed at the 7.0 mixed level, so [third place was] quite an honor.”
Throughout her tennis career, Jones has been on various tennis teams and has become good friends with the other players as she is “frequently traveling with these teams.” She claims tennis has helped her “physically in terms of exercise and conditioning,” in both tennis and on the court on defense for volleyball.
Jones even plays with fellow social studies teacher Jennifer Yangon a women’s tennis team. Though they did not make it to Nationals, they did win their regional tournament and went to Richmond to compete in Sectionals.
With their impressive record, it seems like Quince Orchard’s tennis teams better watch out for QO’s history department.
WINTER CONCERT:
This past month, QO’s winter concerts were held on December 12-14, in which QO’s band, chorus, and orchestra demonstrated their instrumental skills to the public.
Andrew Feinstein, a senior at Quince Orchard High School who is also a part of the school’s chorus and band, said the Winter Spectacular was extremely successful. Though it was a very busy week, Feinstein highlighted the performances at the middle schools and elementary schools, saying “everyone seemed to have really enjoyed it.”
Since he was young, Feinstein has always taken a liking to instruments. He started with the trumpet before transitioning to his signature French Horn in sixth grade. He is now QO’s marching band conductor, which has been a major goal of his. He claims being one has “helped me substantially in understanding what it is like to be a conductor and a music teacher.”
December 2023
The Prowler 