Yay, it’s May, and schools are on the home stretch now.
That means lots of activities, including end-of-year exams and concerts, promotions and graduations, tears and cheers. Best wishes to students, teachers, staff, and families during all these transitions.
Graduation for the Signal Mountain High School Senior Class of 2025 will be May 16 at 5:30 p.m. at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Auditorium in downtown Chattanooga.
Huge congratulations to Signal’s Valedictorian Carter Downs and Salutatorian Hanna Yang!
Best wishes to all graduating seniors as they pursue the next chapter in their young lives.
Signal’s eighth grade promotion will be during the morning of May 20 in the high school gym.
Thrasher Elementary’s fifth grade promotion ceremony will be at 6 p.m. on Monday, May 19 at SMMHS. Nolan Elementary’s fifth grade promotion ceremony will be Tueday, May 20 at 6 p.m., also in the high school gym.
Academics and STEM
Signal’s Mock Trial teams enjoyed several wins during regular season but couldn’t get past a local home school team in the district tournament so missed advancing to state this year.
However, senior Harper Cowart won first place in the inaugural Artist in the Courtroom contest for the Tennessee High School Mock Trial Competition.
Congrats to some of Signal’s Middle School students who earned awards at the middle school version of Youth in Government:
Those who had bills passed were Nicko Amuntegaigi, Lexi Godden, Alan Strickler, Gisa Nsengiyumva, Shema Nsengiyumva, and Russell Greene.
Best Statesman awards were presented to Klein Boyd, Adelaide Mondy, Gisa Msengiyuma, and Aubrey Lubinski. Those recognized for Best Bills were Helena Sowa, Madelyne Cronk, Ray Greeson Ava Kartanos, Ioan Davis, and AJ Taylor.
Congratulations to Zara Hossain for her second place finish in the Chattanooga Science and Engineering Fair. Zara and her teams, including Arianna Anthony and Alyssa Hensley, also received first place at the Regional Science Olympiad High School division for astronomy.
Last month, selected students from Nolan were able to showcase things they learned in the school’s new VW elab. The event took place at UTC, where the Nolan Knights focused on block coding and 3D print models and were also presented with an Emerging VW eLab banner.
Kudos to eighth-grader Luke Behar, who has decided to raise money and coordinate building an electric go-kart as his Eagle Scout project. He is partnering with William Greer, a Signal STEM teacher recently recognized as SMHS and MEF Teacher of the Year, and other students to buy an electric vehicle kit to build during the next year for competition in the spring of 2026.
You can help by sending a check payable to Signal Mountain Middle High School Grand Prix Racing Team to the high school or via credit card through the Givebacks platform accessible on the home page of the Signal Mountain Middle High School website.
Fine Arts
Congrats to Signal’s High School Symphonic Band for earning a score of Superior in every category from every judge at the East Tennessee School Band and Orchestra Concert Performance Assessment, which is like a final exam for our band program.
Hope you didn’t miss the high school band’s Spring Concert on the evening of April 29. The popular percussion Sticks and Tones concert is May 1 at 7 p.m. in the school theater.
The combined seventh and eighth grade bands also earned a Superior score in stage and sight reading at their ETSBOA assessment. The middle school band concert is May 8 at 6:30 p.m. in the high school gym.
Signal Strings also earned an Overall Superior rating at its ETSBOA concert festival! Its spring concert is Monday, May 12 at 6 p.m. in the theater.
Kudos to Signal’s Indoor Winds program, which was revived a few years ago and has gradually grown in both number and scores with each performance. This past season included lots of first place finishes, a new winter show (instead of rehashing the fall marching show), and its first time hosting a big WGI Regional competition.
Signal’s Theatre department also produces top-notch performances. Hope you were able to catch a performance in early April of “Footloose,” the musical presented by the SMHS Theatre Department.
Be sure to look for any year-end performances and other activities at our elementary schools.
Kudos to Nolan third-grader Verenna Lopes, recipient of a “Nolan Proud” award for artwork that showed an amazing connection to “Positive and Negative Spaces” created in Melissa Hogue art classroom.
Wrestling
Before moving to spring sports, let’s extend one last congratulations to Signal wrestlers JoJo and Ethan Uhorchuk, who both are champions at the final premier wrestling tournament in the country, with JoJo winning the 120-pound junior division and Ethan taking the 132-pound senior division title!
JoJo defeated opponents from seven states en-route to his fifth consecutive NHSCA National Championship. (The only season in which he didn’t take home the crown was 2020 when the tournament was canceled due to COVID.)
Ethan capped off his illustrious high school career with victories over opponents from six states to win his weight class. He will graduate Signal Mountain as a five-time Tennessee State Champion and a Senior National Champion!
Fellow senior wrestler Jackson Davis, a two-time state champion, also had an incredible run in the 170-pound senior division at the national competition.
Spring Sports
Signal student athletes at both middle and high school levels were excelling in early May in most all our spring sports: baseball, softball, lacrosse, boys’ soccer, track and field, HS tennis, and MS golf.
Most programs were winding down in late May, so we’ll be able to report next month how far each advance in post-season play, but I want to go ahead and mention a couple of standouts.
Kudos to juniors Marlee Burkley and Hudson Sveadas for qualifying during the indoor track and field season to compete in the New Balance Indoor Nationals in Boston.
Marlee competed in the pentathlon (60M hurdles, high jump, shot put, long jump and 800M run) for which she was state champ last year and is now ranked third overall nationally!
Marlee also is national champ in the Pentathlon High Jump! In other pentathlon categories, she placed fourth in that category’s 60-meter hurdles, fifth in both the 800-meter run and long jump, and 15th in shot put.
Hudson competed in both the shot put and weight throw but, unfortunately, had an off day at nationals but is already breaking records in the outdoor track and field.
Look forward to sharing more good news next month!
Hope many of you attended the MEF’s Dash and Bash, a fun fundraising event that provides extra support for our Signal schools.
That means lots of activities, including end-of-year exams and concerts, promotions and graduations, tears and cheers. Best wishes to students, teachers, staff, and families during all these transitions.
Graduation for the Signal Mountain High School Senior Class of 2025 will be May 16 at 5:30 p.m. at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Auditorium in downtown Chattanooga.
Huge congratulations to Signal’s Valedictorian Carter Downs and Salutatorian Hanna Yang!
Best wishes to all graduating seniors as they pursue the next chapter in their young lives.
Signal’s eighth grade promotion will be during the morning of May 20 in the high school gym.
Thrasher Elementary’s fifth grade promotion ceremony will be at 6 p.m. on Monday, May 19 at SMMHS. Nolan Elementary’s fifth grade promotion ceremony will be Tueday, May 20 at 6 p.m., also in the high school gym.
Academics and STEM
Signal’s Mock Trial teams enjoyed several wins during regular season but couldn’t get past a local home school team in the district tournament so missed advancing to state this year.
However, senior Harper Cowart won first place in the inaugural Artist in the Courtroom contest for the Tennessee High School Mock Trial Competition.
Congrats to some of Signal’s Middle School students who earned awards at the middle school version of Youth in Government:
Those who had bills passed were Nicko Amuntegaigi, Lexi Godden, Alan Strickler, Gisa Nsengiyumva, Shema Nsengiyumva, and Russell Greene.
Best Statesman awards were presented to Klein Boyd, Adelaide Mondy, Gisa Msengiyuma, and Aubrey Lubinski. Those recognized for Best Bills were Helena Sowa, Madelyne Cronk, Ray Greeson Ava Kartanos, Ioan Davis, and AJ Taylor.
Congratulations to Zara Hossain for her second place finish in the Chattanooga Science and Engineering Fair. Zara and her teams, including Arianna Anthony and Alyssa Hensley, also received first place at the Regional Science Olympiad High School division for astronomy.
Last month, selected students from Nolan were able to showcase things they learned in the school’s new VW elab. The event took place at UTC, where the Nolan Knights focused on block coding and 3D print models and were also presented with an Emerging VW eLab banner.
Kudos to eighth-grader Luke Behar, who has decided to raise money and coordinate building an electric go-kart as his Eagle Scout project. He is partnering with William Greer, a Signal STEM teacher recently recognized as SMHS and MEF Teacher of the Year, and other students to buy an electric vehicle kit to build during the next year for competition in the spring of 2026.
You can help by sending a check payable to Signal Mountain Middle High School Grand Prix Racing Team to the high school or via credit card through the Givebacks platform accessible on the home page of the Signal Mountain Middle High School website.
Fine Arts
Congrats to Signal’s High School Symphonic Band for earning a score of Superior in every category from every judge at the East Tennessee School Band and Orchestra Concert Performance Assessment, which is like a final exam for our band program.
Hope you didn’t miss the high school band’s Spring Concert on the evening of April 29. The popular percussion Sticks and Tones concert is May 1 at 7 p.m. in the school theater.
The combined seventh and eighth grade bands also earned a Superior score in stage and sight reading at their ETSBOA assessment. The middle school band concert is May 8 at 6:30 p.m. in the high school gym.
Signal Strings also earned an Overall Superior rating at its ETSBOA concert festival! Its spring concert is Monday, May 12 at 6 p.m. in the theater.
Kudos to Signal’s Indoor Winds program, which was revived a few years ago and has gradually grown in both number and scores with each performance. This past season included lots of first place finishes, a new winter show (instead of rehashing the fall marching show), and its first time hosting a big WGI Regional competition.
Signal’s Theatre department also produces top-notch performances. Hope you were able to catch a performance in early April of “Footloose,” the musical presented by the SMHS Theatre Department.
Be sure to look for any year-end performances and other activities at our elementary schools.
Kudos to Nolan third-grader Verenna Lopes, recipient of a “Nolan Proud” award for artwork that showed an amazing connection to “Positive and Negative Spaces” created in Melissa Hogue art classroom.
Wrestling
Before moving to spring sports, let’s extend one last congratulations to Signal wrestlers JoJo and Ethan Uhorchuk, who both are champions at the final premier wrestling tournament in the country, with JoJo winning the 120-pound junior division and Ethan taking the 132-pound senior division title!
JoJo defeated opponents from seven states en-route to his fifth consecutive NHSCA National Championship. (The only season in which he didn’t take home the crown was 2020 when the tournament was canceled due to COVID.)
Ethan capped off his illustrious high school career with victories over opponents from six states to win his weight class. He will graduate Signal Mountain as a five-time Tennessee State Champion and a Senior National Champion!
Fellow senior wrestler Jackson Davis, a two-time state champion, also had an incredible run in the 170-pound senior division at the national competition.
Spring Sports
Signal student athletes at both middle and high school levels were excelling in early May in most all our spring sports: baseball, softball, lacrosse, boys’ soccer, track and field, HS tennis, and MS golf.
Most programs were winding down in late May, so we’ll be able to report next month how far each advance in post-season play, but I want to go ahead and mention a couple of standouts.
Kudos to juniors Marlee Burkley and Hudson Sveadas for qualifying during the indoor track and field season to compete in the New Balance Indoor Nationals in Boston.
Marlee competed in the pentathlon (60M hurdles, high jump, shot put, long jump and 800M run) for which she was state champ last year and is now ranked third overall nationally!
Marlee also is national champ in the Pentathlon High Jump! In other pentathlon categories, she placed fourth in that category’s 60-meter hurdles, fifth in both the 800-meter run and long jump, and 15th in shot put.
Hudson competed in both the shot put and weight throw but, unfortunately, had an off day at nationals but is already breaking records in the outdoor track and field.
Look forward to sharing more good news next month!
Hope many of you attended the MEF’s Dash and Bash, a fun fundraising event that provides extra support for our Signal schools.
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