![It was definitely out of my comfort zone to get [the dress] and decide I loved it enough not to wait and risk not having something that memorable.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Precious_20180902_JRS_00008_ed1.jpg)
![In their full runway outfits, (from left) Audrey Lee 25, Olivia Lucy Teets, 25, Fashion Design teacher Ms. Judy Chance, and Xueying Lili Yang pose for a photo. All three girls made it to Austin Fashion Week by getting in the top 10 in a previous runway show held by Shop LC.
[I like my students] creativity and how they can look at a fabric and make it their own, Ms. Chance said.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/IMG_9686-e1714088765730-1129x1200.jpeg)
![IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Junior Zalie Mann performs “I Love to Cry at Weddings,” an ensemble piece from the fall musical Sweet Charity, to prospective students during the Fine Arts Showcase on Wednesday, Nov. 8. The showcase is a compilation of performances and demonstrations from each fine arts strand offered at McCallum. This show is put on so that prospective students can see if they are interested in joining an academy or major.
Sweet Charity originally ran the weekends of Sept. 28 and Oct. 8, but made a comeback for the Fine Arts Showcase.
“[Being at the front in the spotlight] is my favorite part of the whole dance, so I was super happy to be on stage performing and smiling at the audience,” Mann said.
Mann performed in both the musical theatre performance and dance excerpt “Ethereal,” a contemporary piece choreographed by the new dance director Terrance Carson, in the showcase. With also being a dance ambassador, Mann got to talk about what MAC dance is, her experience and answer any questions the aspiring arts majors and their parents may have.
Caption by Maya Tackett.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/53321803427_47cd17fe70_o-1-1200x800.jpg)
![SPREADING THE JOY: Sophomore Chim Becker poses with sophomores Cozbi Sims and Lou Davidson while manning a table at the Hispanic Heritage treat day during lunch of Sept 28. Becker is a part of the students of color alliance, who put together the activity to raise money for their club.
“It [the stand] was really fun because McCallum has a lot of latino kids,” Becker said. “And I think it was nice that I could share the stuff that I usually just have at home with people who have never tried it before.”
Becker recognizes the importance of celebrating Hispanic heritage at Mac.
“I think its important to celebrate,” Becker said. “Because our culture is awesome and super cool, and everybody should be able to learn about other cultures of the world.”
Caption by JoJo Barnard.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/53221601352_4127a81c41_o-1200x675.jpg)
On this episode of Listen In, gifted teacher Shannon Batt sat down with Multimedia Editor Samantha Haney to discuss her experience as a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma.
She has been able to pass down her tribal heritage to both of her sons and over the past month has met with both Lafayette and middle school students to give a presentation and answer questions about her culture. To prepare for her presentation, Batt created a board talking about not only her personal story but the history of tribes in the United States along with what tribes look like right now.
As part of it, she featured the beadwork she creates as a registered Choctaw artist along with items she’s collected from visiting with her tribe. Between the two presentations, Batt enjoyed how invested the students were, with the middle schoolers asking more questions and generally being a little bit more curious.
Batt said that although she has never lived with her tribe, it feels like home every time she’s able to visit. There are no federally recognized tribes in Missouri and although at one time there used to be, the tribes were forced to leave. That has caused some of the culture to be lost according to Batt, which is part of why it’s so important to her that people know tribal members can be found anywhere.
They don’t fit a specific stereotype or have a specific skin tone, instead, what makes someone part of a tribe is being blood-related to one of the original tribal members who were cataloged by the government.
For Batt, that family member is her grandfather who was cataloged when he was a child. Native American Heritage Month offers a chance for Batt to not only have conversations about her culture but reflect on what being Choctaw means to her.
This story was originally published on The Lancer Feed on November 30, 2023.
