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The Student Voice of Prosper High School

Eagle Nation Online

The Student Voice of Prosper High School

Eagle Nation Online

The Student Voice of Prosper High School

Eagle Nation Online

Kalyani Rao

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief

Kalyani Rao is a senior. This is her third year as a staff member on Eagle Nation Online, and her first year as Executive Editor-in-Chief. She writes to transform the lives of the people around her, and hopes to continue to bring her own charm to ENO. She loves hamsters, and her favorite place in the world is Auckland, New Zealand.

Honors, Experience and Awards:

5 Best of Sno publications.

5th place in Copy Editing, district UIL meet 2021

Honorable mention- Podcast interview, 2021 TAJE Fall Fiesta

UIL Journalist 2020-2021, 2021-2022

Quill and Scroll Society member 2021-2022

1st place in Copy Editing for CENTEX UIL meet 2021-2022

3rd place in Copy Editing for Aubrey UIL meet 2022

2nd place in Copy Editing for NorTex UIL District meet 2022

National Silver award for poetry from the Scholastic Art & Writing organization

National Recognition Award from College Board

AP Scholar with Distinction Award

2 Best in Texas News & Broadcast Awards, 2022: Personal Opinion Column- Honorable Mention, News Story- Honorable Mention

President of the Classic Book Club, 2020-onwards

Member of the National Spanish Honors Society (NSHS)

PHS Award for Academic Excellence in Newspaper II, 2022

Dean’s Scholarship for Cornell University Pre -College Program

Sibley Scholarship for Brown University Pre -College Program

CIEE Global Navigator Scholarship

All content by Kalyani Rao
Hands raised in front of their faces, juniors Juliana Cruz and Samiya King check the contrast of their skin tones against their suits for a project for their American Sign Language class. The class requires distinct clothing, in order for people to comprehend hand signs. Students at Prosper are able to take the ASL course up to four levels.

Eagle Brief May 11 – May 25

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
May 12, 2023
Students walk the hallways of Prosper High School underneath a poster reading "Mental Health Awareness Month." May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Posters raising awareness and offering support for students who may be struggling line the hallways. In addition, counselor Stephanie Clayton will be featured in an upcoming Eagle Nation Online podcast covering topics of interest for students concerning mental health. Keep reading ENO for those publication details, which should be released soon.

Eagle Brief May 4 – 11

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
May 4, 2023
As the hallway fills with students, multiple extracurricular groups are sent off to state and national level competitions. The send off on Monday, April 24 featured archery, students competing at state for VASE, FFA teams, and extracurricular athletics teams. Percussion students led the sendoff.

Eagle Brief April 27 – May 4

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
April 27, 2023
Monday, April 17, a sendoff was held for the robotics team in honor of their advancing to the first Robotics World Championship, which will be held April 19-22 in Houston. 5411 RoboTalons and 9105 TechnoTalons will be competing with the top robotics teams from over 20 countries. This is the first time in PHS history that two teams have qualified for worlds.

Eagle Brief April 20 – 27

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
April 20, 2023
Pictured above from left to right: Scott Platt (mentor), Enrique Elias (mentor), sophomore Ajayharshil Sivachandar, junior Jack Cooksey, sophomore Aaron Milholland, sophomore Jack Demeterio and freshman Taha Nil. Prosper has an Engineering Team that is divided into two “competitions”, being Solar Car and First Robotics Competition (FRC). This year the robotics part of the team was also divided into two: RoboTalons and TechnoTalons. The team is pictured holding the Highest Rookie Seed Award, which is given to the rookie team that was highest ranked at the event.

Eagle Brief April 13 – 20

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
April 13, 2023
Last week SkillsUSA traveled to Corpus Christi to compete at the state competitions. Students competed in Additive Manufacturing and Medical Assisting, and prepared exhibits in 2D/3D Animated Short Film, Web Page Design, Engineering Design, and Health Sciences. The students all won State Superior Awards! Left to right: freshman Allison Shao, sophomore Ashley Lane, senior Brielle Brown, sophomore Niva Malthankar, freshman Anish Moilla, sophomore Manish Sriram, junior Bryan Nam, sophomore Cheralatan Saravanan, sophomore Puranjay Prashanth, sophomore Braden Lopez, senior Rakshan Palanikumar and junior Shriyans Reddy Pendli.

Eagle Brief April 6 – 13

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
April 6, 2023
The District 5-6A Tennis Tournament finished, and the Prosper Eagles did fantastic. They are next heading to Regionals. From left to right: senior Carolina Glasgow, senior Rachel Rajamoney, senior Ivanna Avendado, junior Marianna Avendano, team manager and senior Jillian Royster, sophomore Nicole Steel, junior Vivienne Bernecker,
sophomore Ava Dilouie and senior Siena Kiro.

Eagle Brief March 30 – April 6

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
March 30, 2023
Freshman Colton Boston, sophomore Christina Krasnova, junior Coleman Meier and sophomore William Norris hold their award. The audio/video trifecta of Eagle Nation News (ENN), PHS The Talon radio and Eagle Production Group (EPG) brought home multiple awards from the 2023 Student Television Network Conference. The conference was held in Long Beach, California.

Eagle Brief March 23 – 30

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
March 23, 2023
Following the awards ceremony of the Winter Guard International (WGI) Tulsa competition, JV and varsity winter guard members take a group photo with their trophies. Teams performed their shows in the competition on March 4, with both trams advancing to finals. The JV placed 3rd in Scholastic Regional A and varsity placed 10th in Scholastic A. Students in the photo include, Sophia Adams, Nora Vedder, Megan Broyles, Brinley Berkenbile, Kaylee Song, Sammie Munoz, Raegan Meyer, Makenna Boushey, Bella Koakowski, Mya Brim, Kiera Payne, Adison Ewell, Addyson Bergman, Jayden Howeth, Camille Torres, Cora Oyakawa, Klarissa Warren, Annika Spencer, Molly Coombs, Sarah Coombs, Elizabeth Giasolli, Carter Hollman, Addison Didonato, Brooklyn Didonato, Emma Tranka, Sam Mitchell, Lyla Kate Plasky, Makenzie Jones, Macey Martin, Izzy Savage, Kamden Setters and Madelyn Rutledge.

Eagle Brief March 16 – 23

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
March 16, 2023
With instruments in hand, the Rushing Concert Band 1 performed their UIL pieces. The middle school Pre-UIL Competition was hosted at Prosper High School. "I think we did great," seventh grader Giulianna Galante said. "This practice was great, and allowed us to prepare for the real thing."

Eagle Brief March 2 – 16

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
March 3, 2023
With a National Speech and debate Association District Qualifier plaque in hand, junior James Kim stands with his teammates – freshman Aaditya Ananth, junior Jamie Obala, junior Kaya Miller, sophomore Avery Parker and junior Sasha Zhindon, after the congress district tournament. Kim ranked second in the senate room. NSDA will host the national tournament June 11-16 in Phoenix, Arizona.

Eagle Brief Feb. 23 – March 2

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
February 23, 2023
Pictured above is the send-off that took place Feb. 16 at 8:50. The send-off celebrated the advancement to state competitions by DECA, Eagle Production Group, wrestling and swim and dive. After attendance, students were told to line the upper and lower main halls to cheer for the teams as they walked from the auditorium to the arena.

Eagle Brief Feb. 16 – 23

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
February 16, 2023
Ribs in hand, seniors Richard Brainard and Damian Arevalo lift the hood of the grill as it cooks their next batch. These competitors prepared this food  during a sixth-period practice session on campus. "What we just put on the rig was two racks of ribs, which we have double-wrapped in foil," junior Connor Gil said. "A stick of butter – sliced up, some super-fancy apple juice, and a can of coke that melts, gets hot and makes steam, and it goes back into the ribs to make them super moist." The Prosper Pitt Masters, currently holding the No. 2 ranked brisket in the high school barbecue circuit, will attend competitions March 31-April 1 in Mansfield and May 5-7 in Round Rock.

Eagle Brief Feb. 9 – 16

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
February 9, 2023
Inductees to the National Art Honor Society stand with lit candles on the stage of the auditorium at Rock Hill High School. The Induction ceremony took place at 6:30 p.m. on Jan. 25. Each new member was named as they walked onto the stage.

Eagle Brief Jan. 26 — Feb. 2

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
January 26, 2023
Dribbling the ball, No. 9 Ryan Anderson goes down the field. The team is run by coach Bryan Thompson. This is his second year coaching the boys soccer team for Prosper High School.

Eagle Brief Jan. 19 — 26

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
January 19, 2023
A sendoff for the Prosper esports team was held Monday, Jan. 9. The team started competitions the same day. The team went to state and won the first round, currently advancing to the semi-finals.

Eagle Brief Jan. 12 — 19

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
January 12, 2023
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Eagle Brief Jan. 5 — 12

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
January 5, 2023
Startled by the thunder, senior Tate Lauby, portraying the role of Mr. Green, is embarrassed after spitting his drink on sophomore Sophia Gomez, playing the role of Ms. Scarlet. 'Clue: On Stage' ran from Dec. 8-10. Every performance was sold out before opening night.

Eagle Brief Dec. 15 — Jan. 5

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
December 15, 2022
Student cooks, aka the Prosper Pitmasters, competed at the Southlake Regional Cook-Off on Saturday, Dec. 3 and came home with some wins. The following were taken by the Prosper team: Beans: 1st place call (Blue Ribbon), Chicken: 6th place call and Brisket: 1st place call (Blue Ribbon.) Based on the aggregate scoring the Prosper Pitmasters placed third overall with 21 teams competing.

Eagle Brief Dec. 8 — 15

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
December 8, 2022
Sitting next to a small Christmas tree and santa hat, freshman Ximena Castro’s french horn reflects the tree’s lights. The Prosper Band will have their holiday concert Dec. 12 at 6:30 p.m. in the auditorium. Multiple bands will be performing in the concert.

Eagle Brief Dec. 1 — 8

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
December 1, 2022
Arms raised, senior Adam Due celebrates a successful pass block. The bi-district game was hosted at Children's Health Stadium Nov. 18. The Eagles won 28-3 against Plano Senior. The team looks to face off against South Grand Prairie Nov. 18 at Choctaw Stadium.

Eagle Brief Nov. 21 — 27

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
November 17, 2022
While fans thrash together, lead singer and guitarist, Tyler Ross plays a solo from the song, ‘Flush’ from Laredo Two’s new EP ‘Poison’. Debuting the band's three new songs released Aug. 27, fans from all over the DFW area united together in Flower Mound for the band's biggest show yet at Thrash Fest Aug. 24. The trio will be playing at DV8 in Plano, Tx Dec. 11. “My favorite part of Laredo Two’s shows is the unity within the audience,'' photographer Gracie Archibeque said. “It truly feels like a big family”.

Eagle Brief Nov. 14 — 20

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
November 10, 2022
Pictured above are fishing team members Ben Hurbough, Carter Evans, Hayden Chase alongside their coach. The Prosper fishing team presented their first-place trophy to Mr. Jones Oct. 20. The team brought in 1st out of 49 other high schools in the North Texas Division; the total teams were 240. This was on Lake Lewisville. The team will be meeting tonight, and their next tournament is Nov. 12 on Lake Ray Roberts.

Eagle Brief Nov. 7 — 13

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
November 3, 2022
The PHS Eagle Production Group went to New York City for the All American High School Film Festival this last week and returned to Prosper with multiple awards and nominations. The festival is the largest high school film festival in the world, with thousands of entries and competitors from over 40 countries. The students attended the awards show in the historic King's Theater in Brooklyn.

Eagle Brief Oct. 31 — Nov. 6

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
October 27, 2022
Pictured above are members of and outside of the Prosper community at the school board meeting held Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. The board met to discuss concerns brought up related to zoning boundaries, and decide on a finalized plan. The new zoning plan included expanding Walnut Grove attendance boundaries to Tucker Hill.

Eagle Brief Oct. 24 — 30

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
October 20, 2022
As they listen to Dr. Greg Bradley, board members Jorden Dial, Dena Dixon and superindendent Holly Ferguson of Prosper ISD school board watch as Bradley goes through a slideshow regarding zoning boundaries, with district superintendent Holly Ferguson sitting to the far right of the other two members pictured. The board met Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. to discuss concerns brought up related to zoning boundaries, and decide on a finalized plan. "I came from Prosper High School to open Rock Hill as the new administrator, and I think opening new schools is awesome," lead assistant principal at Rock Hill High School, Melissa Weiss, said. "It provides more opportunities for students — obviously things are shiny and new in the beginning, but Prosper High has an awesome building, and Rock Hill is still amazing. I think that change is inevitable, and with a district that's growing at the rate that ours is, we have to open new schools."

School board approves ‘Walnut Grove’ zoning

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
October 18, 2022
In the hallway of Prosper High School, a banner with the school colors and initials blows in the air above students as they walk to class. As the year progresses into the second 9 weeks, PHS students attend different events at the school, such as Open House night and the club fair. Senior quotes are due Oct. 28, and CADY took senior portraits at PHS Friday, Oct. 14.

Eagle Brief Oct. 17 — 23

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
October 13, 2022
Flowers in hand, senior Evan Bish and Stormie Stevens win homecoming king and queen. The homecoming football game was on Friday, Sept. 30 against the Little Elm High School Lobos. Prosper won 59-6.

Eagle Brief Oct. 10 – 16

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
October 5, 2022
Students walk through the cafeteria entrance of Prosper High School. Balloons and other decorations hang from the walls and ceiling to celebrate Homecoming Week. The Homecoming parade took place Wednesday, Sept. 28, and the game took place Friday, Sept. 30.

Eagle Brief Oct. 3 – 9

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
September 30, 2022
Posters supporting different sports teams decorate the upper level of Prosper High School. The first row of posters reads "PHS water polo," "football" and "tennis," and the lower row reads "volleyball," "swim and dive," and "we heart our band." Ninth A Volleyball, and JV Volleyball will play against Allen Sept. 27 at 5:30 p.m. Students can learn more about these events and others in the attached Eagle Brief article.

Eagle Brief Sept. 26 – Oct. 2

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
September 22, 2022
Russia invaded Ukraine Feb. 24, 2022 — although the Russo-Ukrainian war was informally started in 2014. Here's what you need to know, almost 7 months later. "I think this issue is still relevant, and we should continue to raise awareness about the ongoing war," Model UN President sophomore Anisha Mandem said. "Although the topic is not being discussed as much in mainstream media, the effects of the war have led to a change in the lifestyle of the people in Ukraine. Especially now that Ukraine is fighting back and may potentially win the war, I think it is important to stay up to date on these current issues." Graphic courtesy of Canva.

Locals speak as Russia-Ukraine war extends into 7th month

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
September 21, 2022
Students on the Prosper Speech and Debate team competed this past weekend at Princeton High School. Junior Kaya Miller placed 3rd in congressional debate, President and junior James Kim placed 7th in congressional debate, and sophomore Erica Smith placed 5th in Prose Interpretation. "Debate is a creative outlet for me where I can express my thoughts and challenge myself to have meaningful conversations about topics foreign to me," Kim said. "My favorite part about the Princeton tournament and essentially every tournament are the people I am able to meet through competing. I still keep in contact with them and we exchange ideas over our shared hobby of debate. Debate students are somewhat like-minded so it’s just a great opportunity to meet people you can bond with." Photo courtesy of Romi Shamir.

Eagle Brief Sept. 19 – 25

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
September 15, 2022
A board posted in the hallway of PHS is covered in colorful sticky notes in the shape of a heart. Positive messages are written on each sticky note. The week of Sep. 5 — 9 was suicide prevention week, and spirit days such as pajama day were designed to create awareness of the event.

Eagle Brief Sept. 12 – 18

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
September 8, 2022
Junior varsity girls member and freshman Evelyn Ohlmeyer runs during the cross country meet Aug. 27. Varsity cross country teams competed at the Southlake Carroll Cross Country meet against 93 other teams. The attached article includes all sports events held each week.

Eagle Brief Sept. 5 – 11

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
September 1, 2022
Students walk from the portables to the main building of Prosper High School. It is the third official week of the 2022-2023 school year. Passing period is still seven minutes long, although some portable teachers are letting students out a few minutes early.

Eagle Brief: Aug. 29 – Sep. 4

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
August 25, 2022
New Prosper High School principal Nicholas Jones gives a welcome speech at Meet the Eagles. Jones is a UT Austin alum. Before coming to Prosper High School, Jones was the principal of Hays Middle School.

Eagle Brief: Aug. 22 – 26

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
August 18, 2022
Students walk through the hallways of Prosper High School on the first day of school, Aug. 10. The daily school-wide schedule has been changed from last year's. The school day will now start at 8:45 a.m. and end at 4:10 p.m.

Eagle Brief: August 15 – 19

Kalyani Rao, Executive Editor-in-Chief
August 11, 2022
A digitally constructed image introduces this week's weather brief. Next week will be mostly sunny with no rain. Average temperatures stay around 95 degrees Fahrenheit, dropping to high 80s on Sunday after potential rain showers.

Weather Brief: May 16 – 22

Kalyani Rao, Assistant Editor of Opinion
May 16, 2022
Set together, junior reporter Kalyani Rao's three study books for the U.S. History, AP Art History and AP Spanish Language and Culture exams are pictured. Study books, although not free, are not very costly. Amazon offers many at decent prices.

Column: Study tips to ace upcoming AP exams

Kalyani Rao, Assistant Opinion Editor
April 29, 2022
A graphic introduces this week's weather brief. Temperatures will drop to mid-70s for the first half of the week. After Wednesday, temperatures rise to mid-80s with a mix of sunny and cloudy weather.

Weather Brief: April 25 – May 1

Kalyani Rao, Assistant Editor of Opinion
April 25, 2022
A graphic introduces this week's weather brief. Temperatures will start high and end low, according to the Weather Channel. Rain is expected Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, but skies will be clear by Wednesday afternoon.

Weather Brief: April 19 – 24

Kalyani Rao, Assistant Editor of Opinion
April 19, 2022
An infographic made on Canva by junior and reporter Kalyani Rao summarizes the new developments of the Russia-Ukraine war. Five weeks after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, more than four million refugees have fled Ukraine – almost 10% of the population. Most have fled to neighboring countries in the European Union, with over two million seeking safety in Poland.

Analysis Follow-Up: Russia-Ukraine war continues

Kalyani Rao, Assistant Opinion Editor
April 4, 2022
In figure skating’s team event last week, Valieva became the first female skater to land a quadruple jump at the Olympics, and her performances in the short program and free skate helped the Russian Olympic Committee win the gold medal. The International Testing Agency (ITA) confirmed that she tested positive on Feb. 8 for the banned substance trimetazidine, a heart medication, from a test taken in December. Medals were delayed as the Olympic committee debated whether she should receive the gold medal she earned. (Ice rink photo courtesy of Wikimedia's Creative Commons.)

Olympics permit Kamila Valieva to compete

Kalyani Rao, Assistant Opinion Editor
February 24, 2022
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The Student Voice of Prosper High School
Kalyani Rao