The cast & crew of the 2025 SHS Fall Play: A Wicked Christmas Carol has been hard at work! On Tuesday night, they hosted the annual dinner and first showing for our senior members of the community. Then on Wednesday morning, they welcomed classes from our three feeder districts into the auditorium for the grade school performance.
TOMORROW NIGHT, they will open with their first performance for the general public. Join us Friday and Saturday at 7:00 PM in the SHS auditorium for this dramatically humorous spin-off of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, told using the characters from L. Frank Baum’s 14-book Wizard of Oz series! Admission is $5 per ticket and can be purchased by visiting https://cur8.com/16118/project/135176 or by scanning this QR code:
On November 8th at Augustana College, select members of the SHS Band and Choir performed alongside some of the best high school musicians from across our region during the Illinois Music Education Association (ILMEA) District 2 Music Festival. Earning a spot in an ILMEA ensemble takes an incredible amount of work and talent, with District 2 including schools stretching from LaSalle County to the Quad Cities. Congratulations to our 2025 ILMEA District 2 musicians! #TheSenecaWay ☘️
Pictured from Left to Right:
Ethan Danek - Bassoon in the band
Hudson Jones - Bass in the choir
Alise Jackson - Soprano in the choir
Haiden Lavarier - Soprano in the choir
Taylor Schaefer - Clarinet in the band
On Tuesday and Wednesday, Mrs. Liberatore's and Ms. Heth's Honors English III classes were tasked with creating their own "monsters" to prepare for reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Each group traced one of their members and illustrated what they believe a monster looks like, as well as what lies within its heart, mind, and soul.
Overall, the goal was to question societal isolation and identify how or why someone could be ostracized from their communities. The themes of the unit are empathy and the ramifications of isolation. Are monsters born or does society create them? What a perfect, hands-on introduction to a timeless classic! #TheSenecaWay ☘️
Congratulations to Fighting Irish Football's Cameron Shriey for being named to the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association's All-State First Team and to Zebadiah Maxwell for being named Honorable Mention IHSFCA All-State. Great season men! #IrishPride ☘️
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From Left to Right:
Front Row: Lauren Thomas, Shan Balandang, Madison DeGrush
Back Row: Lily Mueller, Addysen Applebee, Cody Clennon, Lillian Pfeifer, Chase McDaniel
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission selects Illinois State Scholars based on class rank and ACT/SAT scores. The Illinois State Scholar program is an honorary recognition without any monetary award. To be named an Illinois State Scholar is an outstanding accomplishment that will be a highlight of the recipient’s academic record! #TheSenecaWay ☘️
Lillian Pfeifer was recently honored with the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Good Citizen Award for Seneca High School. She is the daughter of Kurt and Christen Pfeifer of Mazon. The Daughters of the American Revolution Good Citizen Award honors an outstanding senior who exhibits the qualities of dependability, leadership, service, and patriotism. The selection was voted on by the faculty and staff.
Lilly has been involved in many clubs, sports, and activities at Seneca High School. She has been on the Track team, Math team, and Speech team for four years; and the Volleyball team for two years. While in high school, Lilly has really immersed herself in our band program. She has been in jazz band, concert band, pep band, and the pit orchestra for musicals. Lilly has also been in the school play, Irish Live, and the Future Educator’s Club. Her leadership and academic abilities led to her induction into the National Honor Society, an Irish Pride recognition, FFA’s selection as their Reporter for the last two years, a Rookie of the Month Award in her freshmen year, and the What Would Trevor Do Award in her junior year.
Being the recipient of the DAR Good Citizen Award, Lillian will complete an essay that will have the opportunity to advance through state and national levels of judging. The DAR Good Citizens program and scholarship contest is sponsored by the Illini Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
The program will start around 10:45am.
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ECE Senior Spotlight 🏫
Meet Ms. Nevaeh Countryman! Nevaeh is in Mrs. Read's ECE class. She will be graduating early and plans to get a head start on her CNA with a few IVCC classes in the spring. "Education is one thing that no one can take away from you."
"Best of luck Nevaeh, you will be missed in my classroom next semester, but I know you are onto bigger, better things! So proud of you." Love ~ Mrs. Read
On Friday, Mr. Walsh and Mrs. Read brought 15 students to Illinois State's Future Teacher Conference. Students started the day with a tour of campus before attending various sessions about being an educator, tailored specifically to their interest in the field. Students also listened to some remarks from ISU's president and witnessed a performance from the Gamma Phi Circus.
Each student started the sessions in their subject area (math, special education, etc.) before attending a table fair with various clubs and activities. After lunch, students ended the day with two chosen sessions depending on interest. These opportunities included: Admissions and Financial Aid, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Student Teaching, Tech Playground, and International Teaching. #TheSenecaWay ☘️
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GREEN OUT 💚
It’s GAME DAY. The Fighting Irish will look to claw out a victory at home tonight in the Second Round of the 2025 IHSA Class 2A Playoffs against the Wilmington Wildcats! Kickoff is set for 6:00 PM and tickets will cost $9.00.
STUDENTS are free.
WE. NEED. YOU. Put on your green, pack the stands, and bring your Irish spirit! GOOD LUCK BOYS! #IrishPride ☘️
CONGRATULATIONS to our Student of the Month winners for October! Keep making Seneca High School proud! #TheSenecaWay ☘️
New Staff Spotlight: Albana Smith, Biology & Physical Science Teacher 🔬
“I went to Flanagan High School. After graduation, I attended Lincoln Land Community College and played volleyball there for two years while getting my associate degree. From there, I went to Millikin University and continued to play volleyball while getting my Bachelor’s in Biology Education. In recent years I also went back to get my Master’s in Biology Education from the University of Illinois. This is my fifteenth year teaching and I have also coached volleyball on and off.”
“Prior to teaching at Seneca, I was at Henry-Senachwine High School for twelve years and Flanagan-Cornell High School for the last two years. Over the past fourteen years I have taught many different classes, including Biology, Anatomy & Physiology, Forensic Science, Dual-Credit Biology, Microbiology, and Environmental Science. I spent six years coaching volleyball at Henry, including four years as head coach and two at the JV level. Last year, I was the varsity head coach at Flanagan before coming here. When it works out with our kids’ schedules, I’d be interested in getting involved in coaching again.”
“My husband Brent (SHS’s new Mathematics Teacher & Assistant Football Coach) and I moved into town this summer. Our oldest son, Nolan, is in 6th Grade at SGS South Campus. Then our twins, Dylan and Owen, are currently in 4th Grade at North Campus. Nolan is starting to get very involved in baseball, flag-football, and basketball. The twins just started playing in a 4th Grade basketball league through Seneca. They are excited about wrestling next year once they get to 5th Grade.”
“Different teachers and coaches in high school and college made me start thinking about the education route. I thought it was a job I could go to every day where I would really enjoy what I was doing. Being able to interact with kids and potentially coach, I just saw it as something that would be more exciting and interactive than other jobs on a day-to-day basis.”
“My first impressions of Seneca have been very positive. Across the board, everyone is very welcoming and friendly. The transition has been smoother than what I thought it would, even at the grade schools with our kids too, because students and staff have helped our family transition into a new school. I feel like Seneca is the perfect size because students are ingrained in the school’s culture. If a school is too big, students might find it harder to get involved. Whereas if it is too small, then there are not enough activities to choose from.”
“In my first year, I hope to become more integrated into the school culture. I hope to build more relationships with all students and colleagues within the building. I also hope to get more involved with our extra-curriculars as the years go on. In the classroom, I hope to create a really positive environment that students enjoy coming to. If they don’t already, I hope that I can instill a love for science in students.”
#TheSenecaWay ☘️
