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The Student News Site of Altoona Area High School

Mountain Echo

Online newspaper of Altoona Area High School in Altoona, Pennsylvania
What You Need To Know
The Student News Site of Altoona Area High School

Mountain Echo

The Student News Site of Altoona Area High School

Mountain Echo

Melissa Krainer

Melissa Krainer, Reporter

Hi! My name is Melissa Krainer, and this is my first year reporting for the Mountain Echo. I am very excited to be a part of the staff this year as a freshman! Previously, I wrote stories for the junior high newspaper. I have always been passionate about writing, and I can't wait to help report on school events this year. In my free time, you might find me crocheting, reading, playing the violin or working on math puzzles. I speak both English and German fluently. This is one of my favorite quotes:

"Be the change you wish to see in the world."

- Mahatma Gandhi

All content by Melissa Krainer
Prom 2023

[Photo] Prom 2023

May 31, 2023
Senior Arden McKendree plans to attend college after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
May 3, 2023
Senior Brandon Everhart plans to attend college after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
May 1, 2023
Senior Annie Ketterman plans to attend college after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
April 26, 2023
Senior Alyssa Zeigler plans to attend college after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
April 21, 2023
Senior Callista Farber plans to attend college after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
April 18, 2023
Senior Abigail Scheinberg plans to attend college after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
March 29, 2023
Senior Trevor Wolfe plans to join the army after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
March 7, 2023
Senior Kylianna Sipes plans to attend college after high school.

“I’m In”

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
February 14, 2023
Save the date! The PJAS regionals competition is on Saturday, Feb. 18 at Saint Francis University. Competitors will present their projects along with other students from Cambria, Somerset, Center and Bedford counties.

PJAS Regional Competition

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
February 1, 2023
Smile! The Bocce team grins in the stands after defeating Bellwood-Antis on Tuesday, Jan. 10. The teams first game ended in Altoona winning the first match 14-1; Bellwood winning the second match 7-2; and Altoona winning the tie-breaker frame 1-0.

Bocce Bonding

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
January 31, 2023
Prep. Patton prepares teaching materials for her students. In order to further her understanding of languages, she took a sabbatical last year. “[My favorite part about teaching is] just interacting with the kids and watching them learn new things, having them be interested and excited by it like I was,” Patton said.

Jessica Patton

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
December 1, 2022
¡Hola! Guten Tag! Bonjour! The World Languages department poses for a photo. From left to right: Dane Leone, Sandra Mitchell, Mark Petrarca, Veronica Skomra, Patricia Leonard and Jessica Patton.

Veronica Skomra

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
November 30, 2022
Smile! Mitchell traveled to the North Sea and the Black Forest in Germany with her family over the summer. She is very excited to be able to share German culture with her students. “I am glad that we are offering German at Altoona. Im not sure if once Dr. Petrarca retires and I no longer work here if German would still be an option. Its harder and harder to find language teachers, especially for German,” Mitchell said. (Photo courtesy of Sandra Mitchell)

Sandra Mitchell

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
November 30, 2022
¡Hola! Guten Tag! Bonjour! The World Languages department poses for a photo. From left to right: Dane Leone, Sandra Mitchell, Mark Petrarca, Veronica Skomra, Patricia Leonard and Jessica Patton.

Mark Petrarca

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
November 30, 2022
¡Hola! Dane Leone, Mark Petrarca, and Patricia Leonard comprise the Spanish portion of the languages department. Teaching Spanish has been a dream come true for Leonard. One of the things I guess I always wanted to do is to not only learn about other cultures, but also teach about my own culture, Leonard said.

Patricia Leonard

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
November 14, 2022
Thumbs-up! Leone has a flag of Costa Rica displayed in his classroom right above his desk. Learning Spanish has allowed him to get to know  and help people that he previously would not have been able to converse with. Once you get to a point where you can actually use the language and speak it and listen to it effectively, it literally and figuratively opens up a door to an entire other group of people that you previously were not able to have communication with, Leone said.

Dane Leone

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
November 12, 2022
Evaluate. Itle-Clark tells his third period math class to solve a problem. He explained that Bruce Lee was an inspiration to him, and Itle-Clark said that this inspiration led him to include a life-size cardboard version of Lee in his classroom.

Jason Itle-Clark

Melissa Krainer, Reporter
September 16, 2022
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Melissa Krainer