September 2019 Corral

Corral Tune up Parkway Central High School, Chesterfield, MO 63017 Vol 64, Issue 1 September 27, 2019

Homecoming draws big crowd p. 11

New school year ushers in fresh faces p. 12-13

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Letter From the Editor

Corral Editor-in-Chief Wesley Henshaw Managing Editor Abby Prywitch Copy Editor Sydney Stahlschmidt Op/Ed Editor Trey Williams Features Editor / Art Director Gabby Abowitz News Editor / Sports Editor Logan Potts Photography Editor Ryan Pham Online Managing Editor Alex Maisenhelder Staff Reporters Rebecca Barnholtz Eric Battle Eva Deniszczuk Reggie Elijah Brooke Kraizer Sawyer Lownsdale Haydn Schertz Amari Sewer Brandon Smith Taylor Stern Daniel Williams Adviser Mrs. Christine Stricker

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

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elcome, reader, to the first PCH Corral newspaper issue of the 2019-2020 school year. I’d like to introduce myself. I’m Wesley Henshaw, Editor-in-Chief here at the Corral. I’m extraordinarily excited to see what this new year holds in store and what our new writers and editors can do. We have a largely new staff of talented writers and storytellers.

I don’t typically like being in the limelight, even in the written form like this, but I feel for such a special year there are some changes we need to address. The main one is that we want to change how we think of ourselves as a paper. We aren’t simply kids writing stories for a grade, but for our school, and we want to reflect that in our paper. What this means is that, as we undergo various design changes and content changes, I cordially invite anyone, anyone at all, to contact us and send us your thoughts. Not about the paper, though that is allowed, about anything.

One of the most amazing things I have found in my four years in journalism classes is the ability to share my voice in a public forum.

I want this ability to be extended to everyone, finally make this conversation two-sided.

So, if you’re interested in sharing your voice, whether it’s a frustration about something at school, a concern about something in our community, or solutions and suggestions you have about issues in your world, you can send us a “letter to the editor” at pchpublications@gmail.com by Oct. 25. Simply send us an email including a Google document with your letter and you might find it here on this page in the next issue. I and the staff will screen letters and choose the ones we will run in the paper.

Although we will edit for grammar and mechanics, I assure you that we will never change the content of your letter, and you will be made aware of any developments in the publishing of your letter.

Whether I or the staff agrees with what you say or not doesn’t affect your chance of being published, in fact, we heavily encourage intellectual diversity within our staff. We do not allow anonymous letters, you have to be willing to attach your name to the letter.

If you don’t make it into the newspaper, we still might post your letter onto our site pchcorral.com. Speaking of which, I want to encourage everyone to let their voices be heard on the site as well in the comment sections of stories. Let’s make the newspaper more interactive.

With that, I’ve said most of what I’ve wanted to say. I want to thank those who read the paper, it means a lot to myself and our writers knowing people are listening.

As we make several changes to the paper and adapt to our new staff, I thank you for your enduring support.

I hope we get to hear your stories.

Sincerely,

Wesley Henshaw Editor-in-Chief of the PCH Corral

COMING SOON... m Beautification Day: Project Help is hosting this Saturday, Sept. 28. m Rosh Hashanah: Begins at sundown on Sept. 28. m Spooky Season Begins: Oct. 1. m ACT Prep: Saturday, Oct. 5. m Yom Kippur: Begins at sundown on Oct. 8. m PSAT: Oct. 16. m Four Day Weekend: Oct. 18 through Oct. 21. m Halloween: Oct. 31. m Spooky Season Ends: Nov. 1.

The Corral is a student-written, edited and produced publication of Parkway Central High School, 369 N. Woods Mill Road, Chesterfield, MO 63017; 314-415-7978.

The Corral is given away free of charge to students and faculty. Subscriptions and patronships for one year may be purchased, starting at $20.

The goal of this publication is to provide accurate, informative and entertaining information in the true spirit of responsible journalism and to operate as an open forum for students, faculty, administrators and parents.

The Corral is created on Hewlett-Packard and Mac computers using Adobe Creative Suite 6 and is published by PJ Printing.

Unsigned editorials reflect the views of the editorial board. Signed columns and artwork reflect the views of that individual.

The staff appreciates comments and suggestions. Letters to the editor, guest editorials and other correspondence are encouraged but must be signed. The Corral reserves the right to publish or refrain from publishing, as well as edit, all submitted material.

Check us out Online! pchcorral.com @pchcorral Pch_publications Parkway Central Publications Pchpublications On the cover: Music teacher Alicia Bont works with Honesty Lewis and Jaryeong Kim during Piano 1. Bont is a new teacher to Parkway Central.

Opinions

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MEDIA AND REAL LIFE CRIME The logical fallacies in blaming media for violence

Wesley Henshaw Editor-in-Chief

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he country saw two shootings within hours of each other in Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas on Aug. 3, 2019. Sadly, these two tragedies mark only two more tiny blips on the constantly expanding list of mass shootings that have occurred in the past year.

However, due to the severity of this instance we have seen politicians on both sides, as well as the media, weigh in on solutions to the issue of gun violence in America.

While this reopening of the dialogue on gun violence is a promising sign for change in America, one of the more frustrating issues that has arisen is the resurgence of blame placed on video games and other violent media for actual violence in America.

Shortly after the two shootings in question, President Donald Trump called for a stop to the “glorification of violence in our society,” including the “gruesome and grisly video games that are now commonplace.”

This is due to a manifesto allegedly written by the shooter at El Paso having made reference to popular video game series “Call of Duty.” As such, many attributed his actions to his interest in the game.

“It is too easy today for troubled youth to surround themselves with a culture that celebrates violence. We must stop or substantially reduce this and it has to begin immediately,” Trump said.

Suddenly, political discourse had been shifted away from the real issues. Rather than address any number of issues that might have greater pertinence, say, the current issue of resolving the conflict between personal freedom and public safety in relation to guns, time had to be wasted on this tired debate.

However, I believe there is virtue in examining wasted time. Why does it seem Americans see this issue resurface every couple years like the monster in a horror movie?

Well first, it’s important to understand why this misconception exists.

Violent media being blamed for actual violence is a tale as old as time. It definitely goes back to the creation of the television and the accessibility of violent media to an entire population, though one could argue it goes back further in literature and other older forms of media.

Ever since Albert Bandura demonstrated that children imitate violent behavior that they witness with his famous “bobo doll experiment,” wherein children beat up a giant clown doll after viewing adults doing the same, special attention has been paid to violence in media, especially that which is aimed toward children or youth.

For video games, controversies really began with the release of the now famous (or infamous) game “Mortal Kombat” in 1992. Known for its extreme gore and iconic “fatalities” which were player actions that could result in the brutal death of their opponent, the game caused an uproar in America. This game actually was one of the main causes for the creation of the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) in 1994, responsible for rating games on a scale from “E for Everyone” to “AO for Adults Only (18+),” something that many denouncers of video games have neglected to

mention has existed for over twenty years.

It wasn’t until the tragedy at Columbine High School in 1999, where both perpetrators were said to have played the hit game “Doom,” yet another game known for its brutality and violence. This sparked a decades-long campaign against video games as a source of real world violence.

This campaign included many different politicians over the years such as former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, both Bill and Hilary Clinton, former Senator Joe Lieberman, and former President Barack Obama. Both Bill Clinton and Obama called for research into media and the video game industry’s relaThrough the years, various forms violent media has been the blame for acts of violence. Whether it be the tion to violence and violent concerns with violence in TV in the early 20th century, heavy metal, movies with high body counts and gory glorification, or more recently the violence seen in shooters like “Call of Duty” or in the freedom of games like “Grand crime, Obama doing so as Theft Auto.” Photo by Wesley Henshaw. part of his plan to cut down on gun violence.. cent compared to 70 percent according to Peter Markey, With this, we come to modern day, where Presipsychology professor specializing in video game studies dent Trump has blamed video games and other media at Villanova University. Additionally, many countries for mass shootings not once, but twice, having done the such as Japan and South Korea have much higher video same in response to the Parkland shooting last year. game sales per capita, but practically non existent gun It is important to note that this correlation is comdeaths in comparison to the United States. pletely unsupported by any study or research. Looking So back to the original question, why do we keep at the years of research, very little has been found in seeing this tired, obviously false conclusion? It might linking violent media and actual violence. be easy to point to incompetency and the growing The general consensus of the American Psychodisconnect between politicians and the people, but it’s logical Association (APA) is that increased exposure to a far simpler issue. Video games are unprotected. No violent media, specifically in regards to video games, powerful lobby exists for video games. One does exist correlates to an increase in aggressive behavior and for guns. a decrease in prosocial behavior, empathy, and moral The National Rifleman Association (NRA) is one of engagement. For these reasons they caution against the most powerful lobbies in politics and has been domexposing youth to these types of media. However, even inating the gun control issue in Congress. According to this point is highly contentious within the psychological CNN, 307 out of 535 Congress members had received community, a group of 230 researchers and scholars in any amount in direct or indirect financial support from the pediatric and adolescence health field calling the the NRA and its allies in early 2018.

APA’s stance “misleading and alarmist” in an open letter The amount of money that has flown through in 2013.

Congress from the NRA and allies within the careers Even within the APA, a division focused on the of many of the lawmaker’s careers is upwards of $12 media cautioned government officials from attributing million. While in the political world this isn’t the largest violent acts to violent media such as video games. This amount of money, the purpose of a single-issue lobby was due to a severe lack of evidence suggesting a coris just to outbid the opposition, which they have done. relation. Namely, these researchers suggested that the The number for gun control groups is around $500,000. release of a violent movie or video game should correWith this type of influence, politicians who might very spond with a violent crime spike if the two were linked, well want to help the issue find their hands tied within but rather there might be evidence the opposite is seen the game of politics, following the money. and that violent crime decreases with the release of As a result, we the people can only sit by and violent media. Additionally, the research itself is often watch our government sit by and watch. 61 percent prone to false positives and negatives as well as publiof Americans support stricter gun laws according to a cation bias, wherein only the evidence to support a link Quinnipiac poll. While the route forward is unclear, is shown and distributed without displaying evidence of as people disagree what kind of change is needed, the the contrary. general consensus is that change is needed. Something Some other interesting information on the topic that simply won’t happen when our own government includes that men who commit serious acts of violence doesn’t prioritize its own people. play video games less than those who have not, 20 per-

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Opinion

THRIFTY TREASURE TROVE

Can you really get high fashion for a few dollars?

Gabby Abowitz

Features Editor/ Art Director

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ocated in the Delmar Loop, Avalon Exchange is a popular resale shop that’s been open since 1988.

In addition to the St. Louis storefront, Avalon also holds a presence in Cleveland, Orlando, Pittsburgh, and Savannah. Although classified as a resale shop rather than a traditional thrift store, the store sells a wide variety of clothes, sizes, brands and styles at much more affordable prices than their original selling point.

Because the store operates as a resale store, they buy their inventory directly from the public, so the store constantly holds modern, up-to-date items as well as some older pieces reflective of previous years. If you are interested in selling to Avalon, there are a few important things you should note about their process and requirements. They purchase their items seasonally on a walk-in basis, no appointments necessary, with a state ID in hand. Clothing conditions must be clean, stainless, odorless, and with properly functioning buttons and zippers.

If your pieces meet this standard, Avalon will pay 30% in cash or 45% in store credit of the resale value.

On top of this, there is no minimum or maximum on what you’re permitted to sell on any given day.

Aside from the value of their transactions, the store offers a very unique, trendy vibe and has a super cool environment. Their accessories can be an even bigger selling point than the clothes. Their sunglasses, shoes, and jewelry are sold at very little cost: earrings range from $2 to $8. They also have an extremely large selection and they’re often the first things you see upon walking in.

We went to Avalon on Friday, Aug. 23, the weekend of Avalon’s semi-annual $1 sale. The sale lasted from Aug 23-25 at the stores normal operating times: 11 am- 8 pm on Monday through Saturday and 12 pm- 7 pm on Sundays. Unfortunately for us, the appeal of everything being $1 was not as enticing as we had hoped.

Only three racks inside the store were offered at the $1 price and even at that, the clothes were worse than the items being sold at their normal value. The sale was less for customers to get a good deal and more of a way for Avalon to get rid of the inventory they no longer wanted while still “having a sale” and drawing people in. We had much better luck finding “worth it” purchases when looking around the non-sale sections, but even that was disappointing because the sale did not apply.

To be frank, the sale that drew us in sadly seemed like false advertising and left us feeling a bit upset. That being said, the store,with its regular pricing structure, is a great alternate place for trendy shopping. The prices are higher than you may find at other thrift stores like Goodwill, but the quality, variety, and environment of the store makes up for it. You get more for your buck and it is a very happy medium price range of very expensive resale shops and classic thrift stores. And, of course, much cheaper than general department stores or normal retailers.

Avalon Rating: 3.5/5 Avalon, 6392 Delmar Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63130. Hours: 11-8 M-Sat, 12-7 Sun. avalonexchange.com

Thrift stores you haven’t tried but you definitely should...

St. Vincent DePaul: Great for games and home goods, such as mattresses The Vault on Brentwood: High end designer resale; couture like LV and Gucci for less Goodwill on Manchester: Word on the street says the Target delivery truck comes Wednesday nights DOS Resale in Clayton: This shop buys and sells trendy clothing items and accessories for teenagers, college girls including activewear from Lululemon, Athleta, Nike, Adidas.

Found by the Pound: Find clothes you like and pay the pound, like FroYo!

News

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WHAT’S NEW IN AP COURSES? AP Board brings new curriculum to AP World & AP Photo

Rebecca Barnholtz Staff Reporter

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his school year, the AP board made many changes to their courses. This means new preparation for their tests and new ways classes are being taught.

Two of the many classes being affected by new changes here at Parkway Central are AP Photo/2D Design and AP World History. By sitting down with students and teachers of these courses, an in-depth look was taken for these courses.

“AP changed the course completely,” AP world teacher Susan King said.

“It’s very different this year in the way that Mr. Guilfoyle set it up,” former and current AP photo student, Emma Cantor said.

AP World is among one of the most popular taken AP courses here at Parkway Central, along with AP Government. A very big change has been made, taking out nearly half of the material that the course usually tackles.

The AP board had a goal of making AP world more of a focus on modern history and has changed the course to be AP world modern history, according to AP world teacher Susan King, and only going over the time periods from around 1200 A.C. to the present day. This is a large change for the course that usually begins in B.C. and the very first civilizations. With what was once six more somewhat broad units, is now three in-depth units tested by AP. However, teachers aren’t throwing away what was once taught.

“To fully understand history from 1200 on you have to understand a little bit of the stuff before so you have some kind of context to get it all in. especially like the world religions came before 1200 and those are so important,” King said.

King and social studies teacher Joni Patton are working especially hard to ensure that students still have context from these areas and are able to have a better understanding.

AP Photo/2D Design is one the culminating art class for the program offered at Parkway Central.

It challenges one’s creativity and offers the ability to have a lot of creative freedom. Cantor took AP Photo

as a sophomore due to a scheduling error freshman year and is now taking it again as a senior.

“I took it again because it is not repetitive since you just have creative freedom and can take your art in a new direction,” said Cantor.

AP Photo in the past was styled in two sections -- Breadth and Concentration, each taking up one semester. Breadth had an experimental focus and included 12 pieces.

“I personally like the breadth a lot and was why I took the class again because it is so fun and you just are given the time to do whatever you want. The supplies are there and you can run with it and if something fails you are like ‘oh bummer’ and revise it or try to re-imagine it or something,” said Cantor.

Concentration was second semester and consisted of 12 pieces that were all under one broad topic that had meaning to the artist. With changes to the AP curriculum, AP Photo consists of Concentration for the full year and 15 pieces total.

“This year is significantly more structured, which is good and bad, but sophomore year concentration I definitely procrastinated and made all my pieces in the last month. This year that won’t happen and it is set up to prevent that. However, I think we will be challenged to be more intentional with our art, but it’s also going to have less freedom,” said Cantor in reaction to this change.

Overall, the AP board changing and improving it’s curriculum in different ways will help students who enroll in these courses gain more meaning and understanding out of their learning as well as feel more prepared for a newly structured AP test.

1: AP World Teacher, Dr. Susan King helps sophomore Benjamin Wehling in in her 6th Block AP World class. Photo by Kaylee Canoy.

2: 2017 AP Photo piece by current Senior Emma Cantor. Photo courtesy of Emma Cantor.

3: 2017 AP Photo piece by current Senior Emma Cantor. Photo courtesy of Emma Cantor.

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MLS

News

for STL St. Louis earns a Major League Soccer team that will begin playing in the 2022 season.

Abby Prywitch Managing Editor

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t’s official: starting in the 2022 season, St. Louis will have a Major League Soccer (MLS) expansion team playing in the league. Ever since the Rams left in 2015, St. Louis fans have felt a void in professional sports.

“Our families have deep roots in St. Louis and this project has always been bigger than soccer. We truly believe an MLS team and stadium will have a positive impact on this city,” Spokesperson Macey Warren said.

Senior MJ Fritz was excited when he heard that St. Louis would officially be getting an MLS team, but he said he was expecting it all along.

“I’m most excited for St. Louis getting to show the rest of the world that this isn’t just a baseball town and we’ll have a great fan base for the MLS team,” Fritz said.

Now that the team is secured, there is a lot of work to be done for the team to be ready to go for the 2022 season.

The ownership group is lead by Carolyn Kindle Betz, who is the president of the Enterprise Holdings Foundation. The groups goal has been to secure a privately financed team and stadium that would bring many benefits to St. Louis.

“We have come a long way in such a short amount of time and we had so many great people working with us tirelessly to make this bid a success. The support of the City and State officials, the business community and, of course, every fan in the city and region played an important role in how quickly we were able to pull our bid together,” Warren said.

Currently they are working on finishing the stadium plan, along with continuing to work with businesses throughout the community to finish arranging corporate sponsorships.

The soccer stadium is being built next to Union Station.

“St. Louis downtown west is the

perfect location for our MLS stadium because it will sit as a key connection between the Gateway Arch and Forest Park, adding to St. Louis’ downtown renaissance currently underway,” Warren said.

The MLS team provides an opportunity to bring together the community and ultimately unite people in their love for the game.

“We are excited to continue to instill the passion for soccer in all St. Louis fans with this team, and by continuing to work with organizations like Mathews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club, St. Louis Public Schools and Ray Leisure Soccer Park Complex project to further the love of soccer,” Warren said.

The MLS team is anticipated to bring many social and economic benefits to St.Louis.

“We believe an MLS team will put St. Louis on the international map, bringing more tourism, revenue and potentially creating even more jobs, giving more reasons for international talent and businesses to choose St. Louis,” Warren said.

The metro area will likely see big economic benefits from the soccer team, but that’s not the only advantage an MLS team can bring to the city.

“We’re proud to start up something that will positively affect the whole St. Louis region, stand up for the City we love and stay invested in the City as a part of the many people that are working to move the St. Louis region forward, which the STLMade movement has been shedding a light on,” Warren said.

Throughout the process of getting everything ready for the 2022 season, MLS will be looking to the St. Louis community to voice their opinions as well. They are just beginning the formal process of determining the team name, colors and marks.

“We’re also conducting a survey for St. Louisans to voice their opinion

on the new team’s identity. We look forward to providing more information as we move towards kicking off in 2022 and fans can stay updated with all the latest news by signing up for updates at MLS4TheLou.com,” Warren said.

The St. Louis team will also make history in another way.

“It’s an incredible feeling to now be able to say, St. Louis is home to the first official majority female-led ownership group in MLS,” Warren said.

What is your choice for team name and colors?

Gyeom Kim

Team name:The Rams Colors: Red

Lilly Huss

Team name: The Steamers Colors: Grey and blue

Caroline Kindle Betz and MLS Commisioner Don Garber at the MLS team announcement on Tuesday, Aug. 20. Photo Courtesy of Macey Warren.

Peyton Hanser

Team name: The Steamers Colors: Blue and green or blue and red

News

REAL WORLD LEARNING

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Learning Sessions in Ac Lab and the Cricut Machine

Haydn Schertz Staff Reporter

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n today’s world, schools are teaching students the traditional subjects like math, science and English. But what about the simple life skills such as how to tie a tie, or change the oil for your car?

A new academic lab option that at Parkway Central is offering is that they are going to begin teaching students these simple life skills and these lessons are open to everyone.

Liz Lyons, one of the school librarians had this idea after she heard about it at the Missouri Association of School Librarians Conference. She was inspired by this as it is available in the Francis Howell School district.

“One of the first classes I would like to teach is a self defense training so we gonna try that. I would like to get a mechanic to come in and show you how to change your tires on your car and checking your oil levels. Something on interviewing skills and how to dress for an interview, resume building and that kind of thing,” said Lyons.

This is also a way to help bring together our community by getting more involved and meeting new people in or around the St. Louis area.

“It is going to be a combination of people from around the Parkway school district and people from the community that I can bring in. Such as guest speakers,” said Lyons.

Look forward to Dr. McCarthy introducing the first Real World Days class or how to tie a tie, along with job interviewing skills and dressing for success. This will take place on October 8th.

These academic Real World Days are a great opportunity for the students and very beneficial to us here. These classes will be fun and a great way to learn about the little tasks we will have to tackle in the near future.

Another great feature that they will be adding here at Parkway Central is a Cricut Machine. This is a machine that can be used for printing out designs for t-shirts, hoodies and many more. It also prints out stickers that you could use for water bottles and almost anything you could think of.

The Cricut Machine will be available to everyone and it only

cost as much as the item you bring in. The designs that is prints will be free of charge. Say you want to have matching designs on t-shirts with your teammates the Cricut Machine can help you out. It has already made a few shirts for the staff here at Parkway Central. Once Windows 10 is hooked up to the machine, it will be ready for use.

1: Librarian Liz Lyons preparing for Ac Lab “Real World Days.” Photo by Haydn Shertz 2: The new Parkway Central Cricut machine and an example of what it can do with the PCH library t-shirt. On the left is the printer which prints the stickers and on the right is the iron that puts the sticker on the clothing. Photo by Ryan Pham.

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News/Sports

SWITCHING SNACK SUPPLY

Vending machine and branding changes go smoothly

Brandon Smith Staff Writer

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or as long as most students can remember, the vending machines all around the school have been the same. Coke products sat in those machines for months at a time because of the lack of excitement that Red Powerade Zero brought.

This new school year many were surprised to find something different in the machines.

“Parkway took proposals from different vendors and I assume Pepsi’s offer was more advantageous than Coke’s,” Principal Tim McCarthy said.

This change is not necessarily a bad thing; many have actually enjoyed it.

The change has brought many different products to the school that students enjoy. Some of these options include: Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, and, a fan favorite, Mountain Dew, and Kickstarts.

The new Kickstarts have blown up since the first day of school, as the machine sold out the first week of school.

Students are enjoying this drink more than any other.

“I really like the new Kickstart energy drink because it gives me more energy before tennis or a hard class,”

junior Melanie Gubernik said.

Many are enjoying this drink, but a question that has arisen is if we should be selling these drinks at school?

“Yes I am concerned because of the caffeine, but we have not had any complaints from anyone about it,” McCarthy said.

New snacks and vending machines welcome students outside the commons. Photo by Ryan Pham.

SMALL TEAM, BIG CHALLENGES Reginald Elijah Staff reporter

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arkway Central football team faces one of the hardest schedule in the state which is especially hard because they have one of the smaller teams compared to other big schools. Head coach Mark Goldenberg was still assessing the team when the first game got pushed back two days.

“We didn’t have a real long time since our game got postponed until Sunday because of the weather. As the season goes on, we try to get better and better every week,” Goldenberg said.

Two of the players on the football team, Haydn Schertz and Ryan Pham looks to younger team leaders.

“Carvon Howard has the best work ethic,” Pham said. Schertz feels likes Jack Mercier can be a good defensive tackle when he puts the hard work in. Seniors Cam Roberts, Jack Wittner and junior Andre Butts all have a touchdown a piece so far, while quarterback Antonio Hutti has passed for 443 yards.

The team’s record is 0-4 against four of the best teams in the region. With around players on the roster, the team is at an unfair advantage against teams like Marquette who have twice as many players.

“We had a really hard schedule, but now our opponents are a little more equal, we just will keep going, keep pushing,” sophomore Cam Harris said.

Harris is pleased with the team, regardless of what

the record says.

“I’m proud that we don’t give up in practice. We don’t hang our heads in practice,” Harris said.

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1. Head Coach Mark Goldenberg fixes Hugh Hodson’s jersey during the Homecoming Game on Sept. 13. Photo by Christine Stricker 2. QB Antonio Hutti hands the ball off during the jamboree on Aug. 20. Photo by Kaye Tate 3. Adonis Robinson makes a big tackle against a Marquette player on Sept.

6. Robinson leads the team with 22 tackles. Photo by Christine Stricker 4.

K.J. Little holds a defender at bay during the FZN game. Little has 26 yards rushing. Photo by Christine Stricker

Wide receiver Cam Roberts catches the ball and trying to get more yards on a Marquette player. Roberts has caught 168 yards this season. Photo by Christine Stricker

News

DAY OF SERVICE

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Recapping the events at the 4th annual Day of Service Amari Sewer Staff Reporter

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ay of Service took place on Wednesday, Sept. 18, and the weather was hot. While the theme of the event was Gateway to Giving, it felt more like Gateway to heat strokes. The heat affected field trips, the Special Olympics, and eventually the Teacher vs Seniors soccer match turned volleyball match.

“The worst part was when we were all crowded up together in the stadium waiting on the buddies to get here, and the sun was bearing down on us,” junior Michael Carroll said.

Before the event, English teacher Laura Michael, who runs Day of Service with business teacher Sarah Hale, was looking forward to the day and mentioned that there were minor changes from last year.

The freshmen and sophomores started their day off by coming together as a group before going their separate ways.

“Last year, we brought in a keynote speaker to talk to the freshman and sophomore. We planned to keep that change,” Michael said.

The freshman listened to speakers’ presentations and performed hands-on activities.

“We had a lot of new speakers for the freshman this year, and it went really well,” Michael said.

Meanwhile, the sophomores traveled to sites away from the campus and volunteer in different activities.

This year, the sophomores had most options to choose from in a while,and all sites have been used at least

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once before.

“Our sophomores had great locations,” Michael said.

At the same time, the juniors and seniors participated in the Special Olympics. Whether it was managing a carnival booth, running food and water, being a buddy of the athletes, or being a captain, the upperclassmen had a role in the Special Olympics.

The opening ceremonies started with the marching band playing the National Anthem. Next, some of the athletes and special education advisors gave speeches thanking everybody for making this day possible.

Finally, the ceremonies ended with the some of the athletes and their buddies participating in the Olympic torch relay.

During the Olympics, the athletes faced off in soccer matches while their buddies, captains, and mascots cheered them on, and they also got to play different types of games and win prizes at the carnival held in Gym A. “We will be grilling hot dogs this year,” Michael said while talking about new lunch options.

After the athletes returned to their schools, the annual Seniors vs Teachers soccer match turned volleyball match occurred to end the day. The teachers defeated the seniors.

“Being our fourth year, I think this was the best year yet. We’ve got Day of Service to a good place where we don’t need to make major changes,” Michael said.

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9 1. Dan Kelty’s Ac Lab cheers on their team on the soccer fields as they play in the tournament. Photo by Christine Stricker 2. Juniors Tamaris Livers and Andrew Zhang talk to a buddy in the bleachers.

Photo by Christine Stricker 3. Junior Marlon Donald watches as his buddy creates artwork while at the carnival. Photo by Christine Stricker 4. Junior Ellory Weinstein talks to a Special Olympic athlete at the carnival.

Photo by Christine Stricker 5. Senior Lindsey Ormont runs with her buddy in the Olympic torch relay. “It was fun. I didn’t realize that my buddy was that fast, but it was fun to be a part of it,” Ormont said. Photo by Christine Stricker 6. Junior Nathan Mercier sits with his buddy at one of the soccer fields.

Photo by Christine Stricker 7. Guest Vicki Friedman (left) of Arts and Healing speaks to a group of freshmen on Day of Service. Photo by Christine Stricker 8. Sophomores Ellie Noonan, Jack Deutsch, and Emma Vance pose for a picture while doing volunteer work at Queeny Park during. Photo by David Smith 9. Junior Preston Devlin talks to his buddy while at the soccer fields. Photo

by Christine Stricker

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News

MAKING A DIFFERENCE: MISSION TRIPS Parkway Central teens go to Nicaragua and Mexico Rebecca Barnholtz Staff Reporter

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his summer, Parkway Central teens embarked on their own journeys to make summer 2019 one to remember, a few teens made their own summer as well as others’ memorable through efforts done on mission trips and volunteering.

Mission trips are volunteer trips with the main goal in an impoverished country/city that benefits the community or a group of people in need. Each trip one goes on, even if they are similar, tells a different story of one’s personal growth and connection to the love of giving back to others.

The mission trips PCH teens went on, took place in San Luis Potosí, Mexico and Nicaragua, tackling jobs such as installing a water pipe and working in a home for kids that have troubled families. 1 teen headed to San Luis Potosí, Mexico, and 4 to Nicaragua. Whether the role is more labor or emotionally heavy, the takeaway is quite large, leaving participants wanting to go back or volunteer somewhere else.

We pulled aside two of the PCH teens who went on these trips and asked them why they wanted to go on one: “You get so much out of it with helping people that you know don’t have a lot,” said sophomore Lilly Huss.

“It’s an experience that I wanted to have, just being able to impact the kids down there and I love meeting new people it’s like one of my favorite things,” said senior Isabel Roman.

Roman’s journey took place in San Luis Potosí, Mexico. She went with a youth group in the Maryland-Washington D.C. area and heard about it through a family friend. Roman knew this trip was the perfect fit for her because she “was looking for any way to be able to contribute and do a mission trip like that and anything at that point seemed perfect,” Roman said.

Roman’s role during her trip was to work in a foster-like home for children with troubled families, called “Casa Hogar de San Juan”. This was a place owned by a couple who had grown up together in the same home years ago and was where children can be fed, play with others, and be given temporary caretakers.

Her biggest takeaway from her experience was, “Even though they have so little and I can come back every situation that they were some of the happiest people I learned a lot from them because they just showed how much they loved each other and it really impacted me,” said Roman.

Huss’ journey took place in Nicaragua in Central America. She went with Amigos for Christ, a Christian youth organization known for its Nicaragua mission trips. The focus of her trip was building water systems for a small village. The steps taken for her role was being guided to go to the building area, “and there’s no big builder tools or anything we just do shovels and pickaxes and we dig up a meter and a half down of dirt. Once we dig it all up and they put the pipe in,” said Huss.

Huss noted that watching the pipe go down and covering it up was one of her favorite parts and was something that she thought was so amazing.

Her biggest takeaway from her experience was “to see all the joy in the people when they don’t have as much as you do. People here are never as joyful as

the people you see and they don’t have anything compared to us,” said Huss These extraordinary students made their summer a priority for a time to give back, in hopes of returning on the same or a similar trip in the summer of 2020.

If you are hesitant on going on a Mission Trip here are some words of advice from Huss and Roman: “It was one of the best experiences I’ve had for sure, if you aren’t really good with going by yourself, definitely try to go with someone. But I think everyone should try to do it because it’s really eye-opening to see what kinds of situations people live in and being able to see what kind of impact you can leave on them,” said Roman.

“Do not be scared to think of it because it’s a foreign country, it’s all safe and everything and if you go with a certain organization they make sure you’re safe the whole time. You’ll get so much out of it even if you’re there for only a couple of days,” said Huss.

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4 1: Senior Isabel Roman poses with children from Casa Hogar de San Juan. Photo courtesy of Isabel Roman. 2: Roman helps a child with making a friendship bracelet at Casa Hogar de San Juan. Photo courtesy of Isabel Roman. 3: Sophomore Lilly Huss poses with children from Nicaragua. Photo courtesy of Lilly Huss. 4: Children in Casa Hogar de San Juan do arts and crafts. Photo courtesy of Isabel Roman. 5: Sophomore Lilly Huss poses with friends from her trip.

Photo courtesy of Lilly Huss.

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Features

HOCO WEEK HIGHLIGHTS

Looking back at the best parts of Homecoming

Ryan Pham Photo Editor

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omecoming week came early this year and the theme was “We love the Lou”. Dress up days included Decades day, Meme Day, USA day, Class Colors Day, and Red, Black, and White day. Stuco decorated the Upper Commons, lunch area, and Colt Cafe area in class themes. The themes were St. Louis Blues, Forest Park, The Zoo, and the Cardinals. The Dance was held Saturday September 14, 2019.

1. Freshman dancing The Wobble in a line at the Dance. Photo taken by Wagner Portraits.

2. Homecoming Queen and senior Abbey Poe (left) and senior Grant Wolf (right) posing. Photo by Wagner Portraits.

3. Senior Hugh Hudson (left), James Sherstoff (middle), and Ryan Finley(right) getting hyped from winning class games. Photos by Taylor Stern.

4. Sam Ndegwa dressed up as Doodle Bob from SpongeBob for Meme day. Photo by Zoe Nolting.

5. Senior Savannah Vanhoogstrate and the Central Colt (junior Julie Ryterski) running down during the pep rally. Photo by Christine Stricker.

6. Senior Corbett Harris (bottom left), junior Miranda Blatt (bottom right), and senior Cecilia Flick (top) in a pyramid formation during the pep rally. Photo by Christine Stricker.

7. Seniors Jack Wittner (left), Antonio Hutti (middle), and Adi Sarangee (right) dressed up as 90’s theme. Photo by Zoe Nolting.

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Cover Story

Field hockey returns to Parkway Central after decades long absence Brooke Kraizer Staff Reporter

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his is the first year of field hockey at PCH, and with the team consisting of 31 girls, it seems to be a big hit. Though popular around the west county area, Central hasn’t had a team, or a coach, in a long time.

When math teacher Kurt Lehmann got the email announcing that there would be a field hockey team, he was interested in becoming the coach and started learning more about the sport. Although Lehmann coached soccer for 10 years he has never played or coached field hockey before. Over the summer he was in contact with Gateway field hockey club team coaches to learn more about the sport. Lehmann, and ESOL teacher Stacy Stibal, learned what drills are helpful for practices and how to teach the new team.

“I went to the Gateway camp along with the girls so we were all learning together. I also watched videos on YouTube to help me learn,” Lehmann said.

Like any other team, playing time is something every athlete aspires for, but Lehmann knows that with a big team it is sometimes hard to get a lot of time. The team is currently registered as JV, which is common considering it is new. Next year it will be split up into three different groups; one team is the “core” that consists of ten players plus the goalie and they play every game.

Two other teams that consist of ten alternate between the games.

There are many girls that have never played the sport before, but are excited to learn and grow. Even though many have not played before, other sports like lacrosse, basketball and soccer require somewhat of the same field/ court awareness and other abilities, so it may come more natural to those players.

Captain and forward Katelyn Goplen, a sophomore, plays Gateway field hockey and is helping lead the team.

“Everyone is catching on and it hasn’t even been that long,” Goplen said.

When asked what is different about club and school field hockey, sophomore Nikki Reed, another captain and experienced club player said that, school rules are more strict because we have to wear eye guards and at the games they are pickier about fouls, whereas in school games they seem to call whatever they can.

While a new team has plenty to work on, Lehmann believes his team needs to focus on one thing in particular.

“For the newer players they need to work on evaluating the field and the spacing and movement/ positioning.” Drills he uses to practice those skills are offense vs. defense drills to see the field and possession drills.

One of the team’s first game was against Nerinx Hall on Sept. 6 and they lost with a score to 8-0. So far their record is 0-4, recently playing and losing to Ursuline Academy where they lost 3-1.

“Losses are to be expected when starting a new team,” Lehmann said.

Learning a new sport can be challenging but with many more games still to come, the team will get better and better.

The team’s next game is at University City on Oct. 17.

New Beginnings

Backround picture: Emma Mueller (senior) passing the ball Picture taken: Abby Prywitch

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Cover Story

Welcoming New Teachers Sydney Stahlschmidt Copy Editor

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t can be hard for many people to start a new beginning for themselves when they are leaving what they have previously been comfortable with in the past.

For Meghan McCreary, Alicia Bont, Jasper Joyce, Alexandria Elder, and Sara Gerth they are starting their new life here at Parkway Central.

While a few of them have had experience working in the Parkway district in the past, any new school community is going to have new opportunities and differences.

Jasper Joyce

Position: English Teacher Education: Completed education at Truman State University.

Why teaching? Joyce has been interested in teaching since high school and truly wanted to become a teacher after peer teaching senior year in high school.

Excited For: After previously student teaching at Parkway North, they are excited to see how the Parkway Central environment works and to see a different community.

Fun Fact: They know more than one language and along with English also knows German and American Sign Language.

To the Students: “I want students to know that I am a really fun and open person and that I am happy to see students and talk to them about anything. I’m here for them.”

Meghan McCreary

Position: Physical Ed. Teacher Education: Received her Bachelor’s in Kinesiology and Master’s in Education Administration at Missouri Baptist University.

Why teaching? She decided to become a teacher because her mom was a PE and health teacher as well and she was always involved with extracurricular activities and educational settings.

Excited For: She is excited to get to know all the people at the school but also learning what Parkway Central is all about and all the different traditions.

Fun Fact: She has two sisters who also work in Parkway and one of them looks like her twin.

Alexandria Elder

Position: Math Teacher Education: She has completed her education at Lindenwood University.

Why teaching? Her mom and her grandpa were both teachers so she felt like teaching was ‘in her blood.’ She also always knew that helping people is what she wanted to do.

Excited For: She is excited to get to know all the students from her first year of teaching that she will know for the rest of her life.

Fun Fact: Growing up she went through many phases of what she wanted to be when she was older including an author or a dermatologist.

To the Students: “I want them to know that I care about them so much and really my main goal has just been to help them learn math but also know that they are cared about in my class and that it’s an open environment. I really care about them.”

Alicia Bont

Position: Orchestra Director Education: She attended Southern Illinois University of Edwardsville and majored in music and received a master’s degree in the study of teaching music.

Why teaching? She always loved music and working with kids and thought it was important to spread the appreciation of music with others.

Excited For: She is excited to get to work with the students that she has taught in the past from her previous time working at Shenandoah Valley and River Bend Elementary schools.

Fun Fact: She has rode her bike from New Hampshire to Michigan two times.

Sara Gerth

Position: School Counselor Education: Bachelors degree in Elementary Ed from Webster University and Masters degree in School Counseling from Missouri Baptist.

Why education? She went in counseling because she had the passion for teaching other people, especially students, life skills and tips to help them be successful.

Excited For: She is excited to build new relationships at Parkway Central with both students and other staff members.

Fun Fact: She enjoys reading, working out, and taking care of her pets. But most of her time she enjoys spending time with her kids.

To the Students: “I want students to know that I... remember what it’s like to be a teenager; all the ups and downs, struggles and excitements, and questioning about self and life.”

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Sports

FALL ATHLETES TO WATCH

Juniors and seniors take the helm and guide teams into season Logan Potts

Sports and News Editor

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n a transition year for the softball program, junior Rylie Perry hopes to make a big impact like she did as a sophomore on varsity.

“This season I hope to be eligible for first team all conference like I was for pitching last year,” Perry said.

“I also want to become more of a team leader.”

Last season, Perry had a record of 10-10, with a total of 142 innings pitched, and had a minuscule 2.51 earned run average. Perry also added value at the plate with a .321 batting average, .389 on base percentage, 15 runs batted in, and a team-leading two home runs.

In only her second year in the program, Perry was the leader of two offensive categories and was one of only two players to log innings on the mound.

“I enjoy the responsibility of being a leader on the mound, but I wouldn’t have those stats without my team behind me,” Perry said.

The team went 10-19 last season and might be in store for much of the same as they have started out 1-6-1 through their first eight games. The team is under new leadership as Coach Janie Sumner has taken over.

“Coach Sumner is really nice and I’ve enjoyed talking about college softball with her because she played at Mizzou,” Perry said.

Along with the goals she has for herself, Perry has goals for the team.

“We have a lot of new varsity players this year so we’re really focusing on working together and playing as a team,” Perry said. “It’s nice that everyone gets a fresh start where what we did last year doesn’t impact what we’re doing this year.”

Look for Perry to take on more of a leadership role this season and help her team improve as the season goes on.

Upcoming games: home vs. Ladue 9/27, @ Mehlville 10/1, home vs. Parkway West 10/2.

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ike Perry, senior quarterback Antonio Hutti is stepping up to help improve a team coming off a disappointing season. The football team ended last

Senior Corey Ables emerges from the woods in the Parkway Quad meet on 8.25.18. “I expect to be in constant contention for a varsity spot,” Ables said.

Photo by Catherine Ke.

season with a 3-7 record.

“I expect our team to just play better overall,” Hutti said. “It’s not just on one player, but it’s on our whole team to improve this season.”

The road to improvement has been a rough road for the team so far as they have started 0-4 with four big losses. This is partly due to the fact that the team has had to play three very tough teams and are considered to have one of the strongest schedules in the state.

“Even though the competition has been tough so far, playing through it will ultimately make us better as a team,” Hutti said.

The road to improvement will be tough for the team, but Hutti knows what they need to do to accomplish their goals.

“We need to stay the course, keep working on improving and learning from our mistakes every week, and the coaches will put us in a position to be a great team,” Hutti said.

Along with the team goals, Hutti has individual goals he’s working towards and aims to accomplish before his senior season is over. In his first season as a starter, Hutti threw for 1,290 yards with 10 touchdowns and 8 interceptions.

“My main goal for myself is to get first team all conference,” Hutti said.

Look for Hutti to help his team work through a tough schedule and do what they can to consistently improve.

Upcoming games: @ Parkway North 9/27, home vs.

Webster Groves 10/4, home vs. Clayton 10/11.

“There’s no way I could have done it without them.

They constantly push me to get better as well as taking the personal time to design workouts and plan meets for the team.”

With his overall goals of improving times, Ables has specific mechanics and parts to running that he wants to improve.

“I am most looking to improve my pacing,” Ables said. “I usually start out slower and speed up, but I want to try and push the first mile of the race to see if I can hold that pace.”

One thing that Ables does regret about his workouts this summer is not tailoring them more to what he wants to accomplish this season.

“I put in a lot of mileage over the summer to improve endurance. I didn’t do as much speed workouts as I should have but I can tell there’s a big difference in my starting point this year compared to previous years,” Ables said.

Look for Ables to leave a mark in the program in his senior season and improve throughout the season.

Upcoming meets: Gans Creek Invitational in Columbia MO 9/28, Parkway West Dale Sheppard Invitational.

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enior cross country runner Corey Ables is in the same boat as Hutti as he has one last year to prove his worth as a high school athlete.

“I expect to be in constant contention for a varsity spot,” Ables said. “I also expect to be a lot faster this year because of the constant hard work I put in over the summer to prepare for the season.”

Along with the time he put in over the offseason, he’s had the help and support from his coaches.

“Coach Guilfoyle and coach Merriman have helped me so much over the past four years,” Ables said.

Senior quarterback Antonio sets up in the shotgun formation to take the snap against Timberland on Red and White Night. Hutti threw ten touchdown passes last season. Photo by Kaye Tate.

Junior Rylie Perry throws a pitch against Ritenour on 10/1/18. Perry was one of two players to log innings on the mound last season. Photo by Wagner Photography.

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Sports

NO OUTLET FOR HOCKEY PLAYERS

Despite hockey legacy, Colts hockey team still absent ockey in St. Louis is growing. With two huge ice arenas opening in the area and the Blues fresh off their first Stanley Cup win, kids in St. Louis and all across Missouri are trading their baseball and football cleats for hockey skates. Yet, Central is still not among the 36 high schools playing in the Mid-States Club Hockey Association (MSCHA).

“It’s an extra sport that would bring everyone together. Football brings a big crowd and I think hockey would have a similar feel,” senior James Sherstoff said.

High school hockey games have been known to bring big crowds. With heated rivalries and electrifying playoff games, students pack into rinks across the city.

In addition, every year students nearly sell out the lower bowl of the Enterprise Center to watch the Wickenheiser Cup (the second tier playoff bracket) and Challenge Cup (first tier playoff bracket) championship games.

Central has been without a hockey team since the 2012-13 season, but it may surprise you that Central has even seen some alumni move on to the upper levels of the sport. Most notably is Yan Stastny (older brother of former Blues’ center, Paul Stastny) who recently retired in 2016, after 22 seasons of professional hockey that included a total of 91 games in the NHL. Aside from championships and retired pros, the Colts’ proved to be a solid opponent in the years they were able to assemble a team. The Colts were actually considered a powerhouse in the 90s, not having a losing record until the 1999-00 season. The Colts also picked up a Founders Cup (third-tier playoff bracket) win in 2008, and the banner for our 1992 Challenge Cup is currently hanging in Gym A. Since the 2013 season, there have been a handful of attempts to bring another MSCHA

banner to Central.

“We have had a few people over the past few years inquire about getting a team back up and running, but have not been able to do so,” said athletic director John Theobald.

“In order for a school to have a team, [there] have to be a certain amount of players from that school. That number has not been able to be reached.”

In order to establish a league that is competitive year after year, Mid-States Hockey rules are very strict about new teams joining the league. According to MSCHA rules, a school must have 12 players, excluding goaltenders, from their own school in order to be eligible for participation.

While the rules about new teams joining the league are strict, Mid-States also wants to ensure that anyone who wants to play high school hockey has the chance to, even if that player’s school doesn’t have a team. Once a school has 12 players, a school may draft as many as 6 skaters and 2 goalies from what’s referred to as “The Pool,” similar to a free agency in professional sports. Any player whose school does not have a team can enter The Pool, as well as any high school age player who was cut from their school’s varsity team.

The Pool has given many players the opportunity to be included in the excitement of high school hockey.

Among these players is Sean Boehm (11) who plans to play for Parkway West in the upcoming season aside from his play with the CarShield AAA Hockey Club, one of the top teams in the area alongside the St. Louis AAA Blues. The average AAA hockey team plays at least 60 games per season, with practices nearly every day, plus team workouts. For Boehm, high school hockey offers a fun and exciting break from his intense schedule.

“Club hockey doesn’t draw a lot of fans, where high school brings a lot of different people,” said

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Sawyer Lownsdale Staff Writer

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Boehm. “In a high school game there’s a lot more energy, and it’s based on fun, but club is all about work.”

Aside from bringing an extra team for students to cheer for, the hockey players at Central agree that having a hockey team would be beneficial to the school community, and cause a rise in school spirit.

“If we have the ability to make a team here, I think it should be done,” said junior Matthew Schaare, “It’s a sport thats played often in the St. Louis region and I believe we should have a team.”

“As of now, you see people you can see people walking around the halls with SLUH and CBC hockey sweatshirts,” said Boehm, “It would definitely draw us together.”

1. Senior James Sherstoff gets ready for a faceoff with his club team, the Chesterfield Falcons 2. Junior Mattew Schnaare skates through traffic with the puck during a Mid-States hockey game with Clayton High School. Photo courtesy of Matthew Schnaare 3. Junior Sean Boehm lines up for a faceoff with his club team, the CarShield AAA Hockey Club

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Entertainment

GINGER: A GENTLE ALBUM

Is BROCKHAMPTON’s newest record worthwhile?

Trey Williams Op/Ed Editor

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ROCKHAMPTON month released their 5th studio album GINGER. BROCKHAMPTON is a hip-hop “boy-band” formed in 2015.

The group had a meteoric rise to fame in 2017 with the release of their SATURATION trilogy, completed in just under six months. Critics praised the trilogy for the chemistry of the seven vocalists of the group over catchy and unique instrumentals. The trilogy had a good balance of hard, classic hip-hop tracks and more introspective, melodic work. The group went from nobody to one of the most exciting prospects in hip-hop.

Just after getting signed to RCA records, one of their main members, Ameer Vann, was kicked from the group after allegations of sexual assault. The group had to scrap their album that was set for release in the following weeks, due to the Vann’s prominent placement on the album.

They made and released Iridescence in late September after making the album in twelve days. This album saw the group go in a darker, experimental direction. This record was far more polarizing than their previous work, leading some to believe that the stress of the departure of Ameer Vann had caused the group to fall off.

That history brings us to GINGER. This album feels like the polar opposite to Iridescence. Iridescence mostly attempted to remain “hard” through their tracklist, taking less time to reflect in their lyrics. GINGER does the exact opposite. This album does not have any

songs that can be compared to songs like “J’OUVERT” or “NEW ORLEANS” in aggressive energy, but it makes up for it with their low-key, depressed sound on this album.

The album has a fantastic start with a great streak of songs. The song “NO HALO” showcases the group’s change in sound. The instrumental is extremely clean, featuring a somber acoustic guitar and squishy percussion. The verses from every member are great, and the chorus from Merlyn, Matt, and artist Deb Never is beautiful. This is the most hi-fi song they have produced.

Easily the highlight of the album is their song “DEARLY DEPARTED”, which is the first time the departure of Ameer is talked about by the group. The song starts out melancholy, with verses from Kevin Abstract and Matt Champion about dealing with the loss of who they considered one of their best friends. The best verse from the song comes from Dom, where the tone of the song totally changes. He raps about how betrayed he feels, and ends his verse with storming out of the studio. It’s the most powerful song on the album.

The songs “BOY BYE” and “IF YOU PRAY RIGHT” are two of the few classic BROCKHAMPTON bops, though I like the beat on the former more than the ladder. These songs are the exception to the rule in energy and tone.

My personal favorite song off

the album has to be the title track “GINGER”, with an MGMT influenced beat and more low-key vocals. This is a soothing song, especially the vocals from bearface.

The ending back and forth between bearface and Dom is one of my favorite spots on the album.

I did not think this album was perfect. This album seems to have the opposite problems as Iridescence.

While that album saw the group go so hard that there wasn’t much room for introspection, Ginger is not nearly as fun. However, that isn’t always a bad thing. It depends on what side of BROCKHAMPTON you prefer.

Part of what I loved about the SATURATION trilogy was the group’s diversity in sound. Ginger is too soft, Iridescence is too hard.

There are a few duds for me on the tracklist, “BIG BOY” being one. The “chorus” of this song is too goofy for me, and it especially doesn’t work with the mood of the song.

Overall, this is a pretty good album. This is not something I am going to have on repeat all the time due to the downtrodden, less hype mood of the album. I might even listen to Iridescence more even though it isn’t as good; I’ll be in that mood more often. Still, this is a quality album you should not miss.

I’ll give this album a 3.5/5

CHAPPELLE’S CONTROVERSIAL SPECIAL Trey Williams

Op/Ed Editor

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n entertainment news a couple weeks ago, one name rang through people’s ears over, and over, and over again: Dave Chappelle. There are all sorts of headlines about him right now that make you think the articles aren’t even about the same thing. From “You Can Definitely Skip Dave Chappelle’s New Netflix Special ‘Sticks and Stones’” to “In ‘Sticks and Stones,’ Dave Chappelle takes an all too expected swing at a world rapidly leaving him behind,’” Chappelle’s special has been polarizing, to say the least. Who is Dave Chappelle, where has all this controversy come from, and what does it say about the current state of comedy?

Dave Chappelle has been one of the world’s most famous comedians since the early 2000’s with his hit “Chappelle’s Show” on Comedy Central. This was a sketch comedy show that went on for three seasons, acclaimed for making provocative sketches on topics like race relations, stereotypes, sexuality, and much more.

Chappelle departed the show after three seasons to go back to doing stand-up, and has since earned acclaim as being one of the best stand-up comics of all time. The Rolling Stone put him at number nine on that list, to be exact.

Dave Chappelle has returned to television via Netflix, who signed a five special deal with Chappelle

in 2017. He released in late 2017 a special called “The Bird Revelation”, which got heat for making jokes about the massive waves of sexual assault accusations coming out of Hollywood that year. Still, he remained out of the news.

Chappelle returned last month with his special titled “Sticks and Stones”, and it has perhaps garnered the most controversy Dave Chappelle has seen yet. This special has no boundaries; nearly everything and everyone is made fun of: cancel culture, the LGBTQ+ community, Asians, and even the alleged victims depicted in “Leaving Neverland”.

Regardless of your opinion on what Chappelle joked about, one thing is inarguably true: comedy has changed. As time goes on, social issues have become more important to the general population. It is no longer socially acceptable to offensively dress up as another race, or call someone a slur, or make blanket statements about massive groups of people.

As a result of these social changes, comedy is left in a strange place. Comedy, especially stand-up comedy, has traditionally been a medium about pushing the boundaries. Comedians in the past have been given an unspoken pass to say totally whacky, offensive, ridiculous things. As the population has trended towards more progressive social morals, comedians have to decide how they will react to a changing social climate.

While some comedians have toned it down, others,

like Dave Chappelle, have refused to move with the public regarding thoughts on what is or is not okay to joke about.

What do you think about the special? Do you think Chappelle was brave for making jokes that push the boundaries, or do you think Chappelle’s jokes were cheap, mean spirited, and should come with a social punishment?

The poster for Dave Chappelle’s “Sticks and Stones”. The special came out August 26 and received extreme backlash for his provocative statements.

Entertainment

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LOOK FOR “THE LIGHTHOUSE” Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson’s New Thriller

Trey Williams Op/Ed Editor

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his year has seen a fair share of high budget blockbusters. “The Lion King”, “Spiderman: Far From Home”, “Toy Story 4”, “John Wick 3”, and who could forget “Avengers: Endgame” are just a few examples from this packed year.

As the year crawls on, Oscar season gets closer and closer. There will be quite a few movies hoping to make waves critically at the end of this year, but none of them look as interesting and unique to me as “The Lighthouse”.

Starring Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, “The Lighthouse” is one of many’s most anticipated movies of the year. This is a movie about two 1890 lighthouse keepers stuck on a spooky, lonely island in the middle of the sea.

Interesting about this movie is how the two stars are the only two actors in it. This is a movie all about these two characters, in this mysterious place, with potentially supernatural circumstances happening to them. In this movie, they’re trapped only with themselves and their boredom. This may suggest that this is a movie that makes you question what is and is not real.

This movie has gone through the film festival circuit, and so far critics are praising it. Currently it has a 94% on rotten tomatoes and a 89% on metacritic. The Telegraph said it’s “cinema to make your head and soul ring”. The hype for this movie is real.

Surprising to me originally was the inclusion of Robert Pattinson, former sparkly vampire. Though I have not seen him in any other parts, I have read from critics that Pattinson is actually an extremely impressive actor. Do not be turned off to this movie because of his former acting credits. Give him a chance. If you don’t do it now, you will have to when he plays Batman.

Something that gets me excited for this movie is the director. Roger Eggers is one of the most promising young directors making movies right now. His 2015 horror movie “The Witch”, about a New England family in the early 1600s experiencing strange circumstances following the disappearance of their child in the woods.

I loved the aesthetic of this movie. The mood was super dark, dingy, and creepy. It felt like reading an old book you aren’t supposed to be reading. The look of the movie was unlike anything I had ever seen. This film was shot beautifully, nearly every shot felt like it also could be an illustration in that old book.

Looking at the trailer of this movie, it is making me think Eggers is the master of creating this aesthetic.

Every shot of the trailer could look like an old charcoal drawing on an old sailor’s sketchbook. This movie is in black and white, which adds to the aesthetic even further.

This is one of the coolest trailers I have ever seen.

Check it out, even if I haven’t yet done it justice. I highly recommend looking out for this movie when it comes out this fall. You might be in for a treat.

Second poster for “The Lighthouse”, directed by Roger Eggers, coming out October 18. Starring Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe, “The Lighthouse” is the movie to look out for this fall.

HITEA: NEWEST ASIAN CUISINE IN TOWN Sydney Stahlschmidt

that I had to try this place as soon as I saw it. However, not doing my research heading into the cuisine of the restaurant, I didn’t realize I would be tasting pretty aurowing up I have always been an extremely picky thentic Asian dishes. I was expecting the typical Amerieater. Though I have vastly expanded my palette can-Asian foods I was used to. My expectations of what I as I have gotten older, there are so many foods was about to try soon were proven incorrect. out there I have yet to I decided to take my sample, especially with mom with me to try and my inexperience with taste this new Asian cuidifferent foods and sine restaurant because styles from around the my mom and I are both world. Chinese food is wanting to step out of our a staple at my house comfort zones with food and I love getting and try new things. Inthe typical fried rice, stantly as we are walking orange chicken, or to the front of the restaulo mein noodles. Yet rant there are cacti evI have realized that erywhere and the whole while these are great restaurant is decorated dishes, they are not with lots of plants and an authentic Asian food. abundance of pink. The Even food that seems modern yet authentic decto be cross-cultured oration definitely caught here are often Amerimy eye and more curious canized.

Oolong milk tea and the chicken ramen from Hitea. Unfortunately, this food looked about the food that would When I was driv- better than it tasted. Photo by Sydney Stahlschmidt be coming with it. ing to work one day I decided to taste my over the summer I passed a new Asian Cuisine restaumom’s rice bowl and it was really good. It was more of rant named Hitea that instantly caught my eye. I knew a cold dish but the sauce made it really tasty along with Copy Editor

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the other vegetables in it. If I had to pick my favorite thing that I tried at the restaurant I would definitely recommend getting a rice bowl because it was really flavorful and delicious.

Overall, I would say that it was pretty good for my first time trying Asian cuisine, but I don’t have many other things to compare it to. It probably wouldn’t be my first choice on a typical meal to eat a lot, but I was still happy I tried something new. I would probably rate this place 3 out of 5 stars.

Hitea is a new Asian food restaurant located on Olive. The look of the restaurant is top notch, and the food was an interesting new experience.

Photo by Sydney Stahlschmidt

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Entertainment

RESTAURANT RIVALRY: SUBS Documenting our grand sub sandwich odyssey

While they are comparatively new to the game,

Subway: It Was Food they have been in it long enough to be one of the best.

They are competing with places such as Penn Station When people think of sub sandwiches, people ver the last few years, the number of sub sandand Subway with their hot sandwiches, and challenging think of Subway. Subway is the oldest franchise of the wich restaurants in the area has exploded. It’s cornerstones like Jimmy Johns with their cold subs. four, getting their start over 20 years before the next sometimes hard to keep track of which is good, Firehouse Subs saw our expectations and obliterat- closest. On TV as a kid, Subway ads glazed my eyes all which is bad, and which is which wich. ed them, setting a high bar, due to it being the first place the time. I didn’t even know there were other sub placLuckily for you, we cracked the code. We have we visited. es than subway when I was really young. traveled the world, hiked through the desert, climbed Given that I had been to this specific location As time has passed, and other places have joined mountains, and put our blood, sweat, and tears towards before, I had a general idea of what to expect, but the sub scene, Subway finds themself in an interesting one question: which sandwich is the best? We went to even then the whole experience was even better than I position. Now they have major competition. No longer the four closest sub sandremembered. The store had are they unique just based on their concept; there are wich places to the school: a nice ambiance, and the other places hungry to top the sub sandwich pedestal.

Penn Station, Firehouse typical sub sandwich shop How do they stack up to the rest?

Subs, Subway, and Jimmy smell wafted around and This place was an utter failure.

Johns, and used our foolwelcomed us into the store.

While I knew Subway wouldn’t be very good, I proof scientific experimenThe workers were all very did not expect the sheer magnitude of my disappointtation to determine which cordial and kind, listening ment. This was not immediately known to me, however. hoagie was the hottest. Here to our orders and questions When I walked into the store I had a rush of nostalgia. are the categories: providing useful answers all I saw the window of ingredients, the vegetable backBREAD: All superhewith a smile. splash underneath, and of course their chocolate chip roes wear suits. Hero sandIn addition to great cookies I would beg for as a kid. wiches wear bread. The best start to our visit, the store I am not a child anymore, unfortunately. To be bread balances lightness was clean and everything fair, one of us got the hardest sandwich to get right: the and airiness with sturdiness had been wiped down and meatball sub. Still, it all went wrong when we got to the capable of holding juicy inall the different gadgets ingredient line. The vegetables looked sad. The sauces gredients. While it shouldn’t and machines were funclooked sterile. The meat looked beat.

Pictured here is the “Smokehouse Beef and Cheddar Brisket” from Firebe the star of the show, it house Subs. Photo by Alex Maisenhelder tional. The decor at FireWe tried to remain optimistic, but all that disinteneeds to be done correctly. house Subs was interestgrated: just like our bread. The bread was just not good Think of bread as the bass ing. It had the theme of a firehouse and even featured a enough to support the meatballs. The sauce soaked players of subs. If you have bad bread, you have a bad dalmatian wearing a fire hat. What’s not to love. through, leaving no crunch. It felt like eating an Italian sandwich.

Now, pardon the preamble, let’s talk about the star sea creature. The meatballs were small and insignifiTOPPINGS: The toppings give the sandwich its of the show: the food. cant. This is the only sandwich neither of us finished character. Of course, every sub is different in this After the wait, we received delicious looking food because we didn’t want to. department, and “good” toppings could be different for that we could not wait to dig into. The sandwiches had Furthermore, the service wasn’t great either. everyone. We will be assessing quality of ingredients a great appeal with a crisp sturdy looking bread, There was only one guy working there, firstly. Secondly, rather than taste to make this fair for all sandwiches. and tantalizing juicy meats, with delectable sauces when I ordered a specific combo from the menu, he ATMOSPHERE: Now the nitty gritty. If I am going carefully drizzled over the top; all of this proceeds to get didn’t even know that it existed. Strange. to be eating their food, I am going to be sitting (or at toasted, resulting in a mouth-watering sandwich, flavor We admit, not everything was wrong with Subway. least ordering in) in their restaurant. If the restaurant is filled in every bite.

Did you know they serve breakfast? We didn’t. Did you dirty, dingy, or downright boring, it will be much harder This sandwich did not disappoint, with the high know they have salads? Well, most other places have to be called the best of the best. quality ingredients, flavorful sauces, and the use of salads too, but no. Did you know their cookies are terriVARIETY: Spoiler Alert: Every place we went to herbs and other spices was a nice touch. The variety ble? No, I didn’t until I ate one. had sub sandwiches. Some places had unique ways of was good with plenty of On second setting themselves apart from the rest. While variety is sandwich choices and thought, maybe not inherently good, it does make it more likely somethe ability to customize everything is wrong one will find something they like. every sandwich. Drinks with Subway. The SERVICE: Even if I am getting a meatball sub with also had a good variety cost thankfully is on iceberg lettuce, spicy mustard, and extra pickles, I want with a Coke Freestyle the low end, but the to be treated fairly from the employee. Serving the cormachine, which was cost to quality ratio is rect food, having a decent attitude, and just doing a fine great to us. still completely out of job will give you full points.

We were both whack. While there COST: This is a sub sandwich. I do not want to satisfied with our are some things, like donate a kidney to afford your food. Enough said. sandwiches, the best their breakfast, that Now that our categories have been introduced, part being it did not sets them apart, who let’s get started. cost an arm and a leg cares? Their subs are to eat there either. Both bad. This is easily Firehouse Subs: Great Hot Subs meals coming in just the worst place we Firehouse Subs is most likely not one of the first around $10 which is went to. Do not go to places you think of for sub sandwiches, but it should definitely an acceptable Subway. Even for the be. Firehouse Subs is the newest franchise of the bunch. price to pay for this cookies.

They were founded only 25 years ago in Jacksonville, tasty meal. Firehouse Pictured here is a meatball sub with lettuce from Subway.

Yes, it tasted as gross as it Florida, but they have made their way into Canada, Subs is a great sub place looks. Yes, it went in my mouth. Photo by Trey Williams Puerto Rico, and different parts of the United States, to add to your list. most notably just up the road from our school.

Trey Williams and Alex Maisenhelder Op/Ed Editor and Online Managing Editor

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Entertainment delivered an experience unlike any other.

The cashier was fantastic. He was happy, cheerful, Jimmy John’s was stop number three. Known for exceptional at his job, and answered all our questions. their “freaky fast” subs, Jimmy John’s has been around He was pretty funny and accurate with our orders at since the early 80s, starting in Illinois. Over the last 30 the same time. The entire staff there truly seemed to years, Jimmy John’s has slowly but surely found themenjoy their job and enjoy their time there, unlike some selves as one of the top sub restaurants in the country.. of the other places we went to.

I have always loved the Jimmy John’s decor. The The decor was also very appealing, with little walls are packed with random interesting stuff. From snippets about some of their best selling and most Warren Buffet quotes to the classic “Free Smells” sign unique products. The entire establishment was clean on the outside of the store, I think that it is just fun to and tidy which helped them stand out in this category. look around. This parThe experience was amazing ticular Jimmy Johns was and already put them ahead of also easily the cleanest the rest. location, which was reBefore we get to the food, freshing. let’s talk about their variety, Still, this is a sub Penn Stations plethora of place, not an art museum. options and products is what The menu had many sub really put them ahead of a options, 17 to be exact. place like Firehouse Subs.

There are also six subs Penn Station was the only meant for kids. There are place we went to that offered also 4 types of bread, one freshly squeezed lemonade, of which literally replacactual cheesesteaks, and the ing the bread with lettuce. real kicker: french fries. These The service was smooth, three things have been staples nothing wrong with it, livof Penn Station since its very ing up to their hype with Pictured here is the “Italian Night Club” from Jimmy John’s. Photo by Trey first location in 1985. the speed of service.

The fries did not disapWilliams.

Our food was up point, in fact they perfectly to par. Nothing mind-blowing, but still good. The bread complemented the superb sandwiches we had. Grilled was easily the sturdiest of them all. I did not get wet inright in front of us, the meat sizzled and the toppings gredients, but I am sure it would be able to hold it well popped with the heat of the grill. After seeing what without becoming obnoxiously soggy. The bread did a appeared on our tables we knew this place was truly good job of being sturdy while still being easy to eat. special. The grilled ingredients resulted in far and away This is the perfect bread for something like a tuna sub, the best sandwich. The bread was exceptional, withif you’re into that. standing the juices of the meats and all of the sauces on The ingredients were also decent. Nothing to our sandwiches; the bread was solid, crisp, and tasty. knock my socks off, but it was extremely refreshing to We savored it down to the very last bite, afterwards go to a well-done cold sub place after Subway’s catastro- lamenting the newfound lack of sandwich. Penn Station phe. This sub was also one of the most filling. This was blew subway out of the water, brushed Jimmy Johns easily the heartiest sub of them all. Both of us have big aside, and pulled ahead of Firehouse with the true star appetites, and Jimmy Johns did the job in that aspect. of the show: the sub. Doing all of this for a relatively This was perhaps the least memorable sub I had, average price, with an eight-inch sub and fries costing but that is not something to be ashamed of. This is the just around $10 give or take. place to go if you want a good ol’ sub sandwich. JimIf you like sub sandwiches and you have not gone my Johns has no gimmicks, no unnecessary bells and to Penn Station, you are doing yourself a disservice. Go whistles. Just torpedoes. If you don’t need your sub there. Right now. I mean it. sandwich to do back-flips for you, this is the place to go.

Oh, and get the chips. It’s worth it.

Jimmy Johns: Simple but Tasty

How do they stack up?

Firehouse Subs:

Jimmy John’s:

Subway:

Penn Station:

Where are they?

Pictured above is a map delineating which specific location we traveled to, and its location relative to Parkway Central. This map has been included, given that your experience at different locations of the same franchise may not be consistent or comparable.

Penn Station: French Fries!

Penn Station was the last stop on our quest for the best sub sandwich place near the school. One question perplexed me when reading its name, why east coast subs? It turns out that the answer is far simpler than you may think, inspiration from Philadelphia and its signature cheesesteak. The founder Jeff Osterfield made a trip east in the time before Penn Station officially existed, he quickly realized the popularity of the sandwich and introduced it to his own restaurants, leading to the cheesesteak being one of the four original sandwiches sold at Penn Station. Even today the cashier at Penn Station remarked how the cheesesteak was still by far their most popular sandwich.

Subway and Jimmy Johns had not been able to reach the same level as Firehouse Subs, so Penn Station was the last hope of dethroning them and taking the title of best sub sandwich place. Neither of us had experienced Penn Station before, so we were hopeful that we would find a unique experience and tasty food.

The location we went to did not disappoint. They

long time. Coming all the way from its founding in Cincinnati, Ohio (no, this place was not founded in Pennsylvania. This blew my mind too), Penn Station made its way to Missouri. We were delighted by the food, the service, the atmosphere, and the overall quality of the establishment. Congratulations Penn Station.

Where does that put the other sub places? I think we made how we think of Subway pretty clear.

Firehouse Subs is a pretty good alternative to Penn Station if you don’t care about missing out on the fries.

Their subs are quality enough to warrant a visit. You shouldn’t write Jimmy Johns off either. Jimmy Johns is the place to go for cold, classic subs.

We have now served our community. We have done our duty. We answered our question. Now we must go to work on our next installment of Restaurant Rivalry. Till next time.

Vote on our next food?

Pictured here is the Reuben sandwivch from Penn Station. Photo by Trey Williams.

Which Sub Took the Dub? Penn Station was the unanimous winner for us. The sandwich destroyed the competition and the uniqueness of their fries set them apart, culminating in one of the best sub dining experiences we had had in a

Want to choose what category we eat next? Scan this QR code to tell us what you want reviewed next!

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Features

IMPRESSIONS OF TEACHERS Students give the 411 of their teachers this year

Gabby Abowitz

Features Editor and Art Director

Haley Lander is a sophomore this year and a teacher that has stuck out to her is Susan King. “On the first day of school Dr. King was very outgoing and energetic when other teachers weren’t,” Lander said.

Because of King’s positive spirit, Lander feels less worried and more excited for the upcoming year. Lander was also nervous for the upcoming year in math with Tom Schaefer. “On the first day we started doing all the work and told us all of these test dates and that kind of scared me,” Lander said.

Junior Victoria Ocana is a foreign exchange student from Spain. Ocana feels a special connection with her Spanish 4 teacher Andrea Williamson because, “She is my Spanish teacher and I am Spanish,” Ocana said. “She speaks Spanish to me which is really comforting,” Ocana said. Ocana also thinks that all of her teachers have been really nice and easy to get to know.

Senior Julian Couturier is a foreign exchange student from France. The teacher that has given him the best first impression has been history teacher, Ryan Banta. Couturier explains how the teachers here are very different from those in France. “The activities and energy in Mr. Banta’s classroom are infectious,” Couturier said.

Couturier was scared of Banta at first because he did not know him, but now he really enjoys the class.

Freshman Lucas Bernstein says he has connected with his Ac Lab teacher, Todd Pannett.“He is really nice, direct, and firm when he needs to be but he can still be a goofy guy,” Bernstein said. Bernstein also believes all of his teachers are very nice people. Some of his other favorite teachers include his biology teacher Jessica LaSota, and Ryan Banta because of their teaching styles. Bernstein believes that he got put with great teachers for the school year.

The best price of the year ends soon!

Order your Parkway Central yearbook by Sept. 30 for $55 and free personalization at yearbookordercenter.com

Junior Thomas Schwarb has had a unique experience from most students at Parkway Central, he has been homeschooled until this year. Schwarb has bonded with his Design arts teacher David Jafari over the interest of art. He also enjoys having Gina Caruso as his Geometry B teacher. “Ms. Caruso has been really good at being able to help students when they need it,” Schwarb said. When Schwarb was homeschooled everything was self-taught, “now there are teachers and other people here that can really help me,” Schwarb said.

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Entertainment

A FURRY FALL PLAY

The PCH Theatre play comes early, and welcomes a few new faces also a psychologically persuasive look at one man’s midlife crisis.”, whereas The New York Times remarks “Dramatic literature is stuffed with memorable love scenes.

But none is as immediately delicious and dizzy as the ails are wagging in the theatre department this one that begins the redeeming affair in A. R. Gurney’s month, as they gear up to get ready for this year’s new comedy, ‘Sylvia,’. Eileen Warburton of the 2nd Stofall play. Sylvia is a doggone funny show about ry Theatre declares, “’Sylvia’ is a love story, of course, an empty-nested couple in the city, and how a dog can or at least a story about a man’s relationship with one come between them and bring them together in ways of those magical animals people in stories so often meet they never could have imagined. just when they’re at a troubling crossroads in life, an This production marks a new beginning in the animal that is a guide to finding the best in ourselves.... theatre department, as we welcome in the new freshour propensity to project human characteristics and man class, with two freshmen motives onto our non-human managing to snag two lead companions is dramatized by “Sylvia’ is a love story, of roles. Harry Tiggard and Becca course, or at least a story about having the adopted dog played Lindbergh play both Greg, the by a sexy, adoring young woma man’s relationship with one of an.” husband, and Sylvia, the dog and titular character respecThe production of Sylvia those magical animals people in tively. Surprisingly, both fresh- stories so often meet just when both on and off Broadway was men are legacy theatre kids, not without controversy, howevalong with their older siblings, they’re at a troubling crossroads er. The play was rejected by sevsophomore Sky Tiggard, the eral producers, as it was thought in life.” show’s Master Carpenter, and that having a woman play a dog - Eileen Warburton junior Nicole Lindbergh, who was “sexist, as it equated a womalso happens to be in Sylvia, as an with a dog.” The playwright, Kate, Greg’s wife.

Gurney, didn’t seem to think this Although the fall play usually shows in late Noway, as he’s quoted that his play contains a “timely mesvember, it’s been pushed early this year, meaning the sage of the need to connect in an increasingly alien and new showdates are in late October, and shows will be impersonal world. There is a need to connect, not only held on Oct. 24, 25, and 26 at 7 p.m. Teasers will be held to a dog, but to other people through the dog.”

Oct. 23 during 6th and 8th block, so be sure to ask your teachers if they’re signed up.

CurtainUp called Sylvia “a delightful fantasy, but

Eva Deniszczuk Staff Reporter

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PING PONG CLUB SERVES TO CONNECT Alex Maisenhelder

Online Managing Editor

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ast-paced, high intensity, and competitive are just a few ways to describe Pingpong Club. Pingpong Club is a weekly club that meets every Monday after school on the lower floor of the science wing.

It originated as the idea of Kevin Thomas and Andrew Pottinger who both graduated this past year, but it is currently sponsored by social studies teacher Paige Stewart with senior Cody Zhang being its unofficial leader.

“The club was founded one day after me and Kevin Thomas were chilling at the YMCA and decided to play pingpong. We found ourselves immersed in trying to perfect spin, serving, and speed and soon set out on an expedition to increase our skills in the sport of table tennis.” Andrew Pottinger said.

Pottinger and Thomas were not alone in their desire to improve their pingpong skills, with the club growing rapidly in the weeks after its founding.

“McCarthy got another table, due to having a lot of players since there were a lot of kids wanting to play and the extra tables helped,” Stewart said.

Even with the three tables, there were still enough kids showing up every week that people still had to wait to play. Even with all of this competition, the social and laid back aspect of the club was also paramount.

“The club was founded for the sole purpose of being able to have fun and increase your skill in table tennis, as well as increase social interaction with our fellow peers of Parkway Central,” Pottinger said. “The thing I enjoyed most about the club was the laid backness, and the ability to be challenged by more experienced players, as well as help coach some of the newer players to the sport.”

With the influx of players there was bound to be a variance in the skill level of the participants.

“It makes me feel great when a student that is new to pingpong gets better and better every week and enjoys the sport as he learns” Zhang said.

Building on the idea of the community, newer players coming, playing, and improving will build the charisma of the group. For some even building friendships extending outside of the club.

“It helped me build lasting friendships with people I normally wouldn’t get to intact with in my daily classes, as well as looking for more

opportunities in my community as well as my college to start and join table tennis clubs” Pottinger said.

Building friendships with people you would not normally see or talk to is one of the desires Pottinger and Thomas had when founding the club. Building these friendships also allows people to enjoy the club more if they enjoy being around the other members of the club.

All this talk about pingpong, also known as Table Tennis, but what is it? In the simplest terms it is exactly as the name implies, it is table-sized tennis. It is roughly nine feet long and five feet wide, with a six inch high net stretching across the middle.

The goal being to volley the ball back and forth over the net not allowing the ball to bounce more than once on your side of the table. Simple in concept, but takes time to master all the different possible serves, spins, and techniques of the game.

Sophomore Vassili Georges prepares to return the ball during a volley. Georges is very focused and ready to win the point. Photo

by Alex Maisenhelder.

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PSA

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Features

OLD TEACHERS, NEW NAMES 1

Adapting to teacher last name changes

Brooke Kraizer Staff reporter

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ew backpack, new school supplies, new teachers.

Or old teachers with NEW last names. Business teacher Sarah Hale and math teacher Heather Jafari both changed their last names during the summer after getting married late last school year and during the summer.

It’s been an adjustment for everyone, including themselves.

For newer students, it has been easy for them to go by Hale instead of Lueken, but the students who have already had her or know her… that isn’t the case, Hale said. She also said that even teachers refer to her as Lueken by accident. When asked who it was most difficult to adapt, business teacher Kim Carr took the words right out of Hale’s mouth and said “Me, even though I was in her wedding.” Hale’s own children were even concerned about her students’ reactions.

“I didn’t talk to my kids about me changing my last name until the week of the wedding. When I told them the first thing my son said to me was ‘Do your students know about this? Will they know who you are?’ Super cute and he was worried about that, but they have been fine with the name change,” Hale said.

Hale also mentions how sometimes she trips herself up due to the fact that Infinite Campus and online it refers to Lueken. When schedules came out she was also referred to as Lueken which she said is kind of

funny but gave her students reassurance that she was still there and that nothing had changed.

Unlike Hale who has students adjusting, Jafari has students that have been with her for a long time that “refuse” to call her Jafari and stick with what they know.

“Beal was one of the first teachers I met when I went to high school, so I’ve been calling her beal for a long time.” Sophie Sokolik said. Sokolik also played basketball last season so she spent more time with Jafari.

“When you call someone the same name for so long it’s weird to call her something else,” Sokolik said.

Although Jafari doesn’t necessarily have a preference on what students call her, she says she somewhat struggles with responding to Jafari, simply because she has been referred to by her last name Beal her whole life, even by her friends.

“Athletes still refer to me as Beal, most times if they say Jafari it is jokingly,” Jafari said.

Her last name was officially changed in June, but on schedules, like Hale, it still showed her maiden name. This was mostly confusing to Jafari because on her end it was changed. Because she was unaware of this on the first day of school she had newer students still referring to her as Beal.

“I had newer students coming in referring to me as Beal instead of Jafari,” Jafari said. Once this was figured out, the name sign on her door was changed so it has Beal and Jafari on it.

Hewitt was married towards the end of last school

year but decided to wait to change names until the new school year. She said she doesn’t mind when people call her Duncan, she is just caught off guard sometimes. The change has been positive for most because all of the newer students just adjust and call her Hewitt. Along with the other two, she said that her co-workers have had the hardest time out off everyone to adjust.

1: Math teacher Heather Jafari teaches her math class. Photo by Brooke Kraizer 2: Business teacher Sarah Hale gets recognized for organizing Day of Service. Photo by Christine Stricker 3: Science teacher Nicole Hewitt helps Sophomore Jeremy Emch photo by Brooke Kraizer

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STUDENTS SHARE SUMMER WORK TALES Abby Prywitch Managing Editor

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olfer Campbell Marino, a junior, made a transition from Subway to the fairway.

“I am not going to continue working during the school year because of my golf schedule. Once golf is over I would like to start working there again,” Marino said. During summer break, like Marino, a lot of students worked.

She worked at Subway and had many responsibilities there, as she did all of the different jobs. From making sandwiches to cleaning at the end of the night, Marino did it all.

“My favorite part of my job is how laid back it is and although I have to do a lot it’s not hard to do,” Marino said.

Senior Corbett Harris spent part of her summer teaching kids how to swim through the Parkway swim club.

“I spent time at the PCH pool for three rounds of summer camp for Green Trails kids to come and learn to swim and have fun in the water,” Harris said.

During her time teaching she taught the campers stroke technique, dives, and other basic skills. Harris will start working with swimmers again soon, but this time only on Saturday mornings.

“This class is different because it involves coaching race skills for swimming and higher level kids who

enroll in the Parkway Swim Club team,” Harris said.

Every job comes along with fun memories and stories. For Harris, a memorable experience was a conversation she had with one of the girls she taught.

“One day I worked with a little girl who spent the whole 30 minutes talking about if unicorns and mermaids are real. I actually really enjoyed this conversation,” Harris said. Like Harris, junior Ellie Mueller has a lot of stories from her experiences at Waterway.

“A minivan came in for our most popular wash and left their kid strapped in the booster seat. He looked terrified the whole time,” Mueller said. Her favorite part about working at Waterway is working with kids her age and the overall environment.

Senior Devarshi Patra took on two jobs this summer. He worked as both a High School Assistant at Ross Elementary for summer school and as a youth sports official at the YMCA. At Ross Elementary Patra was responsible for helping the kids with their activities, helping them find their busses and helping the teachers set up activities.

His favorite part was helping the younger grades with their activities.

“They were always excited to see me and they thought I was a genius when I answered their questions. They also thought I was super cool which checks out,” Patra said.

For his second job, Patra officiated the different sports that are played through the YMCA. In the

summer he was an umpire for baseball. He plans on keeping this job throughout the school year, and will be a soccer ref during the fall season.

Junior Halle Tucker worked as a camp counselor this summer, at Camp Emeth. Camp Emeth is a day camp, where Tucker worked with fifth and sixth graders. Her favorite part of the job was getting to know all of the campers and becoming friends with them.

“It’s like a family when you’re there and it makes everyone feel special,” Tucker said.

Junior Halle Tucker poses with the net at the day camp she worked at over the summer. The net is awarded to one counselor each day who stood out.

Photo courtesy of Halle Tucker.

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Spotlight

FOR THE FIRST TIME:

Physics taught by a math teachert Taylor Stern Staff Writer

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ith the departure of one of Parkway Central’s science teachers last year, an open spot was in the need of being filled.

Luckily, the science department didn;t have to look very far. As of the current school year, Physics, the science class, is now also being taught by a math teacher. The change has seemed to be very well received by students and has also succeeded in taking a load off of the primary physics teachers in Parkway Central’s science department.

Joining the current trio of Physics teachers made up of Ryan King, Jennifer Meyer, and Chris Ramming, Hannah Merriman is now also a part of the science mix. Along with every other course, a person cannot teach the class without first earning a certification in the subject. The certification requires that the aspiring teacher has to pass a physics exam that tests expertise in classical mechanics, modern physics, thermodynamics (the relationships of all energy forms) and experimentation. There is also a followup teacher knowledge exam that covers classroom delivery methods, management and learning assessment.

“The school had more people signed up to take physics than normal and some of the science teachers knew I was certified in physics so they asked if I would do it,” Merriman said. “I wanted to, so I said yes.”

The reason so many students were expected to take physics this school year is because of the recent change in the science curriculum. Starting in the 2017-2018 school year, incoming freshmen were to take biology, sophomores were to take chemistry, and juniors were to take physics. At the time of the switch, the freshmen and sophomore classes both had to take biology at the same time, creating somewhat of a bubble year.

Background Picture: Hannah Merriman poses for a picture in her new science classroom. Photo courtesy of Christine Stricker

“The reason we have the need for more physics teachers is because there’s double the amount of students taking the course this year because the curriculum changed,” King said.

With the added help of Merriman’s teaching, King is responsible for teaching three regular Physics classes and one Principles of Physics class, Meyer teaches one Principle of Physics class, two AP Physics 1 classes, and 1 AP Physics 2 class. Ramming, a part-time teacher who has previously taught for more than 50 years, teaches two regular Physics classes, and Merriman has taken on two Regular physics classes as well. With that, Merriman still teaches 4 other math classes: 3 AP Statistics classes and one Algebra 1 class.

“I heard about the change last year when they were trying to find more physics teachers,” junior Sophie Sokolik, a student in Merriman’s class said. “The change makes sense because math and physics really go together. A lot of stuff I’ve learned in Physics are things I’ve done in math classes before so it makes sense for them to go hand-in-hand.”

Luckily, Merriman has been just as happy about the change as everyone else involved.

“I really enjoy physics which is why I got the certification, so it’s a nice change of pace for me and I think it’s a really fun subject,” Merriman said.

Because she now teaches classes in two separate subjects, she is consequently a member of the two separate departments, math and science. In the beginning of the year, she was required to meet with both departments but because she’s primarily a math teacher, she doesn’t need to attend all of the full department meetings.

“The science department is very welcoming,” Merriman said.