Alexa Lysik Portfolio

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STUDENT JOURNALIST STAFF PORTFOLIO Grosse Pointe South High School

{ ’15 { TABLE OF CONTENTS

1......Elizabeth Sheeren, In Depth | Editing/Writing 2......(con’t) In Depth 3......Gabi de Coster Feature | Design/Writing 4......(con’t) Feature 5......Affirmative Action/Quotas, In Depth | Law and Ethics 6......(con’t) In Depth 7......Plagiarism, Front Page | Design 8......Cost of Being a Senior | Design 9......Valedictorian, Story | Writing 10......(con’t) Story 11......Valentine’s Day | Leadership & Team Building 12......(con’t) Story 13......Christmas Spread | Design 14......Tower Pamphlet | Leadership & Team Building 15......New Computers, News Story | Writing 16......Volunteering, Column | Writing 17......Reflection on Leadership | Leadership & Team Building

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PDF of Page that was published

THE TOWER (If a written submission, a copy of the text follows)

Alexa Lysik Editor-in-Chief

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio

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MICHIGAN

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2015

table of contents

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Personal Explanation

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Student Journalist Staff Portfolio

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he went from participating in a mainstage opera with the Michigan Opera Theatre alongside performers from all over the world to being bedridden a month later. But Elizabeth Sheeren ’18 has maintained strong faith throughout her entire medical journey.

Sheeren has an overlapping connective tissue disease so rare in the medical field, it might one day be named after her.

“I have a very complex and rare condition,” Sheeren said. “I have multiple autoimmune diseases, which is where your immune system attacks your body. (It involves) my connective tissue, and that affects everything - my brain, my joints, my heart, my intestines, my everything.”

In addition to that, Sheeren also has Autoimmune Encephalitis, an inflammation of

the brain, where antibodies, usually used to fight off infections, instead attack her brain.

In 2011, when she was in 6th grade, was when Sheeren started getting sick, Julie Sheeren, Elizabeth’s mother, said. After developing a lot of different gastrointestinal symptoms, Elizabeth was diagnosed with an autoimmune connective disease at that point thought to be systemic sclerosis.

The Sheerens started off at Cleveland Clinic, and then went to Hospital for Special Surgery in New York affiliated with Cornell Medical School, Julie said. Elizabeth’s medical care is centered at CS Mott Children’s Hospital at U-M, but they have also consulted with Boston Children’s Hospital. Her team at Mott consults with Duke Children’s Autoimmune Brain Disease Program.

Aside from her nervous system and

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thinking being off, Sheeren also had a lot of debilitating fatigue, to the point where just walking down the stairs would make her want to go sleep for five hours, she said.

She developed migraines, where she would have a bad headache and feel dizzy, nauseous and have trouble reading, speaking and remembering.

The family went to U-M in the beginning of April 2012, where, Sheeren was admitted and working with a team of doctors, was diagnosed with systemic scleroderma, and Dysautonomia - the autonomic nervous system dysfunction, Julie said. They now believe she has a connective tissue disease that may be her own.

Starting in February 2013, Elizabeth did seven months of chemotherapy and high dose steroids, Julie said.

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editing | writing

Elizabeth got better after receiving chemo. Instead of going to passion is to pursue medicine. school for only an hour at a time, Sheeren began going to school for “I go to school for four hours,” Elizabeth said, “which, in three two or three hours, she said. Then, all of a sudden, symptoms started years, is the longest I’ve made it to school.” becoming more apparent again.

Before being diagnosed, Sheeren did a lot of theatre, choir and Doctors decided to start an IVIG - intravenous immune globu- singing opera. In 2011 right before the illness started, she was in lin, a collection of all different antibodies from over 1,000 donors, “The Music Man” at the Grosse Pointe Theatre, and then Carmina Sheeren said. These are healthy antibodies that people have within Burana downtown at the same time, Sheeren said. She also played their immune system. She began this in January 2014. Her admis- soccer, and despite not being the most athletic person, she enjoys sion to the CS Mott Children’s Hospital at U-M this week will be her watching U-M football. Sheeren also took voice and piano lessons, eleventh infusion this year. and liked taking art classes before her diagnosis. “(To) the bad antibodies that might attach to healthy neurorecep“It can be very isolating, because all of a sudden, you’re not doing tors, they attach megadoses of immunoglobulins from the IVIG,” your favorite activities with your friends,” Julie said. “All of a sudden Julie said. “Because there’s so much circulating, they (bad antibod- you’re not doing any of that, and you’re not at school, and you can’t ies) are going to attach to those instead of attaching to the good do art or music, the things that are your passions. That’s been the neuroreceptors and damaging the brain. It’s not curative, it’s some- great thing about South is being able to be involved.” thing that you have to sustain. It’s pooled from thousands of healthy Now, Sheeren is a Student Council senator for the Freshman class, donors, processed and purified, and you get it from blood donors and this has even been the first year she’s been able to be involved in but also plasma donors.” her bible study youth group at Grace Community Church.

For the first six months, Elizabeth started receiving five days of Through the hospital, however, music and art therapy is offered, these infusions every four weeks, she said. Because that is a lot of through which she’s learned to play the ukulele, as well as explore school to miss, they tried to space out the treatments to every six painting and photography. Sheeren was a speaker at a Nov. 15 fundweeks, but her symptoms would return. Now she receives a week raiser called Save a Heart on behalf of the hospital to advocate for of treatment every five weeks. The infusions last between 12 and 14 this Child Life programming that provides these artistic services. hours long, Julie said.

Two pieces of her art, a painting and a photograph, were auctioned What makes it really challenging too for Sheeren, is that sleep off at the event. doesn’t fix it, she said. It can help it, but it’s not going to take it away.

Her supportive friends even come to visit her when she’s in the “The truth is, I am tired all the time,” hospital, Sheeren said, which she parSheeren said. “And sometimes, I’m ticularly appreciates because it’s in more tired than others, but I’ve always Ann Arbor, about an hour away. got this baseline of terrible fatigue.

“She’s always connected deeply with Being grounded in her faith has When you’re sick and you have the flu people,” Julie said, “we’ve always loved really sustained her. and you feel as though you can’t get that she’s had these great friends.” out of bed that day, that’s when I feel The big thing is that Elizabeth’s at my best.”

JULIE SHEEREN friends treat her normal, she said.

However, despite being consistently They don’t talk to her any differently.

Elizabeth’s Mother She has a core group of friends, who exhausted, the thing that Elizabeth’s doctors really appreciate and admire have stuck by her, and in return, they about her because they work with a have all become closer. spectrum of teenagers, is that she’s so “Elizabeth has been truly amazing,” driven to pursue her education, Julie said. Even in planning for high Julie said. “My husband and I are just blown away with how she has school and being a freshman, she was adamant that she wanted to been. Being grounded in her faith has really sustained her because stay in honors classes. from the very beginning, she’s been strong because of that. She’s Elizabeth was an honors student before her illness, and though really trusted God through the whole thing, and that has helped her, she’s had cognitive changes, she’s made some great adaptations to because there’s been so many questions that we’ve had medically them, Julie said. However, it can also be frustrating too, because going through, and so many that have been unanswered, and that is she never needed help before. Even so, there’s a lot of teenagers that hard as adults, as parents who want to help her.” would take advantage potentially of the situation, ‘I don’t want to Julie said she has been amazed by Elizabeth’s strength because of take that test’ or ‘I’ll just do regular’. her faith, her positive attitude, and not giving up. Sheeren makes “That’s been a great thing to see that she’s still fighting to figure something good out of something that has been so difficult. out how she can do these things and stay in the classes she wants Elizabeth’s faith has always been a big part of her life, but now to be in and even running for Student Council,” Julie said. “Stuff more so than ever, she said. It’s really the tough situations that brings like that is really amazing because it is challenging, and it’s unpre- a person closer to God, their friends and their family. Although it dictable. Even as a family, when we want to plan dinner for next may seem like a terrible situation, a lot of good can come out of it. weekend, you never really know how Elizabeth’s going to feel and It’s just a greater opportunity to trust God. if it’s going to be a good day or a bad day and yet, the fact that she’s In the future, Elizabeth hopes to attend U-M, where her oldest pushing through and saying ‘no, I’m going to do this’ or ‘I want to brother is, in order to become a pediatric neuro-immunologist. take this class.’”

“If I follow that plan, I will be in school for a long time,” Sheeren Elizabeth is in Honors Freshman English, Honors Earth Science said with a laugh. and Honors World History at school, she said. Her fourth hour is a Sheeren would tell other kids with similar illnesses who may not skills support class. From home, a teacher comes over two or three have the faith she has, to never give up. times a week to teach her Geometry CP, and though she wanted to “You have to keep on fighting and trying, and you have to stand be in Honors Geometry, she thoroughly enjoys CP. She also wanted up for yourself,” Sheeren said. “You can’t just let this disease take to be in Honors Biology, but because it is such a rigorous class and control of you, who you are. You can’t let it defeat your spirit. It she knew her school attendance would be sporadic, she decided should change you in some ways, but it shouldn’t change who you on Earth Science. This was a little disappointing since Elizabeth’s are.”

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This issue ran a week after Thanksgiving break. We were lacking on content, so I decided to step up and write a story for deadline.

The biggest struggle for this piece was finishing it in a weekend - including the interview - and maintaining journalistic integrity. The mother of this student was concerned about revealing too much information in a school newspaper, so I had to balance ethical guidelines while respecting the family’s wishes for privacy.

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feature

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

pucker up:

Sophomore makes, sells natural lip butters

BY ALEXA LYSIK ’15 / Page Editor Creating almost 19 different flavors of lip butter and selling her products in local shops, Gabi de Coster ’16 became an entrepreneur at only 15 years old. She molded her passion for graphic design and entrepreneurship into Deco Naturals, a collection of allnatural beauty products.

In August of 2013, she began developing her logo and her formulas, de Coster said. It was not until November of that year that she started to have a product available for local shops.

“I love lip balms and I spent a lot of money on that, but I was always very unsatisfied with the results I was getting,” said de Coster. “So that was the product I first wanted to start with because I really loved it myself.”

After doing research online before starting out, de Coster said she took that knowledge, applied it to her own business and dedicated a day to experimenting with different proportions of ingredients. Once she found a formula she loved, she kept it and it continues to be the formula used today.

The first steps were coming up with her business name, Deco Naturals, and creating a design, de Coster said.

She found a supplier and ordered the all-natural ingredients online.

“Our formula is 100% natural and semi-organic,” said de Coster. “It is a combination of all-natural butters, waxes, and oils in the right proportions to get it in the right consistency that I like.”

For butters, de Coster uses shea butter and cocoa butter as moisturizers, she said. Beeswax locks in the moisture and provides a firm base for the entire product. de Coster also utilizes a variety of oils including jojoba oil, coconut oil, vitamin E oil, as well as all natural, essential oils and flavor oils. de Coster has to dedicate an entire day at a time to making large quantities of her lip balm, she said.

Essentially, the waxes and butters are melted. She adds flavor oils, colorants, and vitamin E, so the product lasts longer. Once the melting is complete, she uses a pipette to put the product

into individual tubes. de Coster complies with all regulations regarding the quality and appearance of her product.

“Most of the FDA regulations are in regard to the packaging,” said de Coster. “I am using all safe ingredients; none are against the FDA standards. Where the FDA really comes in, is that I need to be labeling my products correctly so that people are correctly informed of what is inside my product. I comply with all of that in that I list all of the ingredients that we use in the correct order.” de Coster takes pride in the fact that all aspects of her business are her work, she said. She does not take shortcuts with Deco Naturals. de Coster handcrafts the product, have been complying with the price, designs all the packaging, and labels she said. However, people do not necall of the products: each task accom- essarily need to go to the store to buy plished is a direct result of her work. the product; they can also purchase To start out, de Coster created three the lip butter directly from de Coster. holiday flavors: Spiced Apple, Cran“Usually it is the store that requests berry and Peppermint. what flavor they want,” said de Coster.

“Those three flavors were sold at “Village Palm has all 16 flavors. El’s Village Palm and El’s Boutique,” said Boutique only wanted about eight of de Coster. “After that, that’s when the 16. At Pretty Things, they also sell I started to change the logo and lip butter sets by me - which are six lip develop a much more modern design, butters in a little gift set.” one that I was All in all, more happy with. de Coster said I love lip balms and I I came out with her invenspent a lot of money on 16 more flavors tory in stores that, but I was always and I expanded depends on into two more very unsatisfied with the what the store locations.” envisions, results I was getting. So As of now, de and the store that was the product I Coster said the lip decides what first wanted to start with flavors they butters are sold at because I really loved it Village Palm, El’s think would myself.

Boutique, Pretty best fit their Things Boutique, customers. and Studio Five GABI DE COSTER ’16 “I like to sell Salon, which are locally manuall, for the most part, local shops. factured or designed products,” said “Once you tell the customer that it Durand. “I also like the fact that she is a local high schooler that is making is a high schooler and she’s got a busithem and marketing them and selling ness . . . her lip balms are really cute them, they like it even more,” said and the flavors are great and the packEllen Durand, owner of El’s Boutique. aging is really nice.”

“I always make sure I tell people that Although sounding like a holiday because I think that encourages them flavor, de Coster believes Peppermint to support it and buy it.” is her top seller, simply because it is de Coster suggests to the store that such a classic flavor, she said. the retail price be $3.50 per tube, and However, Black Raspberry, Black while it is ultimately up to them, they Cherry, and Orange Creamsicle are

“

Photo taken by ALEXA LYSIK ’15

popular as well, de Coster said. Now, with the temperatures warming up, she anticipates that flavors like Key Lime, Pina Colada, and the company’s more tropical variations to be selling a bit better than the ones that might be associated with winter.

While she does not think she could expand much more on the lip butters, Deco Naturals is coming out with a new product, an all-natural lip scrub.

This is not in stores yet.

Especially after the cold winter months, people have dry, cracked lips, de Coster said. What a lip scrub does is it exfoliates the dead skin away.

Being in business himself, Gabi’s father, Sebastian de Coster said he helps to guide her in her endeavors as much as possible. For his daughter’s business, though unpredictable whether she will continue Deco Naturals in the future, the sky is the limit because of her business experience at such a young age “Ultimately it’s her business, and we let her make her own choices, we let her fail, we let her succeed so she learns from both the successes and failures and it molds her,” said Sebastian. “She’s so determined . . . she’s very creative; clearly I think that comes out. She’s just motivated.”

Deco’s website is deconaturals. moonfruit.com. To order lip butters or Shea lip scrubs, de Coster can be contacted at deconaturals@gmail. com, @deconaturals, or on her Facebook page, Deco Naturals.

Moving to Grosse Pointe proves to be a memorable experience for artist

BY MEG PHILLIPS ’14 / Associate Editor Moving from South Africa to Grosse Pointe for a year, Lucy Stoneley ’16 knew that her stay would be brief. Despite preparing for a move to Shanghai, China next year, she decided to make the most of her stay and fully experience the unique culture that Detroit has to offer.

Through her English class’s 20 Time Project, Lucy said she began taking pictures of everyday Detroiters at locations such as Eastern Market. These pictures will eventually be compiled into a story book.

“It’s something I’m doing for the 20 Time Project, but it’s also something I’m doing for fun,” said Lucy.

“I knew I wasn’t going to be here long, so I wanted to experience the culture while I could; I wanted to take that with me. And I knew there would be opportunities for photography, since Detroit’s such a cool city.”

So far, her photographs have won a Silver Key and two Honorable Mentions from the Scholastic Art Awards, and are now being displayed in the Detroit Institute of Arts, she said.

Growing up, Lucy’s father was always interested in photography, she said. Although she began to enjoy it a young age, she was never able to take any classes to fully explore it at her previous schools.

Her mother, Mary Stoneley, said she full-heartedly supports Lucy’s photography, and has enjoyed watching her grow artistically.

“She expresses her creativity through photography,” said Mary. “She tries to capture the mood of the people and places she photographs, and she will certainly continue her photography studies at her new school in Shanghai.”

Due to her father’s job, moving to Shanghai will be the sixth time that Lucy has moved during her lifetime, Mary said. Although she was born in Vancouver, Canada, she has so far lived in Ontario twice, Michigan twice, and Johannesburg, South Africa for the past three years.

“It’s my dad’s job; we don’t choose to move, but we just go where his job takes him,” said Lucy. “My dad works for Ford, and his job just keeps switching.

He was in charge of International Business here, and then he was Ford’s Vice President in South Africa, and now he is the Vice President of Ford in Asia and the Pacific.”

Lucy said her favorite place she has lived is South Africa.

“It was really cool to learn about the different cultures and to really experience it firsthand instead of just going on a trip there,” said Lucy. “It gave me an opportunity to see that part of the world . . .”

While in South Africa, Lucy was able to truly

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get a feel for the country through volunteering and traveling.

“I did a lot of charity work, especially in Township schools, which are in the slums,” Lucy said.

“And we traveled to other countries, like Botswana, Mozambique, Zambia and places like Durbin and Capetown. Capetown was my favorite; it’s so pretty.”

In Johannesburg, she attended an International school, which had students from 85 different countries. Like her, the majority of students were only staying in South Africa for a few years.

“My friends were from all over, so I got to learn about not just Africa but other parts of the world, too, which is cool,” said Lucy. “It was easy to make friends because everyone was away from their original home, so everyone was kind of new.”

Although she misses this aspect of her old school, Lucy said there are definitely parts of South that she enjoys.

“South is a lot more free; you can come and go easier,” said Lucy. “You couldn’t really just walk off of the property at my other school because it was too dangerous. So here it’s nice because I can just come and go. And they have a lot more courses here than in Africa, because it’s a bigger school.”

She also likes that Grosse Pointe has a better sense of community than her old neighborhood due to the lack of a language barrier. In South Africa, she barely knew her neighbors since they spoke a different language and attended a different school.

Although she realizes that moving to China will be a major adjustment, Lucy said she is extremely excited to live somewhere so unique.

“It’s going to be a lot different because I’m going to have to learn Mandarin, because it’s not like Africa where people speak English,” said Lucy.

Mary emphasized what a positive effect traveling has had on Lucy.

“Frequently moving has made Lucy independent and given her an insightful and balanced view of the world,” said Mary. “When we move to Shanghai this year, she will have lived in three separate continents in the span of a year, and she has friends from all over the world.”

In the future, Lucy said she will probably attend some sort of college or art school in either Canada or Europe, though she is leaning towards Canada due to the amount of family she has there. Either way, though, she definitely plans on exploring Photo courtesy of LUCY STONELEY ’16 photography.

“I like photography because it’s a really broad CANDID / Due to her dad’s job, Lucy Stoneley ’16 moved to Michigan her sophomore year. hobby; there’s so much room for creativity and She has taken advantage of this opportunity by bringing out her artistic side. Her photos have kind of your own style,” said Lucy. “I like to capture won multiple awards and her work is now being displayed at the Detroit Institute of Arts. moments and different people.”

reating almost 19 different flavors of lip butter and selling her products in local shops, Gabi de Coster ’16 became an entrepreneur at only 15 years old. She molded her passion for graphic design and entrepreneurship into Deco Naturals, a collection of all-natural beauty products.

In August of 2013, she began developing her logo and her formulas, de Coster said. It was not until November of that year that she started to have a product available for local shops.

“I love lip balms and I spent a lot of

“

I had always written more news stories than features, so I had some difficulty making the story flow like a feature.

When I decided to write this story, I knew it would be something new amd I wanted to expand my experienes as a writer before applying for Editorin-Chief. I liked how the design came out; I needed both vertical and horizontal elements.

money on that, but I was always very unsatisfied with the results I was getting,” said de Coster. “So that was the product I first wanted to start with because I really loved it myself.”

After doing research online before starting out, de Coster said she took that knowledge, applied it to her own business and dedicated a day to experimenting with different proportions of ingredients. Once she found a formula she loved, she kept it and it continues to be the formula used today.

The first steps were coming up with her business name, Deco Naturals, and creating a design, de Coster said. She

”

found a supplier and ordered the all-natural ingredients online.

“Our formula is 100% natural and semi-organic,” said de Coster. “It is a combination of all-natural butters, waxes, and oils in the right proportions to get it in the right consistency that I like.”

For butters, de Coster uses shea butter and cocoa butter as moisturizers, she said. Beeswax locks in the moisture and provides a firm base for the entire product. de Coster also utilizes a variety of oils including jojoba oil, coconut oil, vitamin E oil, as well as all natural,

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 3

design | writing

essential oils and flavor oils. said de Coster. “Village Palm has all 16 flavors. El’s Boutique de Coster has to dedicate an entire day at a time to making only wanted about eight of the 16. At Pretty Things, they also large quantities of her lip balm, she said. Essentially, the sell lip butter sets by me - which are six lip butters in a little waxes and butters are melted. She adds flavor oils, colorants, gift set.” and vitamin E, so the product lasts longer. Once the melting All in all, de Coster said her inventory in stores depends is complete, she uses a pipette to put the product into indi- on what the store envisions, and the store decides what flavors vidual tubes. they think would best fit their customers. de Coster complies with all regulations regarding the “I like to sell locally manufactured or designed products,” quality and appearance of her product. said Durand. “I also like the fact that she is a high schooler “Most of the FDA regulations are in regard to the packag- and she’s got a business . . . her lip balms are really cute and ing,” said de Coster. “I am using all safe ingredients; none are the flavors are great and the packaging is really nice.” against the FDA standards. Where the FDA really comes in, is Although sounding like a holiday flavor, de Coster believes that I need to be labeling my products correctly so that people Peppermint is her top seller, simply because it is such a classic are correctly informed of what is inside my product. I comply flavor, she said. with all of that in that I list all of the ingredients that we use However, Black Raspberry, Black Cherry, and Orange in the correct order.”

Creamsicle are popular as well, de Coster said. Now, with the de Coster takes pride in the fact that all aspects of her busi- temperatures warming up, she anticipates that flavors like ness are her work, she said. She Key Lime, Pina Colada, and the does not take shortcuts with Deco company’s more tropical variaNaturals. de Coster handcrafts the tions to be selling a bit better than She’s so determined...she’s very product, designs all the packaging, the ones that might be associated creative, clearly I think that comes and labels all of the products: each with winter. task accomplished is a direct result While she does not think she out. She’s just motivated. of her work. could expand much more on SEBASTIAN DE COSTER the lip butters, Deco Naturals is To start out, de Coster created three holiday flavors: Spiced Apple, Gabi’s Father coming out with a new product, Cranberry and Peppermint. an all-natural lip scrub. This is not “Those three flavors were sold in stores yet. at Village Palm and El’s Boutique,” Especially after the cold winter said de Coster. “After that, that’s when I started to change months, people have dry, cracked lips, de Coster said. What the logo and develop a much more modern design, one that a lip scrub does is it exfoliates the dead skin away.

I was more happy with. I came out with 16 more flavors and I Being in business himself, Gabi’s father, Sebastian de expanded into two more locations.”

Coster said he helps to guide her in her endeavors as much As of now, de Coster said the lip butters are sold at Village as possible. For his daughter’s business, though unpredictable Palm, El’s Boutique, Pretty Things Boutique, and Studio Five whether she will continue Deco Naturals in the future, the Salon, which are all, for the most part, local shops. sky is the limit because of her business experience at such a “Once you tell the customer that it is a local high schooler young age that is making them and marketing them and selling them, “Ultimately it’s her business, and we let her make her own they like it even more,” said Ellen Durand, owner of El’s Bou- choices, we let her fail, we let her succeed so she learns from tique. “I always make sure I tell people that because I think both the successes and failures and it molds her,” said Sebasthat encourages them to support it and buy it.” tian. “She’s so determined . . . she’s very creative; clearly I de Coster suggests to the store that the retail price be $3.50 think that comes out. She’s just motivated.”

Deco’s website is deconaturals.moonfruit.com. To order per tube, and while it is ultimately up to them, they have been lip butters or Shea lip scrubs, de Coster can be contacted at complying with the price, she said. However, people do not deconaturals@gmail.com, @deconaturals, or on her Facenecessarily need to go to the store to buy the product; they book page, Deco Naturals. can also purchase the lip butter directly from de Coster.

“Usually it is the store that requests what flavor they want,”

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hen considering admission of an applicant, universities can no longer legally take into account race or ethnic background. Yet the debate remains whether or not colleges actually abide by this law, or if there are other ways around it.

The State of Michigan’s Proposal 2 was adopted by Michigan voters on Nov. 7, 2006, and took effect in late December, of that year according to University of Michigan’s (U-M) online response. When contacted, U-M declined to comment on this issue.

“It’s a very complex issue and it’s one that gets discussed all the time; it’s never going to go away,” said Senior Associate Director of Admissions at Michigan State University (MSU) Mike Cook. “The fact of the matter is that it’s against the law to use race and to have quotas for students of color. If you have a

quota, that would indicate that you are trying to enroll a specific group of students from a different ethnic group.”

History of Affirmative Action The question of quotas came up in 1978 in the case Bakke vs. University of California, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan’s Racial Justice Project staff attorney Mark Fancher said. A white male sued the university because he believed that affirmative action was being used in a way that was discriminatory against him. However, while the Court said that quotas are not constitutional, affirmative action is legitimate if it’s done in the way that they outlined, added Fancher.

“There is a lot of discussion about it (quotas) and that’s usually because people don’t really understand what affirmative action is, at least in the way that the Supreme Court has defined it,” said Fancher. “ACLU’s

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mission is to protect everyone’s constitutional rights and the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled ... that affirmative action is a constitutional method for universities to ensure that their student populations are diverse.”

The issue was brought up in Michigan when a lawsuit against U-M was filed by a graduate student that was not admitted, Cook said. The lawsuit went to the Supreme Court. The decision eventually was that race should not be used, and all the universities in Michigan, if they are complying with the law, are not using race as a factor in making an admissions decision.

Race is never regarded as the defining factor in terms of whether someone gets admitted or not, Fancher said. It is included as one of a whole range of factors that the university can consider when it is looking at an applicant.

“We never had quotas,” said Cook.

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 5

law & ethics

“Michigan State University always reviewed applications in a holistic manner which means that we looked at everything in a student’s application file: grades, their geographical information ... When Proposal 2 passed ... it specifically outlawed the use of race so we make decisions in the blind when it comes to race or ethnic information.”

One of the things that drove Proposal 2 was the belief that people were unjustly getting special (continued) treatment because of their race, Fancher said. However, most universities will never admit any student who is not qualified or capable.

“It doesn’t help the university to admit someone who is not capable,” said Fancher. “It reflects badly on the university, regardless of the race of the student ... Even if they do admit someone that is not qualified, that’s the extent of the assistance they can provide.

Because once the student gets there, they are going to rise or fall based on their own merit. What affirmative action does ... is it gives somebody a shot.”

Most higher institutions want to reflect society, Cook said. Certainly MSU wants to have a diverse student body, but that’s not only speaking of race, that could also be speaking of geography, he added.

“We want students from the U.P., we want students from China and from Mexico and we want students from California and Florida so when we speak of diversity, we’re speaking of diversity in many different ways,” said Cook.

Diversification of a university, Cook said, really falls back on the quality of the institution and the types of programs that are available and what’s attractive to the students from different backgrounds.

Recent Issues “I think some of the African American students (at U-M) have been ... very vocal about U-M not really being representative of the African American population in the State of Michigan,” said Cook. “ ... they kind of think that there should be more student support for the African Americans that are actually enrolled ... What kind of support are they getting once they are enrolled? And are they going to be the only student of color in the classroom?”

Regarding national college admission quotas, Cook said California is similar to Michigan and can’t use race in making an admission decision. Texas has a law where anyone that is in the top 10 percent of their high school is eligible for admission at the University of Texas. Fancher said the actual results of that program were not very successful.

According to U-M’s online response, “All students who excel at their studies, and who aspire to attend the U-M, are encouraged to apply, and, if admitted, to enroll. The University continues to do everything in its power, within the law, to build a community that is broadly diverse, including with respect to racial and ethnic diversity.”

While U-M has experienced a decrease in minority enrollment following the passage of Proposal 2, according to the online response, they have worked to avoid the declines seen in California’s top public universities following passage of Proposition 209, which also prohibits the use of race in application decisions.

“MSU is a land grant institution and one of the things we pride ourselves with is access to higher education,” said Cook, “but when you are limited in the type of information you can use to make an admissions decision, sometimes people that should have access are denied. For example, there are some schools that go purely with academic record ... often times what happens is the lower half of the socioeconomic situation drop out of consideration because of not having the same kind of support systems and the same kind of resources available to them in their K-12 schooling.”

It is also against the law to use racial information for financial aid purposes, Cook said; however, there are some scholarships where the donors give the money to a certain race or gender of student.

“It’s not just related to racial identity, it has to do with where you live, for example,” said Cook. “There may be a geographical area where the donor would only give money to people from that city ... there will be some specifically African-American or Hispanic scholarships ... In terms of scholarship opportunities for students of color,

that’s really a huge misconception with society that there are all of these minority scholarships.”

According to the U-M online response, university-funded financial aid programs that were previously available based partially on race or sex no longer consider those factors and are now based on other criteria that are permissible under Proposal 2. These criteria include high school attended, socioeconomic status, first-generation-college status, those living in single-parent homes, and participation in certain federal programs.

“U-M makes more than $144.8 million in grants available to admitted students,” according to the online response. “A total of 73.3 percent of U-M students receive some type of financial aid.” Consistent with Proposal 2’s terms, the amendment does not interfere with federally funded aid.

On the other hand, if a university is found to be discriminating on the basis of race, then federal funds are withheld, Fancher said.

Guarantee for Equality “We (MSU) don’t like the idea of having quotas ... Because after all, what would be fair? How do you set a quota?” said Cook. “And if you do, then there will be people that would be disadvantaged from that.”

However, Cook said, a school like MSU also wants access to be very important to people both statewide and internationally.

“In recent years, we annually received 40,000 or more applications for an incoming freshman class . . .” according to the U-M online response. “In evaluating those applications, we seek to enroll academically excellent, broadly diverse students who are engaged in extracurricular activities ... We consider academic qualifications in the forms of grade point average, within the context of the high school environment and the rigor of the curriculum selected, as well as standardized test scores. . . so that we may assemble an incoming class each year that will best contribute to the University community.”

In order to ensure that race is not used in the acceptance process, all application reviewers are experienced professionals, and, given the confidential nature of the information students share on applications, the university takes the integrity of application reviewers very seriously, according to the U-M online response. Having each application reviewed at least twice also helps to ensure compliance of university rules.

“The world is more interconnected than ever before, and graduates of our University (U-M) must learn about the complexities of operating in a global environment if they are to be successful leaders,” according to the online response. “U-M works to build a learning community that is broadly diverse, and that includes welcoming students, staff, and faculty from all across the globe.”

There is an incorrect belief that except for affirmative action, the only way to get into a university is by scoring the highest on tests and making the best grades, Fancher said. Different interest groups and communities get special consideration and preferences when it comes to admissions but it seems that aspect is never talked about.

“There are people who are alumni of a university ... who are able to get their sons and daughters into universities just because of the fact that they graduated from there,” said Fancher. “There are people who make large donations to universities and they are able to get their sons and daughters in to it just because they’ve made large donations. Many student athletes do not make the highest grades or get the best SAT scores, but they ... get into these universities because of what they’ve done in the athletic field ... all of these different things happen that cause these people to get in, who may not have the highest grades, but the university extends preferential treatment to them because of their circumstances.”

Yet when it comes to people of color who might want special treatment as a result of growing up as a minority in society, the university cannot consider that person, Fancher said. The Courts have ruled that when two sets of rules are used, one for people of color and one for everybody else, then that is considered discriminatory.

“You can’t have two sets of rules,” said Fancher.

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

“

Considering the controversy that college admission quotas often bring up, my biggest challenge with this story was getting in contact with university representatives. Often times I would not be contacted back, so I always had to come up with another source. Certain campuses refused to speak with me at all.

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

law & ethics

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 6

thetowerpulse.net @thetowerpulse

A weekly tradition since 1928

Grosse Pointe South, 11 Grosse Pointe Boulevard, Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 48236

The problem with plagiarizing:

Influx of technology causes increase in cheating



credit (on the assignment), that’s pretty much automatic,” said Flint.

BY KELSEY BAKER ’15/ Staff Writer “Depending on the level of offense it can lead up to more.”

Highlight. Copy. Paste. Principal’s Office.

South’s Student Code of Conduct outlines that students automatiPlagiarism cases have become more prevalent during this past school cally receive a failing grade on the assignment, and mentions, “possible year, said Assistant Principal Terry Flint.

“In the past couple years, it (plagiarism) was not anything that temporary separation up through failure for the quarter.”

Often, the kids who get caught are smart but make a bad decision seemed to come across my desk with much frequency, maybe a couple times a year,” said Flint. “This year we had two waves with about four because they are pressed with time, Provenzano said.

“The high performing student is just as likely to cheat as the strugto six cases in each wave. Definitely more than it has been in the past.”

The number of cases has gone up this year for English teacher Nicho- gling student,” said Mary Beth Garvey, a family therapist. “Many are competing in a highly competitive academic envilas Provenzano. ronment and are interested in preserving their “Very few people are silly enough to trifle success—sometimes by any means.” with turnitin.com,” said Harry Campion, The high performing Awareness of plagiarism is the first step to preEnglish department chair. “Now that we have student is just as likely to venting plagiarism, Flint said. used it for a couple of years, students have cheat as the struggling “We administratively are going to be talking gotten the message that it’s going to catch you.” student. Many are about how to increase awareness for kids,” said Turnitin.com is the easiest way for teachcompeting in a highly Flint. “Kids have got to understand right up front: ers to catch students who are plagiarizing, here’s the expectation, here’s how we determine Provenzano said. If something competitive academic plagiarism, here’s what happens.” in the paper looks suspienvironment and are Teachers need to provide clear guidelines about cious, and turnitin. interested in preserving the rules and expectations, and consequences need com doesn’t catch their success—sometimes to be consistently and strictly enforced throughout it, Provenzano by any means. the school system, Garvey said. will look it Teachers cover what plagiarism is in every up through Google.

MARY BETH GARVEY class, Provenzano said. Students are given a form, “One of Family Therapist the academic integrity sheet, which explains the offense and how to avoid it. Parents and students the things about being a teacher is that very sign this form each year. It is important to educate students and parents quickly you learn the voice of a on what it is, and then continue to remind them over the course of the student,” said Provenzano. “We year, Provenzano added.

“Awareness is super important because 90-95% of our student body can identify when it doesn’t sound is going off to college, and colleges don’t play around when it comes to like you.”

Teachers never want to catch plagiarism,” said Flint.

Provenzano tries to create an environment where kids feel comforttheir students plagiarizing, able asking for extensions.

Campion said.

“You don’t lose points for asking for an extension,” said Provenzano.

“We want them (students) to have original thoughts through “You should feel comfortable asking for help if you feel stressed or the learning that they’ve done slammed with a deadline.”

Examples of cheating in sports, politics and business are often ratiothrough other people-- which requires proper documentation,” nalized, and if everyone is doing it—why not cheat on your essay?, said Garvey. said Campion.

“Technology provides an increased opportunity to cheat because If a student is caught plagiarizing, then the teacher will write up the stu- there is a such a wealth of information from such diverse resources that dents, and notify the parents and student students may be more tempted to plagiarize content that can’t easily be that there has been a case of plagiarism, Provenzano tracked down,” said Garvey.

Just because the internet makes cheating easier, it doesn’t make said. If there is proof of plagiarism on turnitin.com, the teacher will print off the reports and give it to administration. Adminis- cheating untraceable.

“With the internet today I know it may seem easier for you to cheat, tration determines the punishment for the student.

“Typically, (punishment includes) at least a loss of but it’s also easier for us to catch you,” said Provenzano.

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     

Graphic by ALEXA LYSIK ’15 and GABI DECOSTER ’16

NEWS BRIEFS

Teacher recovers from car accident at the Beaumont Health Center for about two months. People with similar injuries to his can take nine months to a year to recover, but in his case, it was a much shorter period of time.

“With head injuries it’s always unpredictable, but thankfully I had a quick recovery time,” said Takis.

In his absence, the Concert and Symphony Bands have had Katy Steklac as the Interim Director of Bands.

Under Steklac’s direction, the Concert Band, Symphony Band and Jazz Bands were still able to perform well at Band Festival and receive favorable ratings from the judges, Takis said.

“It has been challenging for me to step in and teach under these circumstances, but overall it has been a positive experience,” said Steklac.

Takis said he is incredibly proud of how his students have continued to work hard and perform well during the time he has been out.

One of the hardest parts of this whole process was being separated from South and the band program for a lengthened period of time, Takis said.

“I have really missed being away from South and all the

students that I have the privilege of teaching,” said Takis. “This job, these students and this school are special and I am glad that I can finally return to all of this.”

Concert Band Member Matt Murray ’15 said the thing he has missed the most about Takis during his absence is the positive attitude that he brings with him to class every day.

“He is just such a friendly and upbeat teacher,” said Murray.

Takis has a teaching style that makes learning music enjoyable, Symphony Band Member Matt Torlone ’16 said. He looks forward to Takis’ return to the classroom.

Takis also said he is thankful for the tremendous outpouring of support he has received in the last few months in the form of cards and well wishes from students and parents and even a hospital visit from Principal Dr. Matt Outlaw.

He feels ready to teach and plans to be at school on a daily basis as the end of the school year approaches so that he can make preparations for next year, Takis said. It has not yet been determined which specific day he will return to full time teaching, but he will be back by next school year.

Out of the DARKNESS:

Sophomore organizes walk to raise suicide awareness in community

BY EMILY FLEMING ’16 / Page Editor To benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), Hannah Connors ‘16 organized an Out of the Darkness Campus Walk to raise suicide awareness.

Beginning as part of her “20 Time” project in Honors American Literature, Connors organized the walk to raise awareness about suicide to prevent it from happening in the future.

“I think that suicide is an issue that’s seriousness is often underrated,” said Connors. “It is a lot more prevalent than most people realize. Doing this walk is a way to remove the stigma that surrounds suicide. A lot of people are afraid to talk about it, and that’s not right. It perpetuates the idea that you can’t go to anyone, which isn’t true.

This walk is a way to get rid of that.”

AFSP is the leading national non-profit organization exclusively dedicated to understanding and preventing suicide through research, education and advocacy, and to reaching out to people with mental disorders and those impacted by suicide, AFSP Central Division Director Janice Aeppli said.

The main goal of AFSP campus walks is to aid in creating a world without suicide, Aeppli

said. It is the third leading cause of death among people aged 15-24 and claims more than 38,000 lives each year in the United States.

“Our goal is to really start dialogue,” said Aeppli. “We want people to be able to talk about suicide so they can be able to identify risk factors in themselves, their friends and other people around them. It affects so many people that a little awareness can go a long way.”

Proceeds from the campus walks benefit AFSP and go toward research, education and survivor programs, Connors said. With a total of 17 teams and 100 walkers signed up so far, the goal is to raise $5,000.

The Class of 2015 Student Council created a team to walk in memory of council member Drew Harrison ’15, team leader Ellie Flom ’15 said. The team hopes to raise $1,000.

“I think it’s important for people to get involved and do this walk because this is our opportunity to reach out to one another and keep things like this from happening again,” said Flom.

The walk will take place on Sunday, May 25 at noon, with registration at 11 a.m. on the South track, Connors said. People can register online or on the day of the walk. All donations benefit AFSP directly.

To register online, visit tinyurl.com/gpwalk.

COMING UP ON BROADWAY /

The choir’s last show of the year will feature Broadway music and Senior solos. Tickets are available online and at Posterity Gallery.

PLAY BALL /

The Faculty vs. Senior Softball game is Monday, June 2, at 4 p.m. on the boys baseball diamond. Sign up in Mr. Schultz’s room.

THANK YOU /

The Tower and the Tower Pulse staff would like to thank the Grosse Pointe Foundation for Public Education for a grant for new camera equipment. We appreciate the generosity.

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 7

{your view} We asked South seniors what the most expensive aspect of senior year is.

Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2014

Western Michigan University

University of Michigan

$40

$40

spirit pack

HANNAH ZAJAC ’15 “My senior portraits.”

JACK KUCHTA ’15 “I think I spent the most on supplies for spirit day.”

$25

Wayne State University

2015 SENIOR college fees application

The Tower took a look at some of the expenses seniors have throughout their last year in high school. cap & gown

$65

$28

$30+ cost to send tests AP

SAT $11

25

ACT $12

$50

Prom ticket yearbook

$65

cost to take tests

$5450 ACT $90 AP with writing exam SAT SAT $26 $5250 subject test MARY PANAGOS ’15 “Probably prom because the tickets are so expensive.”

“

All Night Party

exam$15

SPENCER GRACZYK ’15 “Prom because of the dinner and dress.”

Michigan State $50 University

being a

senior pictures

ADAM CAMPAU ’15 “The combination of things we are expected to buy for spirit day and spring break trips.”

$75

*The total is calculated based on a senior paying for each expense once - including only taking and sending tests once - and paying for four college applications.

Graphic by KELSEY BAKER ’15 Infographic and information compiled by ALEXA LYSIK ’15

BY CALEB CHADWELL ’15 / Staff Writer Three and half months after a car accident in which he had to be cut out of his car and rushed to the hospital, Band Director Christopher Takis returned to South on Friday, May 9.

On Jan. 25, Takis said he was driving alone to the District Solo and Ensemble Festival in Rochester, when he lost control of his car on an icy two-lane road and skidded into oncoming traffic. A snowplow completely crushed the passenger side of his car.

He was removed from the car and taken unconscious to Royal Oak Beaumont Hospital where he was admitted for three weeks and diagnosed with a Moderate Traumatic Brain Injury, which has taken him months to recover from, Takis said.

He was able to be back at school in less than four months after the accident to pay a visit to his students last week.

“I actually feel better now than I did before the accident,” said Takis. “Fortunately, my injuries weren’t worse and the recovery process has been relatively smooth.”

Because of the trauma to the right side of his head, Takis said he lived and did extensive rehab

“ ” I was having difficulty with this layout, particularly with creating an appropriate graphic. I hadn’t used Illustrator a lot before, so when making the plagiarism graphic, I had to explore different tools and gradients to get it right.

feature | 6

the co$t of

Wednesday, May 21, 2014 Volume 86, Issue 24

design

total*....$72925

I got an idea for doing a page on the “Cost of Being a Senior” from attending MIPA camp. Once I collected all the information that I wanted to be on the page, Kelsey Baker, our Supervising Editor, helped me with the graphic behind the text. I am glad I incorporated student quotes - we always need more faces in the paper!

”

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

TOWER the

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

design

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 8

Photo by JENNIFER MAIORANA ’16

Valedictorian, class rankings IB program not offered due to not chosen to improve continual success with AP classes competitive college chances

W

JENNIFER MAIORANA ’16 | Page Editor

ALEXA LYSIK ‘15 | Editor-in-Chief South’s last valedictorian did not aim for the position.

Keriann Engle ’01 worked hard to earn straight As, she said in an e-mail. She put in several hours of schoolwork every night to maintain high grades. Yet she didn’t have a sense of how she compared to the rest of her classmates. She simply pushed herself to do as well as she possibly could.

“I learned I was likely to be valedictorian when I asked my counselor for my class rank for a scholarship application, and she told me that she was surprised I hadn’t realized that I was first in my class,” Engle said. “I don’t think the opportunity to be the valedictorian made me competitive with my classmates, because I never thought about it much.”

Engle’s work paid off; she was a National Merit Scholar, and that and other academic scholarships completely paid for her undergraduate degree at Arizona State University. She is now a lawyer in California after attending University of California, Los Angeles Law School.

But now, with Advanced Placement (AP) multipliers and more than 15 students a year with above a 4.0, rankings and becoming valedictorian are no longer feasible.

This decision to eliminate valedictorian and salutatorian has been made in almost every other high-performing district, Deputy Superintendent Jon Dean said, including Rochester and Bloomfield Hills. Dean said one of the main reasons these districts have eliminated valedictorian is that it is a label to identify the very best student in the graduating class, and the very best colleges typically only want the very best.

“By identifying a valedictorian, all we’ve done is pointed at one kid and said ‘this is our very best,’” Dean said.

Although Dean was not in the district when the decision was made, he said the decision was a Board of Education decision in conjunction with administration.

Previous Board of Education member Joan Dindoffer said via email, “The district became aware that a number of high end schools across the country, particularly on the East Coast, were eliminating the designation of valedictorian and salutatorian and eliminating class rank. Our counselors at Grosse Pointe South were told by more than one Ivy League school that we were hurting our students by reporting class rank. One professor from Cornell wrote articles for the New York Times and was widely quoted at the time advocating the elimination of reporting class rank.”

The Board Policy on Graduation Requirements, section 5460, now states, “There will be no identification of a single valedictorian or salutatorian,” and that “Class ranking is not reported by the District.” Only students with a cumulative GPA of 4.0 or higher will be entered into the Academic Hall of Fame.

In previous years, South has had more than 40 students go to the University of Michigan, Dean said. While U-M does not typically want to take the 40th ranked student, the 40th student at South would likely be about a 3.85. Dean would argue that a 3.85 from South indicates a student who is more than prepared.

The district also probably has five-10 kids a year from both South and North that are Ivy League-eligible kids, Dean said. But Ivy-League schools only want the best.

By identifying the valedictorian, they’ll take only one student - the best.

However, just nine miles away in the Lakeview School District, the tradition of selecting valedictorian and salutatorian continues, Lakeview High School Principal Brent Case said.

“Having a valedictorian and salutatorian are nice for the people that achieve to that level,” Case said. “I also know that there’s a very fine line between just having two people being recognized, and the Cum Laude system recognizes more of those people for their accomplishments and doesn’t necessarily eliminate many of them.

In our circumstances we have the val, the sal, and a top 10, all under the same weight in categories.”

According to page 24 of the Lakeview High School Student Handbook, ranking for valedictorian, salutatorian, and the top ten will be determined with semester course grades and ACT or SAT scores. The GPA and ACT/SAT test scores will be factored into a formula, and a student must have earned either a 1 or 2 on all sections of the Michigan Merit Exam.

Students must meet these criteria, take at least two AP classes and graduate with highest honors in order to be considered as a valedictorian, Case said. Lakeview does not go beyond top ten in ranking students, because for example, a student could be ranked number one in their class and not take a single rigorous course.

“To be in our top 10 is tough,” Case said. “To be val and sal is a pretty huge deal ... to a certain degree, it creates some competition amongst our student body, and I don’t think it’s necessarily bad.”

Yet Dean said arguments like these will not get the Grosse Pointe community to introduce valedictorian, salutatorian and class rankings again.

And even though Engle was South’s last valedictorian, she said she does not think South necessarily needs such a label or class rankings, considering that South’s reputation is strong enough that high grades from the school speak for themselves.

“I do think it’s unfortunate, however, that students miss out on scholarships or other opportunities that are tied to class rank,” Engle wrote. “For example, WXYZTV invited me and the other valedictorians of metro Detroit schools to shoot the Brightest and Best TV spots that it airs every spring. My relatives and family friends were excited to watch Channel 7 and see if they could find me … It’s a shame that other South students won’t have that opportunity.”

However, the range of GPA’s for the class is reported on college applications, Dindoffer said. One can infer that a student is at or near the very top of the class.

Generally, applications ask for class rank if the school reports it, but not otherwise.

“Being the valedictorian of a school that doesn’t have a reputation as strong as South’s might be more important for a student’s college prospects than being the valedictorian of South would be,” Engle said.

Ultimately, Dindoffer said that reporting class rank was not helping any student except the valedictorian. Because of the strength of the Grosse Pointe student body, class rank was misleading as to the true strength of students whether they were at the top, middle, or near the bottom of the class.

“On a football team, you have to have one quarterback - that’s the way it’s positioned,” Dean said. “In a school you can have lots of academic high performers.

And identifying just one of them doesn’t seem to serve any purpose.”

S

and senior years. hile South offers countless opportunities for “I did like IB,” Cox said. “I thought there was a really its students, one rigorous academic program healthy interest on connecting information; rather than just the school does not offer is International memorizing data, it was about applying, using and connectBaccalaureate. ing what you learn.”

“The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma ProJournalism teacher Rod Satterthwaite who was trained to gramme is recognized and respected by the world’s leading teach IB classes at Dexter before moving to South agrees. universities,” according to the IB website.

“Having taught AP also, I think that they’re (IB and AP) The program consists of six core subject groups that fo- very similar in nature,” Satterthwaite said. “The main difcus on developing the concepts of theory of knowledge, cre- ference to me seems to be that IB is more coordinated and ativity, action, service and an extended essay, according to connected with their programs, whereas with AP, there isn’t the website. Students receive a diploma at the end of their much talking between them (the classes).” high school career if they complete and pass all of their reIn addition, Satterthwaite said there is a difference in the quired classes and exams. big picture ideas taught in IB courses compared to APs. “Certainly there are advantages and disadvantages to “The students who leave the IB program have a better an IB program, similar to an AP class,” Principal Moussa grasp of international ways of understanding things and a Hamka said. “Anything that we can do to provide an extra better grasp of the bigger picture of understanding the imlevel of rigor to our students and to help bring meaning and portance of education,” Satterthwaite said. relevance to it (their education) is important.”

Dexter student Alex Schwartz ’16 said participating in A few years ago, a committee was formed at South focus- the IB program has allowed him to learn more about diverse ing on whether or not South should implement an IB pro- subjects and improve his time management skills. He also gram along with the current curriculum, committee partici- said the dynamic between IB students is family-like. pant and counselor Troy Glasser said.

“The students who are in IB together “It (IB) is a curriculum that’s writknow each other a lot more and are more Anything that we can ten, so it goes a lot more in depth; there’s willing to help each other,” Schwartz said. do to provide an extra levmore critical thinking, a lot more writ“All the diploma kids are very interested el of rigor to our students ing and a lot more work,” Glasser said. “I in learning.” and to help bring meaning actually liked it because it can be a K-12 While the IB program is very intense and relevance to it (their curriculum, and I have younger kids that in academic nature, Schwartz said all of education) is important.

I thought it would benefit.” the participating students at his school However, after research, the commithave time to play sports and participate MOUSSA HAMKA in other extracurriculars. tee decided South’s current curriculum Principal consisting of college preparatory and However, Glasser disagrees.

College Board Advanced Placement “Sometimes it can be a little bit stress(AP) courses would remain, Glasser said. ful on the kids; when you do IB it’s all “Because of our success with AP - what we offer and you can do,” Glasser said. “Some people think IB takes over how colleges look at that - it’s a good return for your dollar,” for everything and there’s not enough time to do the other Glasser said. “Teachers are strong at teaching the AP cur- activities, which I think is important for kids to develop.” riculum and our scores are very high.”

While South doesn’t currently offer the IB program, there In Michigan, there are 31 high schools that offer the Di- is always a possibility of South reconsidering if it seems best ploma Programme. Some schools, like the International for students in the future, Hamka said.

Academies located in Bloomingfield Hills and Troy, are In order to join the IB program, South would be required separate from school districts and only offer IB programs. to pay a $4,000 authorization fee on top of required teacher Other schools, like Harrison High School in the Farmington training and individual student fees, according to the IB district where Hamka used to work, offer the IB program in website. In comparison, AP classes only require exam fees addition to their traditional curriculum. paid by students and optional teacher training.

“Even though we opened up an IB program, there was Alex Rogers ’15 said she wishes South offered the prostill an overwhelming majority of students who chose to gram so she could have been a part of it during her high go the AP route because they could get credit for the class school career. and there’s flexibility,” Hamka said. “The IB locked them in, “I have a bunch of friends from out of state that are part of and they couldn’t explore some of the options they wanted. it (IB), and I feel like since South’s a good school we should With the IB program there were some required classes that offer it too,” Rogers. “They’re getting ahead of us; I almost they had to take, and some students didn’t like the rigidity feel like I’m behind compared to those students.” of that.”

Cox also said South should keep options open in regards Similar to Harrison, Dexter High School offers the IB Di- to offering IB in the future. ploma Programme and IB classes within the school, Dexter “I do like the College Board and the fact that students can IB and AP director Debora Marsh said. take choose what they want to take and what interests them,” “I believe each individual student shoud take courses that Cox said. “But, I think being able to offer IB would be a great appeal to how they like to learn and what their educational draw and a great possibility.” aspirations are,” Marsh said. “It’s very clear that AP and IB Hamka said the South administration will continue to have different outcomes and are different types of courses.” make decisions on its curriculum based on what is best for While both AP and IB classes are highly regarded by col- the students. leges, there are differences between the two curricula.

He said, “there has to be a guaranteed and viable need for “The IB program is designed to create a diploma candi- the IB program. If during my tenure we establish a need for date and is more comprehensive toward students who com- the IB program - that it is what’s best for kids and will serve mit to it,” English teacher Kevin Cox said. them better than our current programming - then I will cerCox went to a high school offering IB during his junior tainly advocate for it.”

IB versus Non-IB Students 77.2%

Attending a four-year college Attending a more selective college

53.3% 57.0% 38.1%

IB Diploma Comparison Students Group The Comparison Group consists of Chicago Public School graduates who did not participate in IB while the IB Diploma Students participated in the program from 2003-07.

outh’s last valedictorian did not aim for the position.

Keriann Engle ’01 worked hard to earn straight As, she said in an e-mail. She put in several hours of schoolwork every night to maintain high grades. Yet she didn’t have a sense of how she compared to the rest of her classmates. She simply pushed herself to do as well as she possibly could.

“I learned I was likely to be valedictorian when I asked my counselor for my class rank for a scholarship application, and she told me that she was surprised I hadn’t realized that I was first

“

I did not know who to contact first for this story; most people working in the district seemed not to have been here when the decision was made. My first interview was Dr. Dean, and he steered me in the right direction as to else who to interview, as well as provided me with the Board policy.

I spoke with the principal at another school, a former Board member, and South’s last valedictorian (from 2001).

It was fun getting in contact with her - I had to get her name from the Records Room, typed it into Google, and found she is currently a lawyer in California!

Information courtesy of the INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE WEBSITE Infograph by JENNIFER MAIORANA ’16

in my class,” Engle said. “I don’t think the opportunity to be the valedictorian made me competitive with my classmates, because I never thought about it much.”

Engle’s work paid off; she was a National Merit Scholar, and that and other academic scholarships completely paid for her undergraduate degree at Arizona State University. She is now a lawyer in California after attending University of California, Los Angeles Law School.

But now, with Advanced Placement (AP) multipliers and more than 15

”

students a year with above a 4.0, rankings and becoming valedictorian are no longer feasible.

This decision to eliminate valedictorian and salutatorian has been made in almost every other high-performing district, Deputy Superintendent Jon Dean said, including Rochester and Bloomfield Hills. Dean said one of the main reasons these districts have eliminated valedictorian is that it is a label to identify the very best student in the graduating class, and the very best colleges typically only want the very best.

“By identifying a valedictorian, all

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 9

writing

we’ve done is pointed at one kid and said ‘this is our very be factored into a formula, and a student must have earned best,’” Dean said. either a 1 or 2 on all sections of the Michigan Merit Exam.

Although Dean was not in the district when the decision Students must meet these criteria, take at least two AP was made, he said the decision was a Board of Education classes and graduate with highest honors in order to be condecision in conjunction with administration. sidered as a valedictorian, Case said. Lakeview does not go Previous Board of Education member Joan Dindoffer beyond top 10 in ranking students, because, for example, a said via email, “The district became aware that a number of student could be ranked number one in their class and not high-end schools across the country, particularly on the East take a single rigorous course.

Coast, were eliminating the designation of valedictorian and “To be in our top 10 is tough,” Case said. “To be val and salutatorian and eliminating class rank. Our counselors at sal is a pretty huge deal ... to a certain degree, it creates some Grosse Pointe South were told by more than one Ivy League competition amongst our student body, and I don’t think it’s school that we were hurting our students by reporting class necessarily bad.” rank. One professor from Cornell wrote articles for the New Yet Dean said arguments like these will not get the Grosse York Times and was widely quoted at the time advocating the Pointe community to introduce valedictorian, salutatorian elimination of reporting class rank.” and class rankings again.

The Board Policy on Graduation Requirements, section And even though Engle was South’s last valedictorian, 5460, now states, “There will be no identification of a single she said she does not think South necessarily needs such a valedictorian or salutatorian,” and that “Class ranking is not label or class rankings, considering that South’s reputation reported by the District.” Only students with a cumulative is strong enough that high grades from the school speak for GPA of 4.0 or higher will be entered into the Academic Hall themselves. of Fame.

“I do think it’s unfortunate, however, that students miss In previous years, South has out on scholarships or other had more than 40 students go to opportunities that are tied to the University of Michigan, Dean class rank,” Engle wrote. “For On a football team, you have to have said. While U-M does not typiexample, WXYZ-TV invited me one quarterback - that’s the way it’s cally want to take the 40th ranked and the other valedictorians of positioned. In a school you can have lots student, the 40th student at South metro Detroit schools to shoot the of academic high performers. And idenwould likely have about a 3.85 Brightest and Best TV spots that tifying just one of them doesn’t seem to GPA. Dean would argue that a 3.85 it airs every spring. My relatives serve any purpose. from South indicates a student and family friends were excited to who is more than prepared.

JON DEAN watch Channel 7 and see if they The district also probably has could find me … It’s a shame that Deputy Superintendent other South students won’t have five-10 kids a year from both South and North that are Ivy that opportunity.”

League-eligible kids, Dean said.

However, the range of GPA’s But Ivy-League schools only want the best. By identifying the for the class is reported on college applications, Dindoffer valedictorian, they’ll take only one student - the best. said. One can infer that a student is at or near the very top However, just nine miles away in the Lakeview School Dis- of the class. Generally, applications ask for class rank if the trict, the tradition of selecting valedictorian and salutatorian school reports it, but not otherwise. continues, Lakeview High School Principal Brent Case said.

“Being the valedictorian of a school that doesn’t have a “Having a valedictorian and salutatorian are nice for the reputation as strong as South’s might be more important for people that achieve to that level,” Case said. “I also know that a student’s college prospects than being the valedictorian of there’s a very fine line between just having two people being South would be,” Engle said. recognized, and the Cum Laude system recognizes more of Ultimately, Dindoffer said that reporting class rank was those people for their accomplishments and doesn’t neces- not helping any student except the valedictorian. Because of sarily eliminate many of them. In our circumstances we have the strength of the Grosse Pointe student body, class rank was the val, the sal, and a top 10, all under the same weight in misleading as to the true strength of students whether they categories.” were at the top, middle or near the bottom of the class.

According to page 24 of the Lakeview High School Student “On a football team, you have to have one quarterback Handbook, ranking for valedictorian, salutatorian, and the that’s the way it’s positioned,” Dean said. “In a school you can top 10 will be determined with semester course grades and have lots of academic high performers. And identifying just ACT or SAT scores. The GPA and ACT/SAT test scores will one of them doesn’t seem to serve any purpose.”

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

feature | 5

Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2014

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

writing

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 10

BE BE BE MINE MINE MINE

Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2015

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE

TOO TOO TOO TOO TOO CUTE CUTE CUTE CUTE CUTE

& HUGS HUGS & HUGS & HUGS& & XOXO XOXO XOXO XOXO KISSES KISSES KISSES KISSES KISSES

Relationship Status: UNDECIDED Between instant communication and changing societal views, high school relationships have become more casual

Couples Corner

{ What are you doing this Valentine’s Day? }

ALEXA LYSIK & JENNIFER MAIORANA | Editor-in-Chief & Page Editor

a half. While they did not have any classes to- a half. He said he does not think serious high gether, meeting sophomore year and sharing a school relationships are worth the stress.

“I was really good friends with them (my exs society is changing, so are the relation- friend group began Haggarty and Allen’s friendship and eventual relationship. girlfriends), and it kind of ruined my friendship ships it influences.

Allen used to go to South, but moved due to with them,” Wittwer said. “Now, I don’t talk to “Dating has become a lot more casual than it’s ever been,” sociology teacher Sandi family reasons the summer between sophomore them anymore very much. We were so young Siemaszko said. “Even if it’s just two people who and junior year, Haggarty said. He now goes to and it is not like we were going to get married, so I don’t think it was worth it.” like each other, it’s in a more informal setting L’anse Creuse Central High School.

“Sometimes it’s hard, not being able to see In addition, Wittwer said he feels more himlike a party or just hanging out rather than gohim every single day like some people, but it self out of a relationship. ing out.”

“I’m happier (out of a relationship); I can do Siemaszko said these interactions can posi- does make the time that we do spend together whatever I want,” Wittwer said. “For example, tively affect young adults with their future rela- all the more special,” Haggarty said.

Haggarty said she would not want to be in a when I go on vacation I don’t need to constantly tionships.

“If you’re all together in a group, you get a casual relationship like many high school stu- text someone or worry about them.” dents.

Not only does Wittwer view his life as easibetter feel for the kind “It takes a lot of dedication to er out of a relationship, he said that depending of people who you click continue a long distance relation- on the gender of the participant, he has viewed with more and the perA more casual setting ship,” Haggarty said. “The fact hookups as having a range of differing effects sonalities that you like with more people is a that we’ve been going out for al- anyway; furthering his decision to stay out of a more or less,” Siemaszko better thing; it really most a year and a half now proves relationship for now. said. “Any kind of reallows you to see what to both of us that we’re in it for the “Guy wise, they (hookups) make them look lationship or interaclong haul and that this isn’t just cool, but for females, it can seriously upset them tion you can have with you like and what you a casual fling that we’re going to and they can make physical and emotional consomebody, whether it don’t like break off in a moment’s notice.” nections with someone who doesn’t feel the turns out good or not, SANDI SIEMASZKO Haggarty and Allen do not same way,” Wittwer said. allows you to learn for Sociology Teacher have plans to attend college toSiemaszko said self-image has always been a the future.” gether, she said. Haggarty plans to factor in teenage relationships.

However, according attend Loyola University Chicago “Sometimes there’s status involved with being to the American Psywhile Allen plans to attend Oak- with a certain person or group, and that’s never chological Association website, casual dating and hookups can lead to land University. However, she is not concerned going to be eliminated; it’s past and present, and how this might affect their relationship. future probably, too,” Siemaszko said. guilt and other negative mental health effects.

“We will continue the relationship,” Haggarty Additionally, couple Jack Kuchta ’15 and “A person’s affective reactions during and after a hookup can be in conflict,” according to the said, smiling, “but I feel like the habits we are Natalie Sullivan ’15 said their peers have control website. “Discrepancies between behaviors and into now - of not seeing each other every day but of their own choices when it comes to hook-ups and relationships. Kuchta and desires, particularly with respect to social-sexual still talking to each other evSullivan have known each relationships, have dramatic implications for ery day - are really going to help us be that couple that other since they were about physical and mental health.”

Everybody goes to parthree or four years old, havThese implications include pressure, lowered stays together through colties every weekend and ing met at St. Paul Catholic self-esteem, and regret, according to the website. lege.” looks for hookups; they Similarly, Sera Christian School for preschool, and Yet, Siemaszko said it’s good that dating is have been dating for the past more casual because it puts people more at ease. ’15 and Matt Dimond ’15 don’t look for relationtwo and a half years.

“There isn’t as much nervousness, especial- plan to continue their relaships. We are kind of in “People hook up, but I ly with so many people always being on their tionship that began in Oca loveless society now don’t feel like they are presphones and electronics,” Siemaszko said. “The tober 2012 through college at a young age sured by it,” Sullivan said. fact it’s casual and there are large groups of peo- despite attending different universities, Christian said.

“People can make their own ple makes it better for interaction.”

JACK WITTWER ’16 “Long term serious reladecisions, based on whatever Even though there are more casual relationthey want.” ships present in today’s society, Siemaszko said tionships—it’s a lot of work “Some are, by trying to she thinks many aspects of the long-term rela- sometimes,” Christian said, “it takes discipline to stay faithful to one person. climb the social status,” Kuchta added. tionships have remained constant.

Despite the social pressures, Siemaszko said “I still think the boyfriend-girlfriend rela- It’s hard work, but I think it’s worth it.”

In regard to societal pressures, Christian said that the change in culture from strictly dating to tionship hasn’t changed,” Siemaszko said. “Peoshe does not think the two feel pressured to be casual relationships proves to have positive efple still want exclusive relationships.”

However, Jack Wittwer ’16 said he disagrees in a more casual relationship like many of her fects.

“A more casual setting with more people is a and thinks that young adults do not seek out peers.

“Once you’ve been with someone for a re- better thing; it really allows you to see what you long-term relationships as much in today’s soally long time, it’s not that hard really. You’re not like and what you don’t like,” Siemaszko said. ciety.

“Everybody goes to parties every weekend tempted to be with other people,” Christian said. “And then you eventually find the person who you like the best.” and looks for hook-ups; they don’t look for re- “You kind of lose interest in it.”

Dimond agrees and said that the two actually For high schoolers who may want to transilationships,” Wittwer said. “We are kind of in a care about each other, as opposed to only want- tion from a casual to serious relationship, Hagloveless society now at a young age.” garty said to have patience and communicate Even though long-term relationships appear ing to hook up in a casual way.

“I like having a more meaningful relation- with each other. to be overshadowed by casual ones in today’s Haggarty said, “No one really knows where society, there are many couples who have made ship,” Dimond said.

On the other hand, Wittwer has been in two it’s going in the first couple months, but if you lasting relationships work.

For instance, Taylor Haggarty ’15 said she high school relationships, one lasting under a don’t feel it, do the right thing and break it off has been dating Austin Allen ’15 for a year and month and the other lasting for about a year and because it’s not fair to you or them to lead it on.”

A

“We are just going to get some takeout and watch movies all day” - Virginia Cinnamond & Ian Murphy, both ’17

“We are going out to dinner and seeing a movie” - Taylor Peters & Zack Thalgott, both ’15

“It’s a surprise!!!” - Lauren Riley & Jacob Montague, both ’16

“We are going to watch Netflix and eat food” - Ruthie Impastato & Noah Bellovich, both ’17

things to do on valentine’s day 2

Go Downtown

Catch a New Movie

4

Hang with Friends

Make Dinner

Drive to Campus Martius for ice skating with your date. Once you get tired, head to one of Detroit’s many restaurants for dinner.

Take your Valentine to the movies and dinner in Birmingham or Royal Oak. New movies out for Valentine’s Day include “The Last Five Years,” “The Rewrite,” “Love, Rosie,” and “Old Fashioned.”

You don’t have to have a date to have fun on Valentine’s Day! Grab your favorite junk food and call up some friends for a movie marathon.

If you’re low on funds or feel like staying in, nothing is better than making a homecooked meal with your special someone (homemade pizzas are always a hit). Finish the night with your favorite

Cost: $25 to $75 depending on what restaurant you choose.

Cost: $30 to $80 depending on what theater and restaurant you choose.

Cost: $5 to $10 for snacks depending on how much popcorn you like.

Cost: $15 to $20 depending on how fancy you’re going to get with your dish.

1

3

As society is changing, so are the relationships it influences.

“Dating has become a lot more casual than it’s ever been,” sociology teacher Sandi Siemaszko said. “Even if it’s just two people who like each other, it’s in a more informal setting like a party or just hanging out rather than going out.”

Siemaszko said these interactions can positively affect young adults with their future relationships.

“If you’re all together in a group, you get a better feel for the kind of people who you click with more and the personalities that you like more or less,” Siemaszko said. “Any kind of relationship or interaction you can have with

“

I worked on this story with a junior who hopes to be on the Leadership Team next year. I enjoyed encouraging her initiative and desire to learn more about being a leader and allowed her to ‘shadow’ me. We collaborated well by splitting up the interviews and formatting the story together.

somebody, whether it turns out good or not, allows you to learn for the future.”

However, according to the American Psychological Association website, casual dating and hookups can lead to guilt and other negative mental health effects.

“A person’s affective reactions during and after a hookup can be in conflict,” according to the website. “Discrepancies between behaviors and desires, particularly with respect to social-sexual relationships, have dramatic implications for physical and mental health.”

These implications include pressure, lowered self-esteem, and regret, according to the website.

”

Yet, Siemaszko said it’s good that dating is more casual because it puts people more at ease.

“There isn’t as much nervousness, especially with so many people always being on their phones and electronics,” Siemaszko said. “he fact it’s casual and there are large groups of people makes it better for interaction.”

Even though there are more casual relationships present in today’s society, Siemaszko said she thinks many aspects of the long-term relationships have remained constant.

“I still think the boyfriend-girlfriend relationship hasn’t changed,” Siemaszko said. “People still want exclusive Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 11

leadership & team building relationships.”

However, Jack Wittwer ’16 said he disagrees and thinks that young adults do not seek out long-term relationships as much in today’s society.

“Everybody goes to parties every weekend and looks for hook-ups; they don’t look for relationships,” Wittwer said.

“We are kind of in a loveless society now at a young age.”

Even though long-term relationships appear to be overshadowed by casual ones in today’s society, there are many couples who have made lasting relationships work.

For instance, Taylor Haggarty ’15 said she has been dating Austin Allen ’15 for a year and a half. While they did not have any classes together, meeting sophomore year and sharing a friend group began Haggarty and Allen’s friendship and eventual relationship.

Allen used to go to South, but moved due to family reasons the summer between sophomore and junior year, Haggarty said. He now goes to L’anse Creuse Central High School.

“Sometimes it’s hard, not being able to see him every single day like some people, but it does make the time that we do spend together all the more special,” Haggarty said.

Haggarty said she would not want to be in a casual relationship like many high school students.

“It takes a lot of dedication to continue a long distance relationship,” Haggarty said. “The fact that we’ve been going out for almost a year and a half now proves to both of us that we’re in it for the long haul and that this isn’t just a casual fling that we’re going to break off in a moment’s notice.”

Haggarty and Allen do not have plans to attend college together, she said. Haggarty plans to attend Loyola University Chicago while Allen plans to attend Oakland University.

However, she is not concerned how this might affect their relationship.

“We will continue the relationship,” Haggarty said, smiling, “but I feel like the habits we are into now - of not seeing each other every day but still talking to each other every day are really going to help us be that couple that stays together through college.”

Similarly, Sera Christian ’15 and Matt Dimond ’15 plan to continue their relationship that began in October 2012 through college despite attending different universities, Christian said.

“Long term serious relationships—it’s a lot of work sometimes,” Christian said, “it takes discipline to stay faithful to one person. It’s hard work, but I think it’s worth it.”

In regard to societal pressures, Christian said she does not think the two feel pressured to be in a more casual relationship like many of her peers.

“Once you’ve been with someone for a really long time, it’s not that hard really. You’re not tempted to be with other people,” Christian said. “You kind of lose interest in it.”

Dimond agrees and said that the two actually care about each other, as opposed to only wanting to hook up in a casual way.

“I like having a more meaningful relationship,” Dimond

said.

On the other hand, Wittwer has been in two high school relationships, one lasting under a month and the other lasting for about a year and a half. He said he does not think serious high school relationships are worth the stress.

“I was really good friends with them (my ex-girlfriends), and it kind of ruined my friendship with them,” Wittwer said.

“Now, I don’t talk to them anymore very much. We were so young and it is not like we were going to get married, so I don’t think it was worth it.”

In addition, Wittwer said he feels more himself out of a relationship.

“I’m happier (out of a relationship); I can do whatever I want,” Wittwer said. “For example, when I go on vacation I don’t need to constantly text someone or worry about them.”

Not only does Wittwer view his life as easier out of a relationship, he said that depending on the gender of the participant, he has viewed hookups as having a range of differing effects anyway; furthering his decision to stay out of a relationship for now.

“Guy wise, they (hookups) make them look cool, but for females, it can seriously upset them and they can make physical and emotional connections with someone who doesn’t feel the same way,” Wittwer said.

Siemaszko said self-image has always been a factor in teenage relationships.

“Sometimes there’s status involved with being with a certain person or group, and that’s never going to be eliminated; it’s past and present, and future probably, too,” Siemaszko said.

Additionally, couple Jack Kuchta ’15 and Natalie Sullivan ’15 said their peers have control of their own choices when it comes to hook-ups and relationships. Kuchta and Sullivan have known each other since they were about three or four years old, having met at St. Paul Catholic School for preschool, and have been dating for the past two and a half years.

“People hook up, but I don’t feel like they are pressured by it,” Sullivan said. “People can make their own decisions, based on whatever they want.”

“Some are, by trying to climb the social status,” Kuchta added.

Despite the social pressures, Siemaszko said that the change in culture from strictly dating to casual relationships proves to have positive effects.

“A more casual setting with more people is a better thing; it really allows you to see what you like and what you don’t like,” Siemaszko said. “And then you eventually find the person who you like the best.”

For high schoolers who may want to transition from a casual to serious relationship, Haggarty said to have patience and communicate with each other.

Haggarty said, “No one really knows where it’s going in the first couple months, but if you don’t feel it, do the right thing and break it off because it’s not fair to you or them to lead it on.”

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

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Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

leadership & team building

Student Journalist Staff Portfolio | 12

happy

Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014

things to do

Christmas: the good, the bad and the Camille MY VIEW The Grinch

(Camille Gazoul ’15) When I say I don’t like Christmas, the same thing always happens: someone looks at me with disbelief, tilts their head to the side and gives me “the look,” the “what’s wrong with you?” look.

But I am not a complete Grinch. I am not haunted by ghosts of Christmas past and would never steal Cindy Loo Who’s Christmas tree. I’m really more of a Charlie Brown. I won’t sit on Mount Crumpet sulking, but you may find me walking around dejectedly to smooth jazz.

It’s not that I hate all aspects of the holiday season, but there are a few things about it that I could do without.

For example: Secret Santa. Now don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of giving gifts and making people happy, but at a certain point it gets to be more of a chore than something nice. This year, it seems like every one of my classes has some sort of gift exchange. There’s only so many Starbucks giftcards I can buy before the barista begins to question my motives.

ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas. If I see one more commercial for some made-for-TV movie starring Melissa Joan Hart being transported into a snow globe, I might explode. I’m sorry, ABC Family, I don’t blame you entirely. We all know you guys would make every weekend Harry Potter Weekend if you could.

Shopping around the holidays. While the people watching is prime this time of year, I can never really get into the hustle and bustle of Macy’s at Christmas, specifically the perfume section. Dear Lady With The Perfume Bottle, I don’t want to smell your perfume, and I’m genuinely afraid you are going squirt it in my eye.

The gift quandary. This is the moment when you and a friend are opening gifts, and you realize they got you something so awesome and thoughtful that your wimpy, kind-of-funny-enough-to-be-passable gift is not going to remotely compare. “Oh wow, this is great!” They say, feigning enthusiasm because they are a great friend. “Another coffee mug! For the second year in a row! Thanks?” As someone whose gift-giving skills are embarrassing, this part of the holidays is always a major source of stress.

The questions: “How’s school?”/ “So where are you going to college?”/ “What are you majoring in?” I’m sorry Family Member I See Once A Year, but I would really just like to eat my Christmas cookie in peace.

Prolonged hugs with loved ones you don’t actually know. If the hug lasts for more than four seconds, it is time to let go; make up an excuse, spill your drink.

Get out of that hug.

christmas | 7

holidays

Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014

Fruitcake. Does anyone really like fruitcake? Or is it just because it’s the holidays and it’s “that time of year” to enjoy fruitcake. What the fruitcake is even in fruitcake? Those little green and red balls are not fruits found in nature.

Even though I may groan at the opening notes of Michael Buble’s Christmas album or the sentimental warbling of “Silent Night,” I do enjoy some parts of the holiday season.

Winter break, for example, is a great reason to put on the Santa hat. Candy canes are delicious and should be sold year round. I like hearing about holiday traditions and fun activities people do with their families over Christmas, and honestly who doesn’t get a little excited waking up on Christmas morning?

I like the Christmas episode of SNL, the choir’s Santa Tap performance, the smell of Christmas trees, hot cocoa with cinnamon and how hopelessly hopeful people get around the New Year. And, of course, I wouldn’t be a Grosse Pointer if I didn’t like driving down Lakeshore and seeing the lights.

Christmas clearly is not my favorite holiday, and no character from “The Peanuts” telling the story of Christ’s birth to an empty auditorium is going to change that. It’s a nice time of year to get a much-needed break from school and work to finish up those Scantrons as dreams of a two week break dances in your head.

So like a cashier at any department store from Black Friday until Jan. 2, I wish you happy holidays and a great fruitcaking New Year.

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gifts to give: Many options for gift-giving this season

Pretend to be Meryl Davis and Charlie White.

Go ice skating and admire the 60 foot tall Christmas tree at Campus Martius in downtown Detroit. The rink is open Monday through Thursday 11 a.m.-10 p.m. and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets are $8 and skates are available for rent for $3.

OLIVIA SHEFFER ‘17 | Staff Writer Gift giving seems to be an art. Some artists are just more talented than other and with the holidays quickly approaching, questions of giving the perfect gift arise. However, when it comes to giving a great gift, it all starts with an eye for creativity.

Students can start by giving a gift they find thoughtful for the person they are giving the gift too.

Many girls this year said they are asking for Sorel boots, Rayban sunglasses and clothing. Many boys asked for Nike shoes, clothing and money. A popular gift that many students were also asking for was a new laptop.

“I’m asking for a Mophie phone case, clothes and a laptop,” said Anthony Kolesky ’17.

Mophie phone cases seem to be popularly on students’ Christmas lists. Most said it was because they are lightweight and easier than bringing a charger everywhere. According to the Mophie website, battery cases starts at $79.95.

“For Christmas I’m asking for a new lacrosse stick, a laptop and clothes,” Lillian Fannon ’17 said.

For the friends that you know well, clothes can be an easy, though pricier, option. Students should of course make sure they are buying the right size.

“I’m asking for a new laptop and shoes,” Dexter Moreland ’18 said.

For more studious friends, personalized supplies like Lily Pulitzer pens and planners are always good gifts, but there are other good brands to choose from. Lily Pulitzer sells planners at $28 on their website.

“I’m asking for a Kate Spade Planner and a nice black or taupe leather purse,” Zoe Evans ’17 said. “I’m also asking for a donation to be given in my name to a small charity.”

For your friends who have more of a classic style, closet basics would be something they would thoroughly enjoy, especially if they could be easily paired with one another to make a simple statement.

There are many different ways to approach gift giving this holiday season, always remember to be thoughtful when choosing the best gift, and above all, it’s more important to give rather than to receive.

See a movie.

New movies like “Into the Woods,” “Unbroken” and “Annie” come out Dec. 25. The last movie in the Hobbit trilogy, “The Battle of the Five Armies,” was released today.

Find your favorite sledding hill.

Balduck Park in Detroit and Vernier Hill in Grosse Pointe Shores offer nearby smaller sledding hills. Metroparks in the area also have sledding hills a short distance away.

Shred it at a nearby ski hill.

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Pine Knob in Clarkston offers 17 runs for beginner and intermediate skiers. Tickets range from $34-$55 depending on the day and gear is available for rent in the lodge. Pine Knob is about an hour drive from Grosse Pointe. A little bit farther, with just over an hour drive, Mt. Holly ski and snowboard hill offers just about the same number of runs as Pine Knob. Tickets for holidays and weekends cost $42.

EMMA BAER ’15 AND JULIANA BERKOWSKI ‘16 | Staff Writers

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Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

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Michigan Interscholastic Press Association 2015

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Spare a day to get a strike.

Go glow bowling with some friends at the Garden Bowl, the country’s oldest active bowling alley. Located on Woodward in Detroit, the Garden Bowl has 16 lanes, and can accommodate six people per lane. A pizzeria and cafe are also inside. Lanes cost from $12 to $25 on the weekends and a shoe rental is $3.

Go to the Detroit Zoo Lights.

More than five million LED lights will illuminate throughout the Zoo. Wild Lights will be held from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Dec. 18-23 and 2631. Live entertainment, arts and crafts, ice carving and the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibit will add to the festivities.

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Information compiled by LINDSEY CLARK ’16

{your view} Students discuss differing holiday traditions SWEET TREATS | (snowman) Cook up some fun with snowman themed cupcakes and decorate them with edible beads. (reindeer) A peanut butter based cookie is the perfect mix to make cute animal shapes. (kiss cookie) Spice up your regular Hershey’s Kiss cookies with festive holiday sprinkles. (tree) Using Rice Krispie Treat batter, frosting, a Reece’s cup, and M&Ms, make a decorative Christmas tree!

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Graphics and photos by ALEXA LYSIK ’15 and CAMILLE GAZOUL ’15

JARED SCHENK ‘17

“We meet up with our family and cousins on one of the days of Hanukkah and exchange presents.”

AVA RUSSANO ‘18

“Going to my grandpa’s house and putting on a Christmas talent show.”

DEBRA NISCHIK ’16

“Looking for the pickle on the Christmas tree.”

RJ STEWART ’15

“Going up north with my family and seeing all my cousins and skiing with them.”

NOAH DAVEY ‘17 “Making cookies.”

Information compiled by GENNIE MARTIN ’16

I liked the variety of content that we had for the spread (a column, story, alt copy, and talking heads), but many things came out too big and the colors were all a little off when printed.

I also wish I would have included small recipies by the ‘treats’ section. However, I was pleased with the way my Associate and Supervising Editors collaborated with me on this.

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To use for Open House and recruiting 8th graders and freshmen into the Honors Journalism Program, I created this pamphlet about the Tower program. We’ve found it to be quite useful in explaining the benefits of joining such an elite program, and I’m glad to be a part of continuing the Tower legacy!

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fter a failed technology bond and a total of 3,395 computers later, students of the Grosse Pointe Public School System will be logging in to new computers all across the district the first day of school.

“Once we recognized that the technology bond was not going through, we needed to regroup because we still needed to address the issue of our computers being outdated and being very old,” said Superintendent Dr. Tom Harwood said. “We worked closely with the Michigan Department of Education in regards to their bidding process and were able to identify in this year’s budget setting aside $500,000 to be able to lease computers in the areas where we really needed to get the upgrade that was necessary.”

The upgrades are across the district, but the first course of action began at both South and North’s computer labs and proceeded to the oldest computers and labs throughout the district.

Teacher computer stations were a priority as well.

The $500,000 that was put into the budget for this upcoming school year was approved by the School Board at the June 23 board meeting and at its Aug. 7 meeting, the Board approved the computer leasing.

“It’s the first step of a few steps that we’ll be doing, but we’re trying to hit the critical points,” Harwood said.

The district has about 5,000 computers in the inventory across all the buildings, and 3,160 desktop computers and 235 laptop computers were purchased according to Technology Director Steve Woloszyn.

“We are targeting the computers that are eight

years and older. Specifically, that could be lab computers, student classroom computers, some teacher computers,” Woloszyn said. “It depends on the model number and the age. We need to get rid of all the computers that cannot run Windows 7 because we are moving to Windows 7 as our base operating system since Microsoft made Windows XP go away this year.”

Because the School Board only authorizes up to $500,000 a year to pay for computers, and the number of computers GPPSS needs to buy exceeds that amount, the computers are being financed through Comerica Bank with a Capital Lease, a four year lease, Woloszyn said.

After four years, the lease is paid off and the school system owns the computers. Along with Comerica Bank, the school system has also been working with Ehresman Associates regarding the architectural updates and planning work with construction, as well as Wright and Hunter, the technology consultants that help with computer networking.

This upgrade was in the works even before for the tech bond proposal, Woloszyn said. The school system worked with staff as well as outside consultants to define what type of upgrades were needed.

When the bond didn’t pass, Woloszyn said the Board, working with administrators, was able to rework financing to upgrade the computers.

However, this only takes care of the computers themselves, not any of the other issues addressed in the prior Tech Bond.

“The infrastructure is being funded through our sinking fund monies,” Harwood said. “We collect from the community about $2.5M and

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we’re allocating, and actually holding off some of the project, to be able to allocate $1M towards a better infrastructure (including) improving our cabling, our broadband, our networking system, our wireless system. It’s really the whole plumbing, so to speak, making sure that the plumbing works so that the end user will be able to have what they need to do to connect to be more efficient and much faster.”

The technology staff worked very diligently throughout August making sure that the computers were ready when students started school, Harwood said, though there may be still deployment that takes place after school begins.

Although the new systems is something that has not happened in the district in quite a long time and will be beneficial for the students, those behind the Tech Bond may not be fully content with just these upgrades taking place.

Another tech bond proposal will probably not happen until at least the fall of 2015, according to Woloszyn. However, after replacing around twothirds of the computers in the district, the school system should be set until the end of the lease.

Implementing the new computers has been successful so far and will continue to be a step in the right direction for the GPPSS. Harwood said, “We look forward to the beginning of the school year and having our students and our staff be able to incorporate the use of the new technology in their classrooms and across the school district and we find that we should be a more efficiently run school system both academically and instructionally.”

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I remember taking the initiative to write this column last minute since another column fell through for this page. I was more than happy to step forward as a page editor last year because I knew I wanted to have a leadership position this year. I am glad I had the opportunity to showcase a more creative journalistic approach with this column, as well as exhibit my abilities and desire to help fix any dilemna during a deadline.

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’ll admit it. I’m no humanitarian. But last year around this time I started thinking about things any California University-bound student would - the SAT, ACT, doing well in my classes, and most of all - getting into National Honor Society (NHS). I told myself if I did not get in to NHS, I would probably end up going to the wrong college, getting the wrong job, and having the wrong life. No pressure or anything.

Now, having gone to private school until the 9th grade, I was able to participate in National Junior Honor Society at Our Lady Star of the Sea. And ever since then, I’ve always had high school NHS on the back of my mind. Not to mention, my mom was a NHS member when she was in high school, and I would love to follow in her footsteps in as many ways as possible.

So along with thoughts of applying to NHS came thoughts of the requirements of applying. Among those - 30 hours of community service.

Of course I knew I needed to get this minimum amount of hours and I needed to start as soon as possible. Thirty seemed like a lot. I started looking at different organizations where I would like to spend my time - those involving interacting with children, the elderly, perhaps animals. It came down

to the Michigan Humane Society and Full Circle, a (mainly) women’s clothing resale shop at Harvard and Mack, just south of Cadieux. After a visit, I determined that the Humane Society was just a little too far from my home. So I settled on Full Circle.

The first day I volunteered was in about March of this year. And although I didn’t know what to expect, I’ve collected 50+ hours since then.

At first - like with everything - I was very shy. I did not exactly know Full Circle was an organization created to help special needs college graduates with job experience. I didn’t know if I would be good at helping the students. But I introduced myself, and was told to start sorting, tagging, sizing, pricing and hanging clothes.

Going through the donations was more interesting than I thought it might be. Of course, the shop is fortunate to be located in an area where it is quite possible that a top is worn only once - and often times, not at all. We only take what we consider to be “high-end”, but it’s not like we really get much that isn’t to be honest. Of course, if we stumble across an article of clothing from a lower end store, or one that isn’t in the best of shape, nothing goes to waste. Things that are donated to us that we can’t use, go to someone else who can.

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This technology update really benefitted our staff, as we were in need of new computers for the Tower room. Since this issue came out the first day of school, working on it during the last week of summer meant less staffers were available, so I knew it was crucial to get this news published.

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After a few times of volunteering about every other Saturday, I realized how much I enjoyed going. Not only did I enjoy working with the special needs girls, I loved going through the clothes and particularly, “roaming the floor” - checking the racks and organizing by item, size and color. Once I reached 30 hours, I knew I didn’t want to just stop there. So I didn’t.

Along with Full Circle, I volunteered at the St. Ambrose Bible Camp this past summer, which I’ve been doing for about three years now. It is only three hours a day for five days, but it’s something I really enjoy as well. Yet it started off similar to Full Circle. I wasn’t sure I’d like being around 100 screaming kids and waking up at 9 a.m. on a weekday in the summer, but after my first time as a volunteer the summer after 8th grade, I saw how rewarding it was. After all, I remember being a “camper” at 7 years old and admiring the volunteers for spending so much time with us.

So here I am, like I said 50+ service hours later, loving (almost) every minute of it. I’ll be honest - I did not necessarily want to put in service hours. But after a while, it makes you realize some things. Community service isn’t just about getting the minimum 30 hours.. It’s about helping others.

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s Editor, I have a lot of responsibilities and work put in that is often not tangible as a page design, story, or graphic in the paper. This year, I have worked on many things that the Leadership Team and I learned at MIPA. I begin the week (technically Tuesday, when the Tower week really starts over) ensuring that each student is working on something. I help everyone in our hour find a story to work on - and for many reasons. It is helpful to have this much content being worked on in case something falls through. We need people covering certain events, especially news. Also, because there are certain requirements to get an A, this gives them something to earn points from! Third, Tower is not a tutorial - running a paper every week means we need new stories every week. Tuesday is usually the day the next issue is planned out as well. Not only do all students have a story, but they know if it needs to be done for the following issue as early as possible. Wednesday begins our work on the issue.

During class, I am making sure everyone is capable of getting their assigned story completed by Friday of that week if that story is running. Thursday and Fridays are design days after school - staying until 5, I am going around to each page editor, checking to see what content they are missing, helping plan graphics, photos and design, and often times copy editing or designing when a page editor is absent.

On Monday, we start Editorial Board meetings by reading the editorial, and discussing our thoughts. I think it is crucial to have this discussion, as we want to form a unified and mature opinion on the topics that we cover. We discuss what content still might be missing, and have a short talk on where we see that day’s deadline and issue going. Monday nights, I copy edit, play with designs and give page editors ideas to try, help with last minute layout and stories, and check over style errors before PDFing the issue to be sent to print. Outside of actual deadline, I am maintaining the Google Drive and keeping everyone informed on Facebook, keeping the Pulse editors up to date with our coverage, as well as helping organize traditions like Birthday Bagels, the Christmas Party, and our annual Tower shirt. I hope I’ve been helpful in helping Mr. Satterthwaite feel welcome to the Tower community and be well-

versed in Tower traditions, our grading system, and keeping him informed.

One thing I was particularly honored to be a part of this year was getting the Jeff Nardone Memorial Bench installed outside of the Tower room. Last year’s editor requested that I do this, and I was more than pleased to both have known Mr. Nardone, as well as be able to honor him in this way. I have often dealt with controversies that we might have stirred as a staff - such as our stories about the Mothers’ Club healthy food changes, the coverage of football suspensions on the front page, and accepting the feelings that our counselors had after reading an editorial we thought was fair and understanding.

I am always behind the scenes, helping students find and get in contact with sources and businesses to sell ads to. First quarter I helped many people put together their portfolio/binder to make sure they gave themselves the points they deserved! I usually spend lunch in the Tower room to work on finding stories that are stored in the Drive, giving constructive criticism on page design, and checking the calendar and news to make sure we do not miss covering something important. Most recently, with the shootings, I was part of the group that had to determine how we wanted to cover it - again, with integrity yet also respecting the families of the victims. I was pleased with how we covered that on the website and paid tribute to Paige Stalker on our January 14 front page.

My goal for next semester as Editor-in-Chief is to continue to grow in our quality of work. I want to see improvement in page design and news writing. I have been pleased with the work I have seen so far, especially with all the changes that both returning and new staffers have endured in the past 2 years.

New staffers particularly do not have as strong of a journalistic background as the more advanced staffers do because of the multiple changes in their teaching staff last year. I want to see us put our all into the next semester. I know we can work harder on stories, spend more time on graphics and photography, and overall improve the way the paper is going. I want to see people spending their time more wisely after school, and putting effort, creativity, and thought into the paper.

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