Countryside High School Paw Print Newspaper Volume 39 Issue 4

Countryside High School | March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 Volume 39

Countryside High School students stand in silence to honor the victims of the Majory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting.

Features

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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The ins and outs of inductions micheleBUTTERFIELD

pawparazzi editor

The Countryside drama department is continuing their beloved inductions ceremony that is lead by Sarrah Taouill, Gianna Carsello, and John “Trip” Melton. Inductions are a two month long process where student drama mentors in the club choose a student inductee to initiate into the International Thespian Society (ITS).

The inductee process is a complicated, yet well thought out trial with only a certain number of inductees initiated into the ITS every year, after enduring the rite-of-passage pranks. “ I love it, I love clue week because it’s an opportunity to get the inductees ready and outside their comfort zone for ITS day. Such as, this year I had my inductee, Ariel, sit on a rock

acting as if it was a chair” Gianna Carsello said.

Sitting on the rock was Carsello’s way of hinting at her inductee that her character was Ariel.

During the weeks of tricks the mentors played on their inductees, students looked forward to learning the ins and outs of character role play.

These pranks go on continuously for three to four days in order to prepare the thespians for the possible embarrassment that comes with the thespian name. One popular prank this year was for the aspiring inductor to sport a trash bag around Countryside for the entire school day to prove they had the nerve to set aside their pride for the acclaimed title. Through private rehearsals and memorizing certain scripts, the inductees enhance their acting abilities leading

up to the final day of inductions.

When the final day arrived, about 30 students walked into school wearing their stunning costumes correlating to the theatrical character chosen for them. These students roamed the halls and entered classrooms to showcase their talents as aspiring thespians. This event lasted from second to fourth period leading up to the ITS test which consisted of five hundred questions ranging from multiple choice to short answer responses. Coming to a close with eight students being inducted into the Society. The top three induction performances were Taylor Eby as Cruella De Vil, Christian Charrez as Chef Skinner, and Irini Psomas as Sadness.

This seasons trending prom fashions dylanSTEVENS

photographer

As Prom 2018 comes faster than ever, high schooler’s from all over search for that ‘never been worn before’ outfit. Looking at the hottest looks from across multiple websites, we have

found fashion trends that you can use to build off of to make this years prom one of the most fashionable yet.

In our own school, we have an annual prom fashion show. This event features students

who will be attending prom and some ideas for outfits to wear. This is a very fun event many of the juniors and seniors look foward to. Below are some of the dresses that are on trend with the fashion trends this season. photo credit; Susan Jones Photography

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ne of last year’s trends will stay to see another prom and that trend would be the two piece gowns and dresses.

If you are looking for a refreshing elegant look the two piece dress would be your dress for this years prom.

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equins are going to be all over proms from every school.

If you are looking for a glimmery, head turning dress, sequins will be the one for you.

I

llusion gowns and dresses are one of this years most sought out trends. This style of dress allows you to show off some skin but also keep you looking classy and fashionable.

Students express their concerns regarding school safety cheriBURKETT staff writer

Spring break is often thought of as the break students want to make count. With Florida being one of the top states to visit during spring break, living here year round makes it easy to access everything available. Receiving this week off gives plenty of time to do everything on the spring break bucket list. From beaches to zip lining, many students have a wide variety of plans. Not only is it just time to relax and have fun, students can also maximize this time by planning for their futures.

“I spend most of my time at the beach or at

Pier 60. It’s nice to just relax and hang out with friends.” Freshman, Matt Myrick said.

A majority of students spend their time at the beach. Spring time makes it the perfect time considering winter is leaving and summer is on the way.

“I go to California during break to visit close family friends and we always go to Ringcon Beach.” Freshman, Johnna Seriano said.

Rather than spending everyday hanging out with friends or going to fun activities, students can utilize their time by preparing for college or upcoming exams. With school ending sooner than students might think, deadlines for exams

and college applications are coming up quickly and so is the stress. Instead of waiting until the last minute to get these things done, students can use the time given from spring break to make a detailed plan and schedule. Knowing deadlines and planning around them will lift much of the stress and make school lives immensely easier.

Of course, spring break doesn’t have to be completely about school. The last thing any student wants to do over break is more school work, but just a few hours out of a day can take away the stress of months. There will always be plenty of time to enjoy spring break the way it was intended for.

Features

March 22 , 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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From the sideline to the classroom gabbyHERNANDEZ

editor-in-chief

We all know goodbyes are hard, especially if we are saying them to those we care about.

Countryside High School said so long to the beloved Carl Zimmerman, who is now officially retired as of Thursday January 11, 2018.

Zimmerman had worked here at Countryside for 35 years and has made many memories with teachers and students.

Although we did not want to see him go, the new TV production teacher is being welcomed with open arms. His name is Brandon Shellgren.

He went to DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana and is currently enrolled at the University of South Florida to receive his masters degree in Journalism.

“This is the first time I have ever taught high school, and I can say my favorite thing about teaching is seeing students actually trying and wanting to listen to what I am able to teach them.” Shellgren said.

One of the changes made was the introduction to the UPC show. Before, there was a montage of videos from our school sports teams and a catchy beat. Now, there is an introduction similar to the TV show “Friends” with most of the members and “I’ll Be There For You” by The Rembrandts as its theme song.

All in all Mr. Zimmerman will be extremely missed, but Mr. Shellgren seems like a pretty nice fit for our big family here at Countryside. Make sure you remind your teachers to tune into UPC at the end of third period every day. Also, if you see Mr.Shellgren around school make sure to smile and say hi!

Starts at 9:34am Monday-Friday

M

r. Brad Shellgren joined Countryside High School this year after 20 years of being in front of the camera. He replaces the long time teacher, Carl Zimmermann, of TV Production.

@UPC TV on Youtube Photo Credits Katie Goss

Cancer never sleeps; neither do Cougars

rachelLEWIS and katieGOSS

features editors

Relay for Life is a night of fun filled activities in order to help raise money for cancer research and bring awareness to the public. Fundraising for this event begins towards the beginning of the school year and continues all the way up until the event held on a Friday in March. The process normally consists of joining a team and trying to raise at least $100 to be able to spend the actual night of Relay at your school. Throughout the year, students sold donuts, candy grams, and held car washes to raise more money.

The actual night of Relay for Life was filled with food booths, fun yard games and dodgeball, and even a jail you could pay to hold someone of your choice in. Later on in the night, students took place in a drum circle. People continuously walked around the track throughout the night, switching off shifts with someone else so that there were always people walking. Students in the National Honors Society took two hour shifts from the start until the end of the event in order to help

run booths, set up, or just simply clean up the track and field.

The lighting of the luminarias is a Relay for Life tradition where all of the lights on the field are turned off and students and teachers that have either loved someone who lost their lives to cancer or had cancer themselves walk around the track. The luminarias are decorated by students and teachers at the school who either write messages of encouragement on them, or remember loved ones who have been lost to the fight of cancer. At the start of the lighting ceremony, the luminarias were set up around the track, with some on the bleachers arranged to spell out HOPE and by the end of the ceremony they had been moved around to spell out CURE. This year, the 19 different teams at Countryside collectively raised $15,084. Altogether, Relay for Life has raised $406 million. It is a great cause to be a part of! If you want to take part in it next year, start thinking of ways that you can fundraise as soon as possible!

Photo Credits Megan Jones

Opinion

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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Controversy over the prom theme Say goodbye to early mornings alexHENRY

opinion editor

T h e first meeting of the club, prom committee the members voted and shared their ideas on what the theme for Prom will be this school year.

There were many amazing ideas, such as Star Wars, pitched to all the members, but when voting began, the options were becoming slim. The last themes standing were Old Hollywood and Music of the Night, based off the musical Phantom of the Opera. Both themes were good ones, but the way that the theme was chosen was a bit ridiculous; the committee was forced to vote about four or five times. The voting between the two was a tug-a-war due to the fact the two are so similar, but in the end Music of the Night was the champion.

T h e idea of Music of the Night w a s created by the Prom Committee President, senior Sinclair Feldman. She came up with the idea all the way back in November alongside teachers, Ms. Guzell and Ms. Coners.

Their thought was to have something with a spooky but tasteful, and that is when Phantom of the Opera came to mind.

“What is great about Phantom is that it hasn’t been done before and plays into a little bit of what everyone on the committee envisioned for this year’s prom. The wholistic idea of Music of the Night is elegant, and unique.” Feldman said.

Regardless of the theme being based off a musical known for the masks, people are still loving the idea of a theme related to a masquerade.

“I think it is (contradicting), I like the theme even though we can’t wear masks. I like that it’s so mysterious wondering who is under the mask” senior Lizbet Mejay said.

Music of the Night is a great theme but the way it was chosen could have been handled differently in more of a timely manner.

Underclass at prom, is it fair?

loganSCHNEITER

entertainment editor

Spring, the season where baseball kicks off, green comes alive, and high schools around the nation have prom. When you are a junior in high school looking into the future, you can’t help but think of prom as a milestone in your journey through high school. It marks one of the last public affairs you will attend as a highschooler and even more so for seniors, who look to turn the page, and head toward the real world. With all of this in mind, many people have posed the question on if underclassmen should be able to attend prom?

When you enter high school it can be a little overwhelming, not only is the population increase intimidating, but the classes alone are enough to be a culture shock for any student. After all of the new circumstances that they are being pressed into, underclassmen can’t even go to prom? No they cannot, because prom isn’t something that you should just be able to go to, that’s what homecoming is for. Prom should be used as a goal, something underclassmen should strive for.

The only underclassmen attending prom should

be the dates of upperclassmen.

When asked what he thought on the matter, Countryside Junior Jacob Roland said that “underclassmen shouldn’t be allowed to go” further elaborating that underclassmen should only be able to attend if they are on a date.

Freshmen Anya Reese, believes that “there should be more dances so underclassmen can go”, almost if she had accepted the fact that underclassmen shouldn’t be allowed to go.

One thing that should be pointed out is the fact that there is a social hierarchy in high school.

One in which the upperclassmen are at the top, and have earned the privileges that come along with being at the top. Some examples include they pick their lockers first, on track seniors get out of class for theater shows, and the option to go to prom. It comes as a privilege among those with seniority.

In my honest opinion, I believe that it’s a good thing that underclassmen aren’t allowed to attend prom. It should the “X” on the treasure map, that is a student’s high school journey. Prom should also feel more exclusive than any other dance held by the high school. Prom shouldn’t be a dance where students of all grades are jammed into a room with a DJ and black lights.

That’s what homecoming is for, we don’t need two homecomings.

rachelLEWIS

features editor

As the conversation about stress levels becomes more prominent, conversations about the levels of sleep teenagers are getting are occurring more often as well. The answer to higher grades and lower stress seems to lie in school hours changing, but conflicting opinions and schedules are keeping schools from officially making the switch from early to late start times.

High schools are shifting their start time to 8:00 AM and later to assure that teenagers have enough time to wake up in the mornings.

The main issue with this change is that students would not be getting out of school until from 2:30 to 3 PM which is an issue for families that already have their schedules set. Some working students start their work day at 3 PM, so the school hour shift would decrease their possible hours. Another big issue is after school activities being affected. With school not getting out until around 3, after school activities would go much longer and would either reduce time available for practice, or keep kids at school until after dark.

Though there appears to be many consequences, the positives seem to highly outweigh the negatives. Before looking into the schedules, I was on the side of keeping things the way we have them now so we could get out of school at the same time. However, when I looked into the benefits of having a later start time I was convinced. It has been proven that teenagers need at least 8-9 hours of sleep a night, and surveys showed that only 15% of students are getting that amount. You could argue that teenagers could just go to bed early, but after childhood, the circadian rhythm-or biological clock- in teenagers shifts two hours later than before. This means that most students are not even ready to go to bed until 10-11 PM, and most of the time teenagers go to bed much later. With an 8 AM start time, teenagers would be able to go to bed around 10-11 PM and still get their recommended 8-9 hours of sleep. This later time may reduce tardies, which is a huge problem in schools today.

Personally, I have a trouble functioning in the mornings. With school starting at 7 AM, I wake up around 5:30 AM to get ready. Sometimes I have to work from 3-10 PM, leaving no time to do homework. When I asked Vicky Megaly, a senior at Countryside, how she felt about new school times, she said that it would definitely improve things, saying “With how early we have to wake up, I have a lot of trouble doing things in the beginning of the day.” Allison White, another senior, said that with work she feels like she is constantly crunched on time.

Research has shown that the teenage brain is not truly awake until 10 AM, so it is ridiculous to expect students to be able to take tests and retain information at 7:30. Starting at 8 could give students enough time to actually eat breakfast and actually wake up before getting to school.

Grub Favorite taco toppings

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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Chica’s Taco Bar

cheriBURKETT

staff writer Tacos are a treat that most everyone loves to endulge on. They are the perfect finger food and come in so many different varieties like toppings, meat choice, flour or corn tortillas, and how spicy they can be. When asked, many students offered their opinions of what their favorite toppings are with te majority of the opinion being that cheese is the best topping for any taco.

chloeYATES

h e C h i ck e n T Tinga Burrito is a house favorite of many people who go to Chica’s Taco Bar.

guacamole-14 other-40 he beef burrito T is also a favorite, it is a

cheese-67 sour cream - 45

good spin on a classic as it has a very tangy taste.

salsa- 34

grub editor Chica’s taco bar is a new restaurant in Clearwater, Florida serves everything from tacos to burritos to empanadas.

I went there for the first time and immediately fell in love. Something about the family friendly atmosphere and extremely nice servers, made the whole experience even better. When asked what qualifications are When you first walk in, there is a bar where you order your food. To the left of the bar, there is a chalkboard with the menu on it colorfully displayed.

The house favorite is their Chicken Tinga tacos which have a chipotle mayo sauce drizzled on spicy roasted chicken with slaw and pickled red onions.

Although the food is very good and very filling, I wish there were more diverse options on the menu. All the food is exceptional but it all kind of runs together and tastes similar.

Whether you like tacos or not, this is definitely a good place to hang out with friends or family.

Acai craze: is it really that craze-y?

laliaCHARID

staff writer

No matter how we pronounce it, people can’t seem to get enough of acai bowls. Acai bowls have seemed to grow in popularity amongst those looking to grab a quick yet nutritional bite to eat. An acai bowl consists of a smoothie blend of the acai berry and usually other fruits such as banana or strawberries.

Multiple companies have invested in the acai trend, including popular locations such as; Grain and Berry, Rahvia bowls and Karma Juice Bar & Eatery. These new restaurants have gained popularity in the past year. With a hip new style that is quaint and simple, these restaurants offer plenty of options for those opting for a healthier alternative to fast food.

Victoria clark goes quite often to her favorite acai location on clearwater beach, “ My favorite location would have to be Rahvia acai bowls, it’s a nice spot for getting a great acai bowl, also at a good price.”

To some students it is the decoration and health factor that makes the acai bowl so special. “I feel as if it’s a perfect mix between delicious and healthy. The image and decoration to the bowls are also a factor in it’s popularity.

They’re good, I just think that people do kind of

hype them up too much,” Victoria said.

The real star of the show has to be the acai berry itself, not only does it make an acai bowl an acai bowl, but it gives the dish its nutritional qualities and proper classification. The acai fruit is even considered a superfood.

Some students however do have preferences

L

alia Charid and Helen Krayer went to Grain and Berry to try out the new Acai craze on February 28th and got their signature Eat, Relax and Repeat.

as to where they get their acai bowl, “it definitely depends on where you get your acai bowl to make sure it’s the real thing, a lot of places

use preservatives or cut corners just to put something that is remotely alike to an acai bowl on their menu,” Hannah Abrams said. Hannah goes to one of her favorite locations located in International Mall. “ I really like Fit2Run in International Mall, they are awesome at their acai bowls and have plenty of options at really good prices. It’s a good thing people are recognising acai berries as a new food, you just have to be careful about added preservatives,” Hannah said.

Many companies have claimed to use 100% acai in their dishes. Grain and Berry is a prime example of a company that is open to their customers and lets them know what goes into their bowls. They clearly state on their website that they use blended acai with banana to really captivate their signature taste and nutrition.

The following statement is printed right at the bottom on their “about us” column, “At Grain and Berry, we believe in living a conscious and active lifestyle and is why we deliver food that will give you a healthy boost of energy. Our bowls will leave you feeling refreshed, energized and ready to take on the day.”

It seems that the acai bowl officially lives up to its hype, with plenty of locations willing to accommodate each and everyone’s personal diets we can now see why this dish is so popular!

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Foc

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

Students march for the #NeverAgain movement rachelLEWIS

features editor

Following the Parkland school shooting, many people have been feeling helpless and are trying to get involved. The students at Stoneman Douglas High School fully took charge and are motivating other teenagers all over the United States to stand with them. If you want to stand with the students of Stoneman Douglas, there are many options!

Students at Countryside high school have already taken their own stand, participating in a walk out on February 21. Students filled the concourse for 17 minutes to honor the 17 students that were killed. Silence has never been so loud as students stood in silence to speak out on gun violence and the #NeverAgain movement. The Never Again movement is meant to recognize that we will never let the violence that occured at Parkland happen ever again.

In the weeks after the shooting, students in Pinellas County were motivated and decided to start their own movement. Different

representatives from schools all over the county met up and have been trying to organize ways to bring awareness to the cause. According to their Instagram bio, Pinellas 4 Parkland is “organizing and bringing awareness to gun reform in the wake of the tragedy at Parkland.” This group of students has coordinated with the city of St. Pete in order to start a march closer to home that teenagers can participate in.

On March 24th, there will be marches in Tampa and in St. Pete so students in Florida can march along with the students traveling to Washington DC. The St. Pete march will be taking place at Poynter Park at 11 AM. The Tampa march will take place at 400 N Ashley Dr, Tampa, Florida 33602 at 10 AM. The students at Stoneman Douglas have decided to wear orange during these protests, following the ‘We Are Orange’ organization created to honor 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton, who was shot in 2013 two weeks after performing at Obama’s inauguration. The color orange was chosen because it is typically the color that hunters wear in the woods as protection, and is a

bold color that demands to be seen.

If you are afraid to participate in walkouts or protests because of the possible repercussions, turn to ACLU. On the American Civil Liberties Union’s official website, it is stated that though your school can punish you for missing class, they can not give you a harsher punishment than you would normally receive for just being absent.

Also, if a punishment ends up on your permanent record, colleges such as MIT, the University of Massachusetts, Trinity College in Connecticut, and the California Institute of Technology have said that they encourage students to take a stand for their beliefs and that possible disciplines will not have negative consequences on applications.

For any other information, you can go to Pinellas 4 Parkland’s Instagram @pinellas4parkland or their Twitter, @pcspgv. If you are interested in the march in Tampa, you can go to the Facebook page March For Our Lives Tampa. If you believe in the cause, do not be afraid to join the march for our lives!

Countryside High School students stand in silence to honor the victims of the Majory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting.

What do Countryside student “Guns at school is dangerous. I just don’t want to die.”

Katie Sinz

“Guns don’t need to be anywhere near schools in general.”

Kendell Diaz

“We need to take care of mentally ill, a keep the gun away from t mentally ill.”

Shian

cus

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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Opinion: What’s more important?

Kids or guns? chloeYATES

grub editor Seventeen precious lives were lost on February 14, 2018 at Stoneman Douglas High School in Broward County Florida. The armed 19 year old, Nikolas Cruz was a former student at the high school who was able to legally buy an AR-15 and kill 17 students. Again, a 19 year old was able to buy a military grade weapon, no questions asked, as that is Florida’s law. People in the state of Florida cannot buy a handgun until they are 21 but they are legally able to buy a semi-automatic rifle (which the AR-15 is considered) at age 18. This has to stop. Although it should have been stopped after Columbine, after Sandy Hook, after Virginia Tech, and after any other shooting whether it be in a school or not. There have been 302 school shootings in America, according to Everytown.org, since 2013.

There have been 10 deadly mass shootings and out of the 10, six of them the weapon of choice, was the AR-15. How have we not seen this trend and done anything about it? How are people still able to go out and buy these horrible machines?

Added on to the guns, there are also accessories that are able to make semi-automatic weapons into automatic weapons such as the bump stock. For anyone who is not familiar with these items, semi-automatic weapons have bump fire which allows the gun to fire rapidly. The bump stock allows this rapid fire to be intensified and able to fire even more rapidly similarly to a fully automatic weapon. This is not used for anything other than killing. There is no reason these things should be out for sale, and the fact that a 19 year old who just got out of high school, was able to obtain them is mind-boggling. I am sure that I speak for the majority of students when i say, I do not feel safe at school anymore.

When asked if he feels safe at school, Jacob O’Neil answered, “...there is always a risk that somebody who doesn’t feel accepted or hates everybody in this school or something and wants

to take it upon themselves to do something about it”.

He’s not alone, many others feel the same way.

“I don’t feel safe at school because anyone can come in here with a gun and hurt us. Just because there is administration and cops around doesn’t mean that they still can’t come in” said Taylor Damien, senior at Countryside High School.

Florida legislature has just passed a bill that gives teachers the right to undergo training to carry a gun on school property. Please explain to me how bringing more guns into a school is the proper way to solve the issue of guns in school?

Politicians are so concerned with their own pockets that they are literally making it easier for these shootings to happen. What in your right mind would tell you that it is okay, even a good thing, to bring guns into a school where there is always potentially dangerous students? Many teachers and administration at Countryside agree and do not want more guns in the school.

“Absolutely not! I am a strong advocator of not arming our educators” said Mrs. Clausen, assistant principal at Countryside High.

Teachers are also upset and do not want to have the burden that carrying a weapon comes with.

“No I do not want to carry a gun!” said Mrs. Parker, biology one teacher.

Although this may seem like a solution, it inevitably will only lead to a further sense of impending danger to the students, once again, making them not feel safe. That is the goal, isn’t it?

All students from elementary school to college, have been thrown into the debate of gun control unwillingly as this is now a universal threat to not just gun owners but the children too. We are now, the generation to be feared because we will not stop until change is brought about. We will continue to fight for this cause until all students feel safe at school where we are meant to be growing not dying.

Parkland

There have been 7000 children killed by guns in general since the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

-PolitiFact

ts think about guns in school?

o f the and ns the

nne Grubbs

“No teachers should have guns in school.”

Courtney Mclean

“I think the only gun in school should be the one on the police officer.”

Ryan Scivally

Sports

March 22, 2018| Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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Superstars on the Track amilCHAPPELL staff writer

2

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Kaitlyn Patters on 4 by 80 0, 400, 800

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D 11 ono Ju -3 va by mp 00 n B 4, , 4 Hu ern 10 by rdl it e t 0 m 100 s, L et , on er tri g Ni pl c e o 10 le 4 - H Ja urd cks les on

At Countryside High School, the track season has officially begun.

Students have been preparing everyday after school with practicing starting at 2 pm and going through till 3:30-4:00 pm. This year at Countryside the coaches have seen great improvement in many of our athletes here at countryside high school, with some that have become star athletes. These athletes have prepared and done the conditioning that gets them ready for their meets.

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Cougar girls tie on their flags and charge the field brianPICKELL staff writer

Flag football is an after school activity here at Countryside for girls. The girls are split up into varsity and JV teams. The upperclassmen are what make up the Varsity team while the underclassmen make up the Junior Varsity team. However if an underclassman has the skill and talent they can also play on Varsity.

The season is made up of twelve games both away and home. All of the games are at 6:30 pm except for the games that are Varsity only, in that case the games are at 7:00 pm.

Many of the girls are excited about this season. “I love making new friends and being able to bond with my team” Sofia Burgos said.

“Running the ball and getting touchdowns is my favorite part of playing flag football. I remember once when I ran the ball for a 13 yard touchdown and spun around 3 times before getting in the end zone.” Melissa Sanders said.

Melissa is also the team captain and she believes in good leadership within the team, “It is good to encourage everyone to do great and have a good attitude” Melissa said.

In conclusion Flag football is a good way for all the girls to come together and have fun as a team as well as being physically active.

Student Life

March 22, 2018| Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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Cougars are pouncing into spring break cheriBURKETT

staff writer

S

pring break is often thought of as the break students want to make count. With Florida being one of the top states to visit during spring break, living here year round makes it easy to access everything available.

Receiving this week off gives plenty of time to do everything on the spring break bucket list. From beaches to zip lining, students have a wide variety of plans.

Not only is it just time to relax and have fun, students can also maximize this time by planning for their futures.

“I spend most of my time at the beach or at Pier 60. It’s nice to just relax and hang out with friends.” Freshman, Matt Myrick said.

Spring time makes it the perfect time to be on the beach considering winter is leaving, and summer is on the way. Many students are spending a lot of time on Florida’s beautiful groomed beaches.

“I go to California during break to visit close family friends and

we always go to Ringcon Beach.”

Freshman, Johnna Seriano said.

Rather than spending everyday hanging out with friends or going to fun activities, students can utilize their time by preparing for college or upcoming exams.

With school ending sooner than students may realize, deadlines for exams and college applications are coming up quickly and so is the stress. Instead of waiting until the last minute to get these things done, students can use the time given from spring break to make a detailed plan and schedule.

Knowing deadlines and planning around them will lift much of the stress and make school lives immensely easier.

Of course, spring break doesn’t have to be completely about school. The last thing any student wants to do over break is more school work, but just a few hours a day can take away the stress of months. There will always be plenty of time to enjoy spring break the way it was intended for.

brianPICKELL

staff writer

Be the student with the best prom pictures P

rom is quickly approaching and it can get very stressful for juniors and seniors. One of the big questions when planning the perfect night is where to go eat. Another main question is where are the best places to get those jaw dropping pictures! Below are a fews options to help ease the stress of having to make these difficult decisions.

prom picture

sp

ot

opinion editor

W an

liaDEALVAREZ

e om s t

Kapok Park

? ides

-Kapok Park in Safety Harbor -Downtown Safety Harbor Pier -Philippe Park by the water -Chi Chi Rodriguez or Countryside Country Clubs -Golf Course Get creative! Go to your favorite Restaurant and take pictures with your favorite meal!

Safety Habor Pier Phillipe Park

Student Life

10 EXHALE MICHAEL

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

COUGAR THINGS

zoeCOOPER @loganSCHNEITER entertainment editor Have you ever wanted to do something, just for the fun of doing it? No volunteer hours, grades, or money involved in any way, just doing something for logan the pure joySCHNEITER of the activity. Well, Countryside High Schooler Reegan Fabian did just that. One night while watching the season premiere of the second season of the acclaimed thriller “Stranger Things”, her friend Emily jokingly suggested doing a podcast and naturally Reegans retort was “Bet”.

After that one fateful sitting of ‘Stranger Things’ Reegan automatically began working, she created nine episodes, each episode coinciding with the second season of the popular show, in which Reegan analyzed and discussed the content of the ‘Stranger Things’ episode. When she finished analyzing the second season, she wanted to do more.

FILM FREAKS

@loganSCHNEITER entertainment editor

Deciding she wanted to cast more, Reegan decided to start a second podcast ‘FulFILMed’. She created the podcast as a way to converse about the entire film industry as a whole. The show covers everything from television to movies, and is co-hosted by her friend Ava Davis.

The first episode of ‘FulFilmed’ covers both of the moderators’ five favorite films of 2017 and all time. Reegan plans on both shows continuing regularly, and the second season of ‘Nosebleed’ should be due to drop later this year, along with more episodes of the shows counterpart ‘Stranger Things’. All episodes of both shows are currently available on Soundcloud.

staff writer

Michael Mancari a.k.a “SighMike” is a famous youtuber that attends Countryside high. Mancari started making Vines in 2014. In 2015 he uploaded his first video to Youtube ; ‘I’m a Mom’, earned him more than 45,000 views on Youtube. His video “TFiOS Hellen Keller Edition” was reposted by the highly-followed Vine account ‘Best Vines’. Between making Youtube videos and Vines Mancari started getting more and more publicity. He has around 64k followers on Youtube and around 278k followers on Instagram. With all the attention he was getting Mancari’s fan base started building, he had to get a manager to help with his publicity.

Through making videos he experienced plenty of opportunities that teenagers around the world wish they could experience.

“My favorite memory of making videos is touring and traveling with my friends” Mike said, With traveling he got a different view of what the world is really like with the new places and new people.

He proved to everyone with hard work and motivation that you can do anything you put mind to.

Entertainment 2018 The

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

Stats

All-Time

The Oscars take over Hollywood katieGOSS

Best Picture “The Shape of Water”

Most Nominations Meryl Streep (21) 3 wins

Best Actress Frances McDormand “Three Billboards”

Most Wins Katharine Hepburn 4 wins Most Wins (Individual)

Best Actor Gary Oldman “Darkest Hour”

Walt Disney 26 Wins

Best Director Guillermo Del Tora “The Shape of Water’

Biggest Sweep Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

11 Wins

Best Supporting (male) Sam Rockwell “Three Billboards”

Most Wins(Director) John Ford 4 Wins

Best Supporting (female) Allison Janney “I, Tonya”

Youngest to Win Shirly Temple 6 Years Old

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features editor

Celebrating 90 years of golden awards and an endless red carpet the Oscars were held in their usual spot in the Dolby Theatre on March 4, in sunny California. In light of last years disastrous events, Jimmy Kimmel was asked to host this years Oscars as a “re-do”.

Kimmel not only redeemed himself with his opening speech, but was able to deliver a fantastic performance for the public and nominated stars throughout the night. With controversial topics such as women’s roles in the industry and the recent immigration politics, the 2018 Oscars seemed to touch on all of it in a positive way. Frances McDormand gave a powerful speech about “inclusion riders”, which is a demand actors or actresses can put in their contract to require diversity in the people making a movie. Her speech moved those who heard it, and reflected the desperate change many are asking for to happen in Hollywood.

McDormand accepted an Oscar for best actress, for her role in Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri.

The four biggest categories at the Oscars show is best actor, best actress, best director, and the last one announced which is best picture. “The Shape of Water” dominated the last two categories of best director and best picture, which was somewhat of a surprise considering it was deemed a fantasy film. Guillermo del Torro was awarded his Oscar for best director for “The Shape of Water”. Gary Oldman won an Oscar for best actor for his role as Winston Churchill in “The Darkest Hour”. Meryl Streep continued her record of being nominated the most in Oscar history with her nomination for best actress for her role in “The Post”, her 21st nomination.

Locally, Oscar events happen all around the Tampa Bay area. Certain AMC theaters around the area host the Oscar Showcase event where you can watch all the movies nominated for best picture between two Saturdays, or in one 24 hour event. They also show the nominated short live action and animated shorts. The Tampa Theater, on the night of the Oscars, hosts an Oscar party where guests take a limo to the front entrance and walk down a red carpet to get in. You are able to dress up like you are actually going to the Oscars and able to get your hair and makeup done right inside, right next to the free food provided throughout the night.

Oldest to Win James Ivory 89 Years Old

Best Animated “Coco”

Wizarding World celebrates a decade meganJONES

main editor

Wizards, magic, light shows and more. The 10th annual Harry Potter Celebration Weekend lived up to the magical standards of the famous series. Ryan and I had been planning to attend this annual event since November, and had the highest expectations possible.

We got to the park as soon as it opened and went straight to the Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts ride. The ride simulated the thrill that Hermione, Ron and Harry endured as they raced through the bank in Deathly Hallows Part 2.

We attended one of the expos and got to see phenomenal chalk art, sneak peeks into the new Harry Potter mobile game and a virtual reality experience of Fantastic Beasts and where to find them. Our favorite chalk art was one of Luna Lovegood wearing spectrospects and holding the newest issue of the Quibbler.

We took the Hogwarts train to Universal where we were able to see a panel with stars like James and Oliver Phelps (Fred & George Weasley), Natalia Tena (Tonks), Bonnie Wright (Ginnie Weasley), and Stanislav Ianevski (Viktor Krum). The 5 stars answered all sorts of questions such as whether they took any trinkets home after filming, and what their ideal job would be in the Wizarding World. Ryan and I were in awe to get to see the stars of our favorite

childhood movies, sitting there in front of us.

As the sun went down and fans of the celebration settled in to watch the light projections on the castle, Ryan and I took advantage of the shortened wait for the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride. We zoomed through the castle, while avoiding a dragon, dementors and acromantulas (big spiders). The ride was equally entertaining as it was spooky.

To finish the magical day, there was an extraordinary light show projected on the Hogwarts castle highlighting each house.

L

ights dance across the Hogwarts castle as thousands

Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw dashed and darted across Hogwarts ending with the castle in a beautiful shade of gold.

Wayfaring wizards even got the chance to be sorted into one of the four houses by the Sorting Hat itself. Ryan sat eagerly under the hat, and an enthused smile came to his face as the Sorting Hat exclaimed “Slytherin!”

(Even though his last name is Griffin).

Attendees at the event delved into their imagination and came to the park in the most creative of costumes. From Professor Umbridge to Bellatrix Lestrange, and even Fluffy the Threeheaded dog. Our favorite costume by far was a little boy who transformed his wheelchair into Aragog the spider, and he wore the famous Ron Weasley sweater. While there were many Harry Potter lovers there, and lines were a little longer, the magic that filled the day made up for it all.

Leaving the Harry Potter Celebration Weekend was sad for Ryan and I, knowing that Harry Potter was only alive in our books and TV screens, but in the words of Dumbledore “of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?”

Out of 5 golden snitches, we give the Harry Potter Celebration Weekend a gleaming 5 snitches.

celebrate the 10th annual Harry Potter extravaganza in Hogsmeade Village.

Pawparazzi

March 22, 2018 | Issue 4 | Paw Print Newspaper

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The Academic All-American Dream gabby HERNANDEZ

editor-in-chief

As of the 2011-2012 school year the Academic All American program was established. This recognizes the outstanding achievements that high school athletes have accomplished. The National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) honors those who have at least a 3.6 grade point average, and are fantastic athletes.

This is a great way to receive a national award. Many students here at Countryside have decided the would like to take a chance and apply for this program.

“The All American Academic award was an award I heard of throughout all of my years here at Countryside and it is pretty cool because I never thought that my GPA would be high enough to apply, but with all my hard work I was able to.” Shannon Keelin said.

In order to become an Academic All American an application must be submitted by April 15th.

This application includes your home address along with your ACT and SAT scores. All grade levels from 9-12 are acceptable.

“The All American Academic award reflects how great our school swim team is academically rather than just by our athletic ability” Sam Licht stated.

In essence, this is a nationally recognized program that is an incredible opportunity to give your life a little boost of success!

Other All-American Recipients

Nick Lense

Jacqueline DeMarco

Shannon Keelin

Samuel Licht

Joseph Licht

Lia DeAlvarez