Globe Newsmagazine December 2014, Issue 4, Vol. 86

THE

GLOBE Issue 4, Volume 86

How will a tax abatement intended to add to Clayton’s skyline affect the School District?

CLAYTON HIGH SCHOOL, CLAYTON, MO.

december 2014

Thank you to our sponsors!

The Globe is an entirely self-funded publication. We receive no funding from the school district for printing. Each issue of the Globe costs approximately $2000 to print. We are very grateful to our sponsors for their support of our publication.

Golden Greyhound Sponsors: Modestus Bauer Foundation Tim Williams

December 2014

Feature 12

Mind Bending

The latest information on concussions.

14 A Lifetime of Laughter

Clayton grandparents with a lifelong friendship.

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16 Hong Kong

Cover Story

Understanding the recent protests.

19 Community of Compassion

Tax Abatement

A contracting company is in the process of receiving a tax abatement for a property to be built in Clayton.

News Tartuffe 8

Didn’t see the show? Read about it here.

9 Ebola Q&A

Get the real facts about Ebola.

10 News and Notes

Stay up to date about what’s going on in the world.

11 Busking Club

Learn about the new CHS club.

CHS students and staff share stories about how cancer affected their lives.

47 Roz Q&A

Learn more about the person behind the greeter’s desk!

Review Sports

30 Winter Sports Preview Find out who to watch in the upcoming sports season.

44 Breaking Records

Read about sports records recently broken at CHS.

36 37 37 38

Interstellar New Esquire Seats Taylor Swift Comet Coffee

Commentary 39 Signs with Power 40 Netflix Addiction 44 Pro/Con: Tax Abatement contents

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THE

GLOBE Issue 4, Volume 86

How will a tax abatement intended to add to Clayton’s skyline affect the School District?

CLAYTON HIGH SCHOOL, CLAYTON, MO.

editors-in-chief

december 2014

reporters

phoebe yao

neel vallurupalli

elise yang

ashleigh williams

sophia barnes

tara williams

nicole beliz mariclare gatter

jeffrey friedman

sophie berstein

peter schmidt

elise levy

alex bernard rebecca polinsky kevin rosenthal max steinbaum

webmaster

Cover photo by: Olivia MacDougal

zach bayly

marina henke

copy editors

GLOBE

peter baugh gwyneth henke

senior managing editors

section editors

THE

rachel bluestone jeffrey cheng lemuel lan

distribution editor lawrence hu business manager richard simon

photographers

lily brown patrick butler ashley chung

dima baldauf

matthew coco

bridget boeger

alaina curran

gabrielle boeger

neil docherty

charles brennan

beatrice engel

noah brown

noah engel

daniel cho

andrew erblich

lucy cohen

felix evans

emma ebeling

anna pakrasi

brian gatter

alexis schwartz

peter indovino

leah shaffer

joanne kim

katherine sleckman

nisha klein

katharina spear

nicholas lee

photo editor

noah engel

benjamin litteken

editors

sophie allen

elizabeth ngyen

grace harrison

olivia reuter

sierra hieronymus

harry rubin

audrey holds

nikki seraji

camille respess

mitali sharma

zachary sorensen

micaela stoner

helen tomasson

amy tishler

albert wang

karena tse

emily braverman

benjamin tamsky cosima thomas

natalie miller

katie warnusz-steckel

graphics editor

audrey palmer

graphic artists

cherry tomatsu victoria yi

foreign correspondent

peter shumway

adviser

erin castellano

FROM THE EDITOR

My senior year has raised a lot of questions. I am trying to understand the “now”: my grades, my relationships, my extracurricular activities and my last moments in high school. Simultaneously, I am expected to figure out the “next”: where I want to go, the person I want to be, the people with whom I want to surround myself.

I made a public mistake, one that violated my personal constitution, and as a result, it forced me to slow down. And for that I am truly thankful; in my slower moments I was given the opportunity to reflect on my mistake, my future and myself.

A great test of an individual is their behavior after they have wronged. I have come to realize that a mistake does not have to detract from the totality of my character. Rather, the ultimate assessment of my integrity comes from my response, not the mistake itself.

As a self-critical person; I found the greatest trial for me was finding the strength to forgive myself.

Initially, I saw this situation as a judgment of only my character. But my mistake has also revealed a lot about the moral fiber of the teachers and other students at CHS. Some reached out to me and provided support, while others discouraged me further.

In some ways, one person’s mistake can reveal an entire community’s strengths and weaknesses.

It is important to be accountable for our actions and to accept our imperfect decisions, but it is equally important to be resilient and to move forward.

I am grateful for the people that helped me bring my mistake into perspective. They showed me the value of forgiveness. The Clayton community has blessed me with the opportunity not only to learn from my mistake, but also the wisdom to help others do the same. 

Rebecca Polinsky, review and commentary editor

The Globe Newsmagazine exists to inform, entertain, persuade and represent the student voice at CHS. All content decisions are made by the student editorial staff and the Globe is an entirely self-funded publication. Not every story that our reporters write is published in the print newsmagazine. Visit www.chsglobe.com for additional stories and photos and for more information about the Globe itself. We reserve the right to refuse any advertisement - for more information about advertising and subscriptions, please contact our office: Clayton High School Globe 1 Mark Twain Circle Clayton, MO 63105 (314) 854-6668 Fax: 854-6734 globe@claytonschools.net

November 1, 2014: Clayton, Missouri

Sophomore Tamar Sher spreads mulch during CHS’s annual Beautification Day. Photo by Katherine Sleckman

Photo by Eric Woolsey

TARTUFFIFIED

by GWYNETH HENKE

U

n, deux, trois, Tartuffified!

With this cheer ringing in the air, the cast of CHS’s fall play, “Tartuffe,” burst into the second act of their production after a restless intermission.

“It was our, ‘Come on, keep the energy up!’ way of cheering us up,” sophomore Hannah Ryan, who played Doreen, the show’s second female lead, said.

Directed by theater teacher Kelley Weber, the fall play captivated audiences during its four shows from Oct. 23 to 26 with French playwright Moliere’s witty rhyming couplets, set designer David Blake’s ‘20s style set and an intimate 12 person cast.

The 17th century play follows the exploits of a rich French family when the head of the household, Orgon, played by Nick Parker, takes in a pauper named Tartuffe after he is overcome by Tartuffe’s apparent piety.

“Orgon ... is convinced that his house is a little bit less than holy ... and that his family is corrupted and that perhaps he himself is corrupted,” junior Luke Davis, who played Tartuffe, said.

The rest of Orgon’s family remains unconvinced by Tartuffe’s airs, and they recognize him as exploiting Orgon’s kindness for money and power.

Orgon, however, ignores these warnings, eventually promising Tartuffe his daughter Mariane, played by junior Rebecca Bloom, as his wife and signing over his house to Tartuffe rather than to his son, Damis, played by sophomore Kevin Rosenthal.

Meanwhile, Tartuffe repeatedly attempts to seduce Orgon’s wife, the beautiful and cunning Elmire, played by senior Katie Warnusz-Steckel.

“The way we played [Elmire] was almost a young trophy wife to this older, wealthy, kind of oblivious man,” Warnusz-Steckel said.

After Tartuffe confesses his lust for Elmire, she pretends to seduce him in order to prove to Orgon that Tartuffe is full of desire for her and greed for Orgon’s money.

The comedy presented several unique challenges to the cast.

“It was hard for [the cast] to get a bigger sense of us being comedic. A lot of the time what we struggled with was being too serious,” Davis said.

In order to tackle this key element of the production, the cast studied commedia dell’arte, the Italian comedic style employed in “Tartuffe.”

Warnusz-Steckel and Davis especially strived to perfect the comedic scenes between Elmire and Tartuffe, which included extremely physical and exaggerated interactions. Act four’s seduction scene stood out to

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both of them as the hardest one to get right. “[Elmire is] basically trying to get him [Tartuffe] to sleep with her on the table while her husband is beneath the table, but she’s also trying to get her husband to come out from under the table to save her. It’s this super ridiculous, heightened scene where everyone’s screaming and throwing themselves on furniture, and it’s so fun,” Warnusz-Steckel said.

In addition to long rehearsals leading up to “Tartuffe,” the actors also benefitted from last year’s fall play, “The Laramie Project.”

“I definitely think the ensemble idea of The Laramie Project - it was a complete ensemble piece, we had to become almost one unit of people - I think that helped a lot with Tartuffe,” Davis said. “Having a sense of ensemble in every show that you do is a good thing.”

On an individual level, Davis at first struggled to accurately depict and understand the complexities of his character.

“It was really hard for me to get into a character who was slimy, but in some aspects ... provocative. [Tartuffe] did draw all these people in, and he was able to convince some ... people that he’s true and that he’s a pious dude,” Davis said. “It was really hard for me to find this middle ground between complete scumball and convincing bad guy.”

Warnusz-Steckel also faced several challenges when trying to grasp Elmire’s character.

“Elmire is never one thing, and her intentions are never clear from just reading the text, because she’s always working an ulterior motive...”

Warsnuz-Steckel said. “It’s really interesting, and it was really hard for me to get that; how [can] I be genuine on stage when I’m lying every time I open my mouth?”

The cast’s hard work in overcoming these difficulties on an individual and a group level overwhelmingly paid off, however.

“Our last week of dress rehearsals, the amount of effort that the cast as a whole put into it and the way we brought it together was just astounding to me,” Davis said. “I’ve never seen a show come together so quickly, but I’ve never seen a better high school show.”

Davis treasures the opportunities for growth, thought and discovery that “Tartuffe” offered him and the entire cast.

“I’m very thankful for every single person that was involved in it, and I’m glad I got to play the role that I did ... and that I was able to act with people that I love so much,” Davis said. “Honestly, the whole thing was a great experience, and I can’t wait to be in the play next year.” 

New Library Policy

Photo by Neil Docherty

I

by AMY TISHLER

t is 7:45 a.m. on a Thursday morning and approximately 20 students are scattered throughout the CHS library. The majority of them have binders and textbooks spread out across the wood tables in front of them. A few of them are pecking away at the keyboards of the library’s laptops and desktops. The only sounds are the turning of pages and the scratching of pencils.

The library opens for quiet study at 7:30 a.m. Monday through Friday and, thanks to a new policy change instituted at the start of the current school year, students are no longer required to sign up in advance.

Librarian Lauran DeRigne explained that last year, students were required to sign up a day ahead and the number of students allowed in the library in the mornings was limited in order to discourage socializing.

However, junior Joshua Blair felt that this was unfair to students who sincerely wanted to use the library for quiet study. Blair started a petition to change the policy.

“Because I saw that there were a lot of people who sat outside of the

library in the mornings waiting until 8:00 to go inside for less than fifteen minutes of working time, I believed that the new library policy was not very representative of the traditional values of Clayton High School,” Blair said. “I felt as though the importance of Clayton’s educational values were violated by only allowing a specific number of students to enter the library in the morning.”

Blair’s petition was signed by 165 people.

“We had to reflect on how it’s [the old policy was] working,” DeRigne said about a meeting with the library staff. The staff decided to eliminate the advance sign-ups. DeRigne said that other than a few students not at first understanding it was supposed to be independent study, the new policy appears to be a success.

Blair agrees.

“I was very excited to see that people were able to get into the library and be allowed a decent amount of time to do their work,” Blair said. 

(Carline Jean/Sun Sentinel/MCT)

T

THE FACTS ON EBOLA

he recent Ebola outbreak has been plastered over headlines for weeks. Many people have come up with elaborate conspiracy theories surrounding the outbreak, and others think it is the impending apocalypse. Regardless of their beliefs, most do not know the real facts.

Globe reporter Helen Tomasson spoke to infectious disease expert and professor at Washington University Robyn Klein regarding Ebola.

Q: How infectious is Ebola?

A: It is contagious; however, the only way to get Ebola is to really come in contact with the bodily fluids of someone who has it. Contact means mucous membranes: eye, throat, nose. But the thing about Ebola is that it’s not airborne, so it doesn’t affect the lungs. You can’t get it from sitting next to somebody that doesn’t have symptoms. So the people who have gotten Ebola are mostly people who are caring for patients with Ebola and aren’t wearing protective equipment.

Q: What are the extra precautions being taken in hospitals after the outbreak?

A: There is Ebola preparedness that is ongoing in many hospitals.

Washington University, Barnes Jewish Hospital as an example. There is an Ebola team: physicians who are being trained to handle any Ebola cases that could possibly present. There is an algorithm for dealing with a patient who meets criteria for possibly having Ebola. You think about how likely it is that this is a person who has come in contact with [Ebola], and they’ll be immediately isolated with only certain physicians who have been trained to use the protective equipment.

Q: How does the Ebola outbreak compare to other epidemics?

A: There have been much bigger outbreaks of other infectious diseases. HIV is a great example. This is probably similarly contagious in that it has to be [passed] through direct contact with bodily fluids. I think people should think about it that way. It’s hard to get HIV, but that’s a huge epidemic, ongoing, so this pales in comparison to that I think.

Q: Some people are freaking out about Ebola. Is this reaction justified or are people overreacting?

A: I don’t think that this is the Apocalypse. I think that you take all infectious diseases seriously and I think that people should become informed and learn about them. Learn about what the real issues are. And the real issue is not that it’s an impending doom and that everyone here is about to be infecting people. I think there’s a lot of crazy panic. I think it’s a little bit destructive. I’ve heard of situations where people are being asked to be quarantined and they’re being quarantined, not letting their children into school. I don’t think that that’s appropriate.

Q: What specific treatments do you think are being most worked on or will be most effective?

A: So one of the ways the body fights diseases is by making antibodies.

Antibodies are usually a pretty good way to fight viral infections. There are some labs that are working on antibody based treatments. Making human-made antibodies that would be directed at specific proteins made by the virus that cause a lot of the virulence factors. 

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NEWS

WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED

Globe staff members with the Pacemaker at the National Scholastic Press Assocation award ceremony in Washington D.C. Photo from Erin Castellano.

CLAYTON IS #1 Clayton High School was ranked as Missouri’s best public high school by Niche, a content startup that reviews neighborhoods, elementary schools, middle schools, high schools and colleges.

CHS was given A+ ratings in academics, teachers, resources and extracurriculars. Clayton’s lowest grade came in student culture and diversity. The Greyhounds received a B in this category.

Wydown Middle School was also recognized as the best middle school in the state.

In addition, all three Clayton elementary schools were also ranked as the top three in the state. The first place spot went to Meramec Elementary, second place to Ralph M. Captain Elementary and third place to Glenridge Elementary.

Other area schools also had success in Niche’s rankings. After Clayton, the top five consisted of Kirkwood, Eureka, Ladue and Lafayette, all area schools.

REPUBLICANS TAKE SENATE The Republican party gained many seats from the Democrats in the Senate after November’s midterm elections; they won more than the six seats needed to take the majority from the Democrats.

The Republicans also won key Governor races. Scott Walker (Wisconsin) and Rick Scott (Florida) both won re-election.

Arkansas, Colorado, Montana, North Carolina, South Dakota, West Virginia and Iowa all went from Democratic to Republican Senate seats. The Democrats were also unable to take seats away from the Republicans in many states that had close races.

This is the first time that the Republicans will have the Senate majority since 2006.

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news and

notes

by PETER BAUGH

AMENDMENT 3 STRUCK DOWN Missouri voters struck down Constitutional Amendment Three in the November midterm election. The amendment would have required an evaluation of teachers that, if failed, would cause the districts to lose state funding. It also would have required “teachers to be dismissed, retained, demoted, promoted and paid primarily using quantifiable student performance data as part of the evaluation system.”

Amendment 3 was voted down with 76 percent of voters checking the ‘no’ box on their ballots. In St. Louis County, over 213,000 people voted no.

PACEMAKER

The Globe was awarded the Pacemaker by the National Scholastic Press Association. The Globe was one of six newsmagazines in the country to earn this honor.

According to the NSPA, “Judges select Pacemakers based on the following: coverage and content, quality of writing and reporting, leadership on the opinion page, evidence of in-depth reporting, design, photography, art and graphics.”

This is the second time in the last four years the Globe has won this honor for the magazine.

POPE TO U.S.

Pope Francis will be attending the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia in September of 2015.

In a speech given to various religious leaders, the Pope said, “I wish to confirm according to the wishes of the Lord, that in September of 2015, I will go to Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families.”

The World Meeting of Families is held every three years and is the largest gathering of Catholic families in the world. 

CHS Busking Club

(Photo by Ashley Chung)

by HARRY RUBIN Sharp Cookies. This nonsensical phrase is also known by another name: the CHS Busking Club. The Busking Club was started this year by junior Phoebe Yao after being submitted as a club idea last spring.

“At the end of last school year, I just felt there weren’t enough musical opportunities at Clayton High School,” Yao said.

Yao, who plays viola, felt that as a student musician, it was hard to find ways to get involved musically at CHS. “Currently, musical opportunities are spread out and it’s hard for students who are musicians to find them,” Yao said.

After asking orchestra teacher Julie Hoffman to be the club sponsor, the Busking Club held its first meeting in which only five students showed up. However, the Busking Club is not a meeting-based club.

“We have some meetings, but those only come up for projects or to introduce new opportunities,” Yao said. “Nobody is required to come to meetings. If you want to participate in a certain project, then you choose to go to that meeting.”

So far, the club has completed two projects and is working on a third. The first project was at the Arts Fair in downtown Clayton.

“People were performing on the street and it was a volunteer opportunity. They got volunteer hours and a free T-shirt,” Yao said.

“It was a big project and we met with all these Arts Fair directors.

It turned out great and people got lots of experience performancewise.”

The second project was performing at Shakespeare in the Streets’ “Good in Everything.” That performance consisted of a much smaller group of musicians than the Arts Fair.

The club is currently working on musical story time at the library, where musicians will be playing music while a story is read to young children.

“The objective of the musical storytime is to introduce young children to music and musical instruments, and to promote the arts at Clayton,” Yao said.

These projects have taken a lot of work to coordinate, and have been arranged almost completely by students.

“These kids do everything by themselves,” Hoffman said. “They made their own officers and besides coordinating the ‘Shakespeare in the Streets,’ I haven’t really had to do much.”

The club and its officers stay on top of their duties by using a Facebook group, which has more than 50 members. Additionally, there are more musicians in the club who do not use Facebook.

All of these members are currently trying to get permits for street performing. It is the Busking Club, after all.

“We’re currently trying to get permits so that we can do a whole group buskathon on the Delmar Loop, where we will hopefully get some experience as well as some profit,” Yao said.

The group came up with the non-Clayton related name Sharp Cookies to put on their shirts.

Junior Matthew de la Paz, a member of the Busking Club, explained, “The sharp is supposed to be like a hashtag, but sharp instead, since it’s music.”

Just as music makes the sharp a special hashtag, it makes the Busking Club a special club.

Yao said, “Music is something that helps people connect to each other, while personally connecting to music.” 

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Mind-Bending

C

by NOAH BROWN with reporting by NEEL VALLURUPALLI

HS Athletic Director Bob Bone could see that his son wanted to stay on the court. The look in his eyes screamed, ‘Keep me in, Dad.’ Bone looked on from the sidelines as his son, dribbling up the court against an intensely pressing defense, took a hard hit to the head. Right away, the trainer suspected a concussion. Conflicted as both a parent and a coach, Bone found himself in a difficult situation. His son, the leader of the team, ended up being removed from the game completely.

Concussions have come to the forefront in recent medical studies, and doctors have been able to gain a more accurate understanding of their impact. “We are getting there,” Dr. Andrew Youkilis, a practicing neurosurgeon and CHS parent, said. “We are a lot more conscious of the dangers of concussions than when I was a kid.”

One of the most important aspects of concussion management is early awareness and recognition. Without a doubt, Americans have become

What’s the latest on concussions?

more aware of these major incidents and what to do in response to them.

As a school, Clayton has been “staying on the front edge of this [issue],” Bone said. “We educate both the parents and the student-athletes on what concussions actually are.”

Clayton implemented the ImPACT test a few years ago, a neurocognitive assessment that all athletes must complete prior to sport participation. The District continues to consider alternative or additional tests and technologies.

Additionally, Clayton’s Athletic Department is proud to say that they can set any student-athletes up with a doctor’s appointment within 24 hours. The CHS trainer also contributes quite a lot.

“She’s always available; we try to take it off the coaches hands as much as we can,” Bone said.

Concussions are “brain injuries with brief or transient loss of consciousness,” Youkilis said. “To be concussed is to be knocked around.”

Concussions are possible in every sport. Heading the ball in soccer and, of course, football collisions come to mind immediately, but what some don’t realize is that it’s not just one brutal hit that always causes the concussion. In fact, the majority of concussions are caused by a series of hits.

“Repetitive hits can be very, very dangerous,” Youkilis said. When hit

Senior Jordan Shields visits CHS trainer Ashley Mettlach (Photo by Matt Coco).

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Junior Sam Schneider fights for the ball against Kirkwood. (Photo by Andrew Erblich). in the head, the athletes find themselves in a conflicted situation. How do they know when or if it is necessary to seek [medical] attention and retreat from the game? “ The knee-jerk reaction is usually to keep playing.

“Their automatic answer is yes, they want to go back in the game, no matter what,” Bone said.

Neera Golochekine, a freshman at CHS, got a concussion during volleyball practice early in the school year. Golochekine hit her head hard while she was diving for the ball. However, she continued to participate in practice, not knowing that she had experienced a concussion.

“At the moment, I didn’t think I had a concussion. The coach asked me if I was okay, I said ‘Yeah,’ and kept practicing,” Golochekine said.

She didn’t find out about it until two days after the practice.

On the academic side of things, Golochekine now finds herself two months behind on her already-rigorous school work.

“My academics were great before my concussion, and I find myself really behind in school, with honors classes and everything,” Golochekine said. “I’m still catching up. It’s challenging to understand what they’re teaching now, while getting caught up on work from several weeks ago at the same time.”

Stressed is an understatement to describe Golochekine’s recent state.

Not only has she been working hard to catch up on her academics, but Golochekine also experiences frequent migraines and fogginess.

“I’m hoping, by the semester, I’ll be all caught up. It’s just a matter of time,” she said.

Not only here at Clayton, but across the entire country, more and more changes are being made in order to avoid the incidents initially and, if they do occur, to treat them correctly and effectively. Professional football penalizes players for leading with their head. Hockey has delayed the onset of checking. Baseball has made a rule against collision at the plates.

Little steps have been taken, but there is certainly more to be done.

“It’s an ongoing learning process for all of us,” Bone said.

Participating in any sport can be dangerous.

“It’s just like crossing the street - sports have a risk,” Youkilis said, “Like everything in life, it’s a balance. There are pros and cons, and you have to make decisions based off an imperfect world.”

Bone’s son, an elite point guard and likely the team’s best player, was taken off the court as the crowd, his teammates and his father looked on with shock and disbelief. The team was beaten. While losing the game was likely a result of Bone’s absence, a clear message emerges: a single game isn’t worth damaging a person’s brain.

That said, Youkilis stresses that being afraid of concussions should not keep a person from participating in enjoyable activities.

“It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t play sports, that you shouldn’t be invested,” Youkilis said. “There are many positive things to sports, and if we didn’t do them because of fear, we’d miss out.” 

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A Lifetime of Laughter Clayton grandparents Suzy Seldin and Sally Rosenthal have been friends for nearly seven decades. Here is their story of lifelong friendship.

by MARINA HENKE

Clockwise from top left: Sally Rosenthal (right) and Suzy Seldin (left) (photo by Emily Braverman). Sally Rosenthal (left) and Suzy Seldin (right) at camp (photos from Suzy Seldin).

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Sally Rosenthal left, Suzy Seldin right (photos by Emily Braverman).

S

queals rang out across a crowded Famous-Barr. Amidst starched dress shirts and pleated pants, Suzy Seldin and Sally Rosenthal laughed uncontrollably as Seldin’s mother stood by.

“Won’t you two ever grow up?” Seldin’s mother asked.

Between boisterous giggles the two young women answered in unison: “No!” Forty years later, Seldin and Rosenthal are just as happy to be around one another.

“We have been laughing for about 67 years,” Sally Rosenthal said, sitting on her best friend’s couch in Old Clayton.

When Seldin and Rosenthal met at a camp in Bridgeton, Maine during the summer of 1947, they would never have dreamed of bantering in a living room nearly seven decades later.

During their first summer at camp both girls were 9 years old. Seldin was fresh off of a two-day train ride from St. Louis and Rosenthal had come from Philadelphia.

“It was an all-girls eight week camp, all sports,” Rosenthal said. “We did everything. We played field hockey, tennis, baseball and we canoed.”

The two girls were bunk mates for eight summers. Each year they would return to camp and start their friendship off right where they had left it. Despite changes during the school year, both agree that the adjustment was an easy one.

“We loved camp. This was our life. We settled right in to camp life and most of the time we had the same bunk mates. You got used to the appearance change in five minutes,” Seldin said.

The two friends had a sharp sense of humor and loved to tease one another.

“Suzy chased me all over camp with caterpillars. It was really fun.

These have been our happiest times,” Rosenthal said.

Seldin and Rosenthal spent one year together as junior counselors.

When their summers in Maine were over, and most friends would part ways, Seldin and Rosenthal worked hard to maintain their friendship.

“We always wrote letters,” Rosenthal said.

By the time they were in their twenties, Seldin still lived in Saint Louis and Rosenthal lived in Philadelphia. Rosenthal had three children and was recently divorced, so Seldin and her husband set her up with a work friend.

“I think he was on the next plane to Philly. He proposed the second night. She ended up moving to Saint Louis and they were married less than a year later,” Seldin said.

“I moved here 48 years ago thanks to Suzy,” Rosenthal said.

The two friends were finally living in the same city, but as excited as they were to see each other, Seldin and Rosenthal were not next door neightbors. Rosenthal moved to Frontenac and Seldin still lived in Clay-

ton. This distance kept part of their lives separate.

“We did not really raise our kids together. It wasn’t that kind of friendship where it was built around our kids,” Seldin said.

Still, the two played significant roles in each other’s families.

“Of course, I know Sally’s kids well and I’m crazy about them. She feels the same way about my kids,” Seldin said. “My daughter is named after Sally.”

Now Seldin’s granddaughter, junior Grace Harrison, and Rosenthal’s grandson, sophomore Kevin Rosenthal, are both current CHS students.

Maintaining a lifetime friendship is not easy, but staying close came naturally for Rosenthal and Seldin.

“It’s a commitment. It takes a certain amount of effort to nurture these friendships,” Rosenthal said.

Rosenthal and Seldin take this commitment seriously. Throughout their different experiences, both women constantly keep one another up to date.

“Suzy has travelled around the world, and most of the time has called me from different ports all around the world,” Rosenthal said. “Rarely does a day go by where we don’t talk on the phone or text … we worry if we haven’t heard from each other.”

Communication has changed considerably over the course of their friendship. Although the two text almost daily, Seldin worries that new technologies can inhibit lasting friendships.

“With texting, email and Facebook, it dilutes the word friendship. You don’t have one particular best friend.”

Because of this, the two friends still value more intimate forms of communication.

“We still write notes always, notes by hand, not on the computer. It is important,” Seldin said. “Even thank you notes. Times are different, but we are still in our era, and we are lucky.”

Over the years their letters and phone calls have payed off. Seldin and Rosenthal have a friendship that many would envy.

“There aren’t too many secrets. There really aren’t. There aren’t too many people that you can really trust to be there for you no matter what,” Seldin said.

Seldin and Rosenthal recently spent nearly thirty minutes looking over old photographs from their years at camp. They crowded over a box teeming with mementos, trying to recall names of old bunk mates and past counselors.

Images of the two young girls canoeing and playing sports filled the table. One picture in particular showed Seldin and Rosenthal in their official camp uniforms, beaming at the camera.

The smiles reflected in the old Polaroid look strikingly similar to the ones emerging on both women’s faces as they recall old stories; the love born more than six decades ago still persists today. 

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HOW HONG KONG

IS TAKING ON CHINA

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(AND DOING IT PEACEFULLY)

by SOPHIE BARNES

Protestors convene in Hong Kong on Oct. 10 (Guillaume Payen/NurPhoto/ Zuma Press/MCT).

I

n Central Admiralty, one of the busiest highways outside of the Hong Kong government offices and financial district, there are no cars, buses, trams or taxis. Instead, you will find rows and rows of tents, thousands of umbrellas, large walls covered with colorful sticky notes and groups of passionate, peaceful protesters.

After Hong Kong’s hand over to China in 1997, Hong Kong was promised universal suffrage: the right to vote for all citizens over the age of 18. Previously, Hong Kong had been a British colony for over 150 years. With its return to China and communism, some political promises were made. Hong Kong became the Special Administrative Region (SAR) - it would not be required to follow all laws of China, but would still be under China’s control.

But recently, China announced that Hong Kong will only be allowed to vote for its leader after a Beijing committee has screened the candidates first. This announcement did not go over well with the locals. Since Sept. 22, students and residents of Hong Kong have been protesting for true universal suffrage.

“On the sides of the streets there were many signs in different languages saying that ‘Hong Kong wants democracy’. Everyone came together to fight. Not by themselves, but as Hong Kong, as a community,” Brittany Ng, a freshman in high school attending the Hong Kong International School, said.

A symbol of these protests has been the sticky note. Outside the headquarters of Hong Kong’s political leader, CY Leung, walls of bright sticky notes stand. On these notes are messages of encouragement and drawings of support for Hong Kongers’ recent political protest. Students call it the “Lennon Wall,” based on singer John Lennon’s message of peace and activism in his own life before his murder in 1980. Sticky notes have been one of the many symbols of the Hong Kong Movement.

Another symbol of the Hong Kong protests is the umbrella. At the start of the protest, umbrellas were used to block tear gas, pepper spray, treacherous rain and blazing heat. “The Umbrella Revolution” is the new name for the movement, which shows that the umbrella symbolizes a desire for freedom that follows the protesters every step of the way.

Sculptures, paintings and thousands of other art pieces that depict the umbrella have appeared.

Ng and many other students went down to Central to observe the

protests closely, and noticed how organized everything was. There were stations for food, water and even showers. Study places and tutors have also been available for students involved in the protesting. In fact, the majority of the protesters are young students in college.

Though the student protesters in Hong Kong are fighting against the government of one of the biggest and most powerful countries in the world, their protests have been peaceful.

“Once you get down there you see tons of posters and signs, literally everywhere. On the road, hanging up on bridges, everywhere,” Carly Billington, a sophomore also attending the Hong Kong International School, said.

Speeches ring through the air, and there were bracelets available for protesters to buy in order to show their support. Pamphlets and posters also covered the main areas of demonstration.

“I believe in this movement, but [I am] unsure of its effects. It may slowly subside without any significant benefits,” said Madison Laskowski, another sophomore in high school at the Hong Kong International School. “But it seems to be inevitable that change is needed, and will occur. Movements like these should continue to occur, and eventually, China will have to respond to the demands of the Hong Kong people. CY Leung is not giving fair treatment, and true democracy is needed.”

Today, social media is involved with almost all current events: #hongkongdemocracy and #hongkong have been trending on Twitter. Chinese policy does not guarantee freedom of speech and, therefore, prohibits negative public opinion of government authority. However, this new method of expression is much harder to control.

More than anything, a sense of common interest permeates the protesters as a collective entity. Among the various protest groups, there is a feeling of solidarity. People have been sharing supplies with each other, singing songs together and instilling in each other hope that change is possible.

“It is a really close-knit community and everyone is willing to share the supplies they have and encourage others to go and give a speech,” Laskowski said.

The results of the current Hong Kong protests have yet to manifest themselves. After more than six weeks, students continue to sit on highways today in hope of true democracy, something that many Americans perhaps take for granted. 

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Bloom (second from left) with friends on Mount Masada in Israel (Photo from Rebecca Bloom).

Sheltered from Smoke

by NOAH BROWN

W

hen junior Rebecca Bloom arrived in Israel in June 2014 for a study abroad trip, conflict was rife. Three Israeli teenaged boys had recently been kidnapped, and the country was on high alert.

“When I got there, they were still missing,” Bloom said. “There was a lot of speculation about what [had] happened to them.”

The three boys were captured and eventually killed by members of Hamas, a Palestinian Islamic terrorist organization. Riots, along with peaceful demonstrations, occurred following the death of the boys.

“Israelis unite in a very special way,” Bloom said.

“Those kids were considered everyone’s kids -- family. Everyone was mourning for them.”

Bloom and her classmates were packing their things in preparation to travel to a southern city in Israel when loud sirens started to go off.

“My friend told me it was a bomb siren. We took everything we had in our hands and just ran,” Bloom said. “I couldn’t even cry because I was so scared. Everyone looked terrified.”

60 seconds. 60 seconds was all the time they had to get to the nearest bomb shelter. In 60 seconds, it would hit.

“When I was running there, everything stopped, time stopped. Everything seemed to be in slow motion,” Bloom said.

Since time ran short, Bloom was forced to take shelter against a wall in a lobby of a building, situated in such a way that she was out of the way of the projectile. Fortunately, Bloom and her group were safe, and no one was hurt.

The majority of homes in Israel have bomb shelters, which are rooms constructed in a way that makes them particularly safe against strikes. Bomb shelters are such a common part of life for Israelis that they don’t hesitate to make them on their own.

“In the place I was staying, the teens turned the bomb shelter into a place to hangout; it had a DJ system and a bunch of cool lights and couches,

and they had bomb shelter dance parties on weekends. We even got to attend a few,” Bloom said.

However, with the Hamas offensive toward Israel, a lot had changed.

“Once all of this took place, there was sad music on the radio, you could just feel a huge change in the environment,” Bloom said.

The Middle East is a place filled to the brim with conflict and rivalry.

The disputes between Israel and Palestine are especially historic and tense. Bloom shared her experience at one of the demonstrations in reaction to the three boys’ deaths.

“The riots were a lot less hateful and violent, and were more about ‘help our boys’ and spreading awareness for the situation,” she said.

Israelis strived to spread awareness during those tough times. Banners reading #BringBackOurBoys were spread all over the world. An aircraft trailed the banner along a Rio de Janeiro beach during the 2014 World Cup, as a lot of the world’s attention was locked in on the soccer games. Social media campaigning was sparked under the same hashtag, as was global awareness.

Bloom had prime exposure not only to a distinct culture, but also to a major event in recent history. As a result, she and her classmates had access to very powerful learning opportunities.

Seven weeks of conflict took place, which consisted of bombardment, Palestinian rocket attacks and ground fighting. Over the course of the seven weeks, around 2,200 deaths occurred, all of which were triggered by the death of three teenaged Israeli boys. Gaza forces fired 4,564 projectiles into Israel. It was not until Aug. 26 that a cease-fire came into effect.

Although she went through the scariest event so far in her life, Bloom feels positive about the experience.

“Although it was an intense summer and these things happened, I learned that we shouldn’t take anything for granted,” Bloom said. “I learned not to let the little things bring me down. I thought positively through it all.”

Over time, Bloom got more and more accustomed to the circumstances around her.

“I was not used to having missiles aimed in my direction, and it terrified me,” she said. “But over time, I became sort of numb to it. I stopped imagining the worst case scenario. I just tried to keep a good attitude.”

By being accepting and understanding of the difficult situations that were developing right in front of her eyes and coping with them as the Israelis do regularly, Bloom was able to absorb and learn from it all, despite the chaotic nature of the experience.

“I would go back to Israel in a heartbeat,” she said. 

The Joseph family (Photo from Olivia Joseph).

by ALEX BERNARD and BRIAN GATTER

Community of Compassion Cancer is growing increasingly prevalent in the world as a whole, and, consequently, in the Clayton High School community. Although people often prefer to keep their family’s health history private, it is important to remember that many students and teachers have been, are currently being and will continue to be affected by this disease. Those affected by the disease have been touched by the overwhelming kindness and generosity from fellow members of the Clayton community.

M

Paul Hoelscher, CHS history teacher

y wife had gone in for a mammogram. They said, ‘There’s something there, but don’t worry about it,’ and she worried about it,” CHS history teacher Paul Hoelscher said.

In February of 2014, Shannon Hoelscher was diagnosed with breast cancer after a mammogram following a previous test that was inconclusive.

After having a double mastectomy, Shannon Hoelscher, along with her husband, decided to have genetic testing done at Washington University.

“Now, with the amazing work that has been done at WashU, they can decode your DNA to the level of making some predictions about future chances,” Hoelscher said.

Unfortunately, the doctors discovered something that worsened the already upsetting situation. Shannon Hoelscher had a genetic mutation that severely increased the likelihood that the cancer would recur in her body.

“Her specific genetic mutation is influenced by, affected by [and] connected to estrogen in the female body organs,” Hoelscher said. “She had surgery in March. Then, this summer, she went through a series of additional elective surgeries connected to female organs to try to stop all estrogen production.”

Hoelscher, being a father of two daughters ages 9 and 11, has had responsibilities for his family during his wife’s illness that changed his focus much more towards his family.

“Not that I wasn’t a good father,” Hoelscher said, “but I think it was probably a little more of a split, or I kind of took for granted cooking, cleaning, picking up the kids.”

Hoelscher also feels indebted to the teachers in the District, and also to the administration for giving him the time he needed to be with his wife. “[The staff] brought meals, they brought gift certificates, those sorts of things on a broad level,” Hoelscher said. “People were understanding

in the spring. I still came to work, but I didn’t do as much on the K-12 coordinator thing, and people were okay with that.”

Hoelscher also decided to tell his students about his wife’s condition. “[I] waited until the surgery basically to tell them, and then when I came back I think the majority of my students -- you can only ask so much of sophomores -- but the majority of my students I think were pretty understanding and pretty supportive throughout the whole thing,” he said.

Not only have these difficult circumstances given Hoelscher a different outlook on the needs of his family, but they have altered his views on life as well.

“I think that it has made me a lot more grateful for a lot of things in life,” Hoelscher said, “and health being one of those.”

The Hoelscher family at a breast cancer event (Photo from Paul Hoelscher).

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Griffin and Jennifer Adams after Griffin’s first round of chemotherapy.

I

Jennifer Adams, CHS physics teacher

n June of 2013, uncharacteristic behavior by eighth grader Griffin Adams led his mother, CHS physics teacher Jennifer Adams, to take him to his pediatrician at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital.

“I noticed his sleep pattern was different, he was having trouble excessively sweating and some other things that I knew were just abnormal,” Adams said. “I tried to explain that to the doctor and he kind of just brushed me off.”

When the symptoms persisted, Adams pursued a second opinion.

Unfortunately, scheduling an appointment with a specialist can take months, “Unless you have a problem that’s urgent, and in need of immediate attention,” Adams said. With Griffin, the doctors did not believe that to be the case.

However, in September of 2013, after undergoing blood tests and ultrasounds and seeing various specialists, a malignant tumor was found in Griffin’s testicle, and he was diagnosed with cancer.

“I don’t know if it had been growing aggressively during that time that we’d been waiting to see the doctor, or if nobody had really checked thoroughly,” Adams said. “There’s not really any blame that I’m placing on doctors, [the endocrinologist] was just the first person that found it.”

The next few months were a whirlwind for the Adams family. Griffin had surgery to remove the tumor and a test of his lymph nodes brought further bad news to the family.

“It wasn’t local, it was regional,” Adams said, “and it had spread far enough that it increased his staging.”

Griffin received 24 weekly rounds of chemotherapy and a month and a half of daily radiation, yet his condition continually worsened.

“Sort of like if somebody hits you when you’re down, you never come back up,” Adams said. “For every subsequent chemotherapy treatment that he had, he had never quite recovered from the last one.”

For Adams, it was impossible to teach full-time and to take care of her son. Adams needed to be with Griffin throughout his treatment, so she took several months off from her position.

“I am so grateful that the District supported that,” she said.

Meanwhile, Paul Mollinger took over her classroom. Mollinger, whose sister had breast cancer, is retired and was interested in the experience of teaching, not in the financial compensation.

“That really made a difference for the physics students in my class, because there wasn’t somebody here that was just clocking in and clocking out, it was somebody here that really cared about the job,” Adams said.

“That meant a lot to me too, because I knew that there was somebody here that really cared for [the students] the way that I cared for them.”

Teachers also helped the family by dropping meals off weekly to the Adams household and looking out for her other son, Gage. A freshman

The Adams family in December of 2013. Left to right: Jeremy Adams, Jennifer Adams, Griffin Adams and Gage Adams. (Photos from Jennifer Adams).

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at the time, Gage kept busy with the soccer team and school in order to escape what was going on at home.

“It was just good for him to stay as normal as he possibly could, with friends and people that supported him,” Adams said. “Gage is a really strong person.”

Then, on April 10, 2014, Griffin went into remission.

“He turned out fine,” Adams said. “It was all worth it. All of the sick-

ness, all of the horrible nosebleeds and nausea and vomiting and everything else that went along with it, it ended up being all worth it.”

Although Griffin’s months with cancer were like nothing she has ever seen or experienced before, Adams is not resentful of the journey.

“I got to spend a lot of time with my son, and I don’t regret that,” Adams said. “In the end, my family is stronger than we were before. Everyone is affected in a different way. I am, and I know [Griffin] is, too.”

Olivia and Ilene Joseph (Photo from Olivia Joseph).

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Olivia Joseph, CHS freshman

hen she said that she was going to go into the hospital to get it checked, the first thing I said was, ‘Could it be cancer?’ and she said no, because nobody thought it could be,” freshman Olivia Joseph said.

In early December of 2011, Ilene Joseph, Olivia’s mother, went to the hospital to check on a cold that had persisted for an unusually long time. The doctors ended up finding pneumonia, and lung cancer as well.

Ilene went through chemotherapy, but the disease got progressively worse through the remainder of 2011 and into 2012. Olivia was in 6th grade at the time, and, to her, life seemed fairly normal.

“She wasn’t acting like she was really sick, so it was hard to believe that she was,” Olivia said.

The effects of the cancer became more prominent as the disease progressed. Although Olivia did not notice many significant changes during the school year, except the symptoms caused by the chemotherapy treatment, the intensity of the disease heightened during the summer months.

“Towards the end she couldn’t get up and down stairs, and the last few days she couldn’t really breathe. She was wheezing every time she would breathe,” Olivia said. “I knew that she was getting significantly worse but I just couldn’t really get myself to believe that it was that bad.”

In August of 2012, Ilene passed away.

“I went [to see her] at the end,” Olivia said. “I didn’t really want to, but I still did.”

For all three siblings of the Joseph family, the loss of their mother meant something slightly different. Meredith, Olivia’s older sister, entered her senior year of high school soon after her mother’s death, while Ethan, a college student, took a semester off to cope with the recent events.

“They just dealt with it differently,” Olivia said.

For Olivia, her friends and teachers in the Clayton community were a source of support at the time. Since then, however, the topic of her mother has become more difficult to breach than ever.

“I think people just forgot about it, or think that I’m really sensitive to it. Nobody really talks about it anymore,” Olivia said. “I need to talk about it, and that’s what friends are there for, but I think they don’t really know what to do.”

Although Olivia’s friends were more apt to talk to her about her mother immediately following her death, Olivia’s pain has not diminished with time.

“The fact that she’s gone hasn’t changed throughout the time that she has been [gone],” Olivia said.

Even with the absence of her mother, Olivia has come to acquire a positive outlook on life and a new awareness of the world around her.

“It was kind of awakening,” Olivia said. “[I’m] being more grateful, not taking everything for granted and not complaining as much about little things that happen to everybody. It was life-changing.” 

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by NOAH BROWN AND PETER SCHMIDT

One year ago, the City of Clayton updated its Downtown Master Plan, a long-term project to sustainably develop downtown Clayton. The new plan included a proposal for the Crossing, a 26-story, $70 million residential high-rise building targeted at young professionals.

The City of Clayton houses 16,000 people. During the day, 46,000 people commute to work in one of Clayton’s 2,000 businesses. The intention of the development is to make downtown Clayton more of a residential city than a commuter destination.

On July 22, the City of Clayton approved a 20-year tax abatement for the residential building, the Crossing. This abatement will decrease the potential property tax revenue that would typically go to the city and, perhaps most controversially, the School District.

Property taxes constitute about 73 percent of the District’s income.

And, unfortunately, the education that the Clayton School District can provide is limited by its revenue.

Therefore, this single development in downtown Clayton could have dramatic economic consequences for the city and the District. The question is, what exactly will these consequences be? Will the benefits of economic development outweigh the risk of financial stress on the District?

One thing is certain. For Clayton’s students and residents alike, this is an issue that hits close to home.

I. School System The Clayton School District’s income is highly dependent upon the value of Clayton properties. In the 2013-2014 school year, $40.5 million of the District’s $55.5 million of public revenue came from property taxes, according to a statement released by the BOE. In addition, about half of every property tax bill filed in Clayton goes to funding the school district.

This financial relationship between property tax and District revenue

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is what gives the District and Clayton residents reason to oppose the suggested development.

According to Clayton resident Dan Phillips, “the abatement puts the funding of the school system at risk.” Phillips is leading the community opposition to the project.

Basically, the District objects to the abatement because it could bring students to the school without providing revenue sufficient to educate those students.

Education is an expensive service. The BOE estimates that it costs about $20,000 to educate each child in the District.

Because about 73 percent of the District revenue comes from property tax, the District needs an increase in this property tax revenue to educate each new child that comes to the District.

In other words, the proposed 300-bedroom development could bring students to the District without providing sufficient property tax to fund their education.

“And at some point, if you attract enough new students and give away enough of the tax revenue, it turns into sort of a negative proposition and an increased cost for the School District,” Clayton Alderman Michelle Harris said. Harris is the sole member of the Board of Alderman that voted against the abatement.

According to Phillips, the property where the development is planned currently brings in about $50,000 in property taxes. The development is predicted to bring in about $300,000 in property tax. Therefore, an additional $250,000 in property tax could educate, at a rate of $20,000 per student, 12 new students to the District.

Phillips believes that adding too many new students without sufficient funding could be economically harmful to the city.

“Even if 19 children move into The Crossing, the city would lose money on the project,” he said. “If 30 children move in, the city would lose 9 million dollars.”

A mock up of the proposed building The Crossing. The buidling will be located at Bohomme and Meramec. Graphic from City of Clayton.

Outside Clayton City Hall (Noah Engel).

In addition, Phillips feels that the impact extends to students beyond the Clayton borders.

“There are 143 students at your school that don’t live in Clayton,” he said. “They live someplace else. But, they’re still able to get the Clayton education. Those children are at risk of losing that benefit. Here, we’re giving all this money to the developer, and we’re putting the school system at risk, and children at risk.”

Longtime Clayton citizen Vivian Eveloff feels that the intentions of the development are undermining why people move to Clayton.

“Few people move to Clayton so they can walk or bike to work,” Eveloff said. “Clayton’s residential appeal is the schools. After families move here, they remain because of the convenience and amenities. Undermining the financial base of Clayton schools is counter-productive for all residents as well as business.”

Clayton School District Superintendent Dr. Sharmon Wilkinson explained that every decision the city makes has a profound impact on the District.

“Residential development will bring us students we’re responsible for,” she said.

New students are not always a financial drain. Up to a certain point, adding new students to the District is, to use their common analogy, like filling empty seats in an airplane. However, once every seat is full, incremental costs are dramatically higher. The District must hire more staff or increase the number of classes to accommodate the new students. And when the new students are accompanied by a decrease in property tax

revenue, the District could be at risk.

Alex Ihnen, the head editor for nextstl.com, strongly endorses the planned development in Clayton. Ihnen believes that the development will benefit the District in the long-term.

“In the end, the school system will receive more than it will cost them,” he said.

Ultimately, the District’s priority transcends the political context of the proposal.

“We have the responsibility to serve and provide a high quality of education that this community expects,” Wilkinson said.

II. aDVANTAGES Despite these risks, there are always concrete advantages to high-rise development. While the opposition is primarily opposed to the idea of a tax abatement, economic development has potential to make a positive impact on any city.

Although the Clayton Board of Education opposes the development, Wilkinson admits that “the Board knows that development helps to grow a community.”

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Photos of Clayton skyline by Olivia MacDougal.

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Ihnen believes the planned development in Clayton is essential to the growth of the city.

“If Clayton wants more diversity and housing, then it might take an incentive to do that,” Ihnen said.

The Crossing is intended to provide more affordable living options for people who can’t afford the other multi-million dollar condominiums Clayton has to offer.

“The possibility is more diversity, in terms of who lives in Clayton.

The apartments won’t be cheap, but more affordable than a lot of other existing options,” Ihnen said.

In addition, despite the tax abatement, the development does promise to provide more property taxes than the property currently provides. According to nextstl.com, the development will yield almost $16 million in property taxes over the first 20 years.

Ihnen believes that The City of Clayton has a firm grasp on the issue.

“If you look at the master plan and the changes they want to make, I think they get it right, and understand some of the challenges pretty well,” he said.

In addition, the development will bring “more people around downtown. Anyone familiar with [Clayton’s] downtown knows it’s empty basically after 5 or 6 PM,” Ihnen said.

According to Ihnen’s article on nextstl.com, “The Crossing would be the first significant new construction apartment project in Clayton in decades, and as such represents an important first step in diversifying housing options in the city.”

“It comes down to what people want the city to be,” Ihnen said. “I think it’s definitely a good thing for Clayton.”

III. CITIZEN PERSPECTIVE Ihnen believes that the development will benefit the city and the District.

“There are people worried about traffic and their view, things that are very personal to them. These aren’t the types of concern that should stop development,” Ihnen said.

Ihnen insists that most opposition to the development comes from a desire for adherence to tradition.

“There are people that have been here a long time, that don’t want to see it change,” he said.

In addition, this is the first time in which Clayton authorities have approved an abatement for residential development. The city has already instituted tax abatements for commercial properties, including the Centene building and the Cheshire Inn. “The previous abatement was for Centene and the prospect of jobs. It was not for residential construction and had no effect upon the school system. We don’t agree in using public funds to support private residential construction,” Phillips said.

Another point of contention is that this development will set an unfair precedent for future development projects in and around Clayton.

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Inside Clayton City Hall (Noah Engel).

However, in an interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Clayton Mayor Harold Sanger said, “This does not set a precedent for any other project. We will look at every project that comes along and evaluate it.”

Ihnen argues that the reality is simple. Clayton needs to change.

The city believes so as well.

“At the end of the day, the mayor and city council want it to happen,” Ihnen said.

When Phillips first heard about the development proposal, he knew that he had to prevent approval.

Accordingly, Phillips led a petition in opposition of the tax abatement.

The petition has since gained almost 800 signatures.

“We got twice as many signatures as necessary, and the city said ‘No, we’re not going to accept it,’” Phillips said. “They [the city] are trying to block citizens’ right to vote. The right to vote is basic to democracy. You can’t let someone take away your right to vote, and that’s what the mayor and the city have done,” Phillips said.

The city provided three reasons for not accepting the referendum.

Phillips contends that the city’s objections were illegitimate. “The city gave reasons, which many lawyers have said are incorrect. They should have accepted it,” he said.

Convinced that his basic democratic rights were ignored, Phillips sued the City of Clayton.

“We sued because the mayor would not honor our right to vote,” Phillips said. “The city will now have to go in front of a judge. Hopefully, the

judge will agree with us. If so, we will have an election. People will be able to discuss why there should or shouldn’t be an abatement.”

Although they represent different opinions, the reactions of Phillips and Ihnen offer an important reminder: the citizens of Clayton are highly invested in the outcome of this decision.

IV. Conclusion The proposed tax abatement in downtown Clayton has revealed quite a lot about the city itself.

Phillips’ petition has indicated a high level of engagement between citizens and the government. The District’s objection has exhibited a strong dedication to the educational excellence that defines Clayton’s schools. And the City’s plan has shown a desire to make Clayton the best place it can be.

The solution to the dilemma remains unclear. Perhaps the plan will go forward, or Phillips’ petition will prove successful and the matter will be put to a vote.

Ultimately, however, the solution will involve every side of the controversy. As Dan Phillips said, “We have to settle this as a community.” 

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WINTER SPORTS

1.

PREVIEW

by PETER BAUGH and BRIAN GATTER

1. BOYS’ BASKETBALL 2013-2014 Record: 8-15 Players to watch: Mitch Elliott Ralph Bellamy Josh Johnson

Team Goals: To capitalize on a large talent pool, improve from last season and to make a run at the District Championship.

2. WRESTLING

2.

2013-2014 record: 3-11-2 Players to watch: Jared Garrett Parker Ross Michael Painter

Team Goals: To rebuild the team under a new coach, build up first year wrestlers and to take wrestlers to the State Meet.

3. GIRLS’ SWIMMING AND DIVING 2013-2014 record: 8-8 Players to watch: Dani Skor Sammy Bale Grace Hartmann (diving)

Team Goals: To finish above .500, excel in a new Conference and qualify athletes to the State Meet.

4. BOYS’ HOCKEY 2013-2014 record: 6-13-3 Players to watch: Max Hunter Ben Tamsky Ethan Alter

Team Goals: To work hard, to play as a team and either to make the Wickenheiser Cup or to win the Challenge Cup.

5. GIRLS’ BASKETBALL 2013-2014 record: 15-12 Players to watch: Ashley Johnson Reeves Oyster Brooke Jones

Team Goals: To adjust to the loss of key graduates, to finish over .500 and to compete for both the District and Conference Championships. 

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3.

3.

CHANGING FACES

by PETER BAUGH

The Clayton Greyhounds will be finding a new football coach. The athletic department announced that coach Scott Weissman will not be returning to the team in 2015.

In four years with the Greyhounds, Weissman sported a 22-22 record. His best season with the Greyhounds came in 2012 when Clayton went 9-4, winning the District title and making a State quarterfinal appearance.

Weissman has been a coach for 38 years with Parkway West, Kirkwood and Clayton. In his time at Clayton, he also spent time working with the basketball and baseball teams. ďƒź

4.

5.

Photo by Alessandra Silva

Clockwise from top left: senior Mitch Elliot jumps for a ball (Patrick Butler), senior Stefanie Getz rests between sets (Lee Lawskowski), senior Clayton Harris blocks a shot (Michelle Harris), senior Reeves Oyster dribbles down the court (Lifetouch), freshman Maggie Baugh takes a warm-up lap (Lee Lawskowski), Misha Fedyanin pins an opponent (Globe Archives). sports

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MORE THAN A MEDAL

Connor Cassity and Cameron Freeman embrace on the court after their state championship win (Photo from Cameron Freeman).

After a long journey, seniors Connor Cassity and Cameron Freeman capped off their careers with a State Championship in tennis.

by REBECCA POLINSKY Connor Cassity reaches for an overhead lob and slams the ball onto empty court, her opponents failing to return the shot. With that, Cassity jumps into the open arms of her doubles partner, Cameron Freeman, who twirls her around with insuppressible pride. Triumph. Determination.

Persistence. Cassity and Freeman had just won the Class One Missouri State doubles tennis championship title.

Cassity and Freeman stepped onto the courts in August with the clear goal of winning State their final year of high school. “Ever since we placed second in State last year, our minds were dead set on getting first,” Cassity said.

The winning match against Ellison Rooney and Cindy Wang of Pembroke Hill from Kansas City was not an easy one. Cassity and Freeman lost the first set 4-6. Even though they were down in second set by one game, they came back and won 7-5. In the third set, the one that would determine the champions, Cassity and Freeman were winning 5-0, when Rooney and Wang won four straight games, nearly tying the third set.

However, Cassity and Freeman finally closed out the third set at 6-4.

After playing side by side for two years, Cassity and Freeman developed both mental and physical strategies to elevate each other on the court.

“We both know where the other will be on the court during a point without even having to look,” Freeman said. “I think what really made our doubles game successful was that we both enjoyed playing up at the net.

With both of us up there we were able to take control of the point and put the ball away.”

When they won, the girls felt relieved, proud and incomparably joyous.

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“I was so overjoyed that we had finally done it. We had accomplished our goal and won state,” Freeman said.

In addition to practicing with the team and the Clayton coaches, Cassity and Freeman spent time playing practice matches with Cameron’s father and the JV girls’ tennis coach, Jen Luten, on the weekends. Their undying dedication proved to result in the greatest possible outcome.

Cassity and Freeman also felt incredibly supported by their families and the Clayton community in its entirety.

“I think what helped Cameron and I most was the constant support from our families, especially our dads,” Cassity said. “Both of our dads are very interested in the game of tennis, and they are so proud. Their encouragement and advice was incredibly helpful throughout the season.”

Both Cassity’s and Freeman’s mothers and grandparents did not miss a single match. The presence and enthusiasm motivated them to stay focused and passionate through every obstacle.

“This experience allowed me to truly recognize how incredible and spirited our school is,” Cassity said. “The Greyhound pride was overwhelming when Cameron and I returned to school. I think almost every student and faculty member congratulated me. And that, to me, means a lot.”

Their victory was so much more than a medal. Cassity and Freeman discovered an unparalleled feeling of reward, and learned that hard work will always lead to some form of success. The girls’ championship exemplifies the everlasting power of determination and perseverance.

“When I hit the overhead, it was the biggest rush of adrenaline I’ve ever had,” Cassity said. “That is a moment in time that I will never, ever forget.” 

RECORD BREAKERS

Photo by Ashley Chung

A look at the fall’s broken records.

by PETER BAUGH and BRIDGET BOEGER

TAYLOR EDLIN

Photo by Ashley Chung

DIVING

Over the course of a year, sophomore Taylor Edlin was able to add over 100 points to his diving score.

Diving is usually scored by three judges. Every dive, each individual judge gives the diver a score out of ten. The combined score is multiplied by the degree of difficulty: a number that indicates how hard the dive is to complete.

The previous record was set in 1988 by Mike Rohrbaugh. In an 11 dive meet he scored a 375.1 and in a six dive meet he scored 242.

Edlin broke both records this season. In a dual meet against Westminster Christian Academy, he set the new six dive record with a score of 252.30, adding over 75 points to his score from his freshman year. At the eleven dive Conference meet, Edlin won the diving title with a score of 392.35. This was an increase of over 100 points from his Conference score last year. Edlin’s score edged out Rohrbaugh’s score, forever knocking him off the CHS record board.

Edlin finished ninth in the State and was a valuable asset to the swimming and diving team in his record setting season.

JAKE BROWN TOUCHDOWNS

Senior Jake Brown has always been a standout football player.

Going into this year, Brown had 3,181 career passing yards.

With an additional 1,481 yards this year, Brown finished his season with a total of 4,642 yards. Brown finished only 87 yards short of Adam Banks’ record of 4,729 yards.

Brown did, however, break Banks’ career touchdown passing record. Banks had a total of 42 career touchdown passes while Brown had 47, edging out Banks’ record by five.

Photo by Katherine Sleckman

ANDREW LITTEKEN 500 YARD FREESTYLE

The record board in the Clayton Center will have to be repainted.

Along with Edlin, senior Andrew Litteken rewrote the Clayton swimming and diving record book. Litteken broke Scott Wilhite’s 1988 record in the 500 yard freestyle, a 20 length race.

Wilhite went a 5:03.83 in his race. Litteken, who has been a state qualifier in the 500 since his junior year, broke Wilhite’s mark at the Suburban Central Conference Preliminaries. Litteken went a remarkable 5:01.71, beating the record time by over two seconds.

Litteken was a long distance specialist for the Greyhounds and was co-captain of the team his senior year. At the State meet, he placed 22nd in the 500.

Photo by Katherine Sleckman

TYLER MELVIN RUSHING YARDS

In a football program that has featured great rushers such as Kameron Stewart, Jairus Byrd and Tyler Walker, there is a high standard when it comes to running backs.

In 2014, junior Tyler Melvin raised this standard by rushing for more yards than anyone in Clayton history. In only ten games, Melvin rushed for 1,574 yards, breaking Kameron Stewart’s 1,510 yard record set in 2010, a season that featured two more games than the 2014 campaign.

Highlights of Melvin’s season included a 317 rushing campaign against Parkway West, breaking the single game rushing record from 1990. In 2014, he also scored 14 touchdowns and earned first team All-Conference honors.

With a year left before graduation, Melvin appears to have a bright future ahead of him. 

sports

33

AT H

LETE

PROF

ILE

PULLING AHEAD

S

by LAWRENCE HU and MAX STEINBAUM

pencer Anderson, a sophomore at CHS, has been teammates with senior Andrew Litteken on Clayton’s swim team since Anderson’s freshman year. To Anderson, Litteken is more than just a teammate or a friend; he is a leader who provides unparalleled inspiration and guidance for the Clayton boys’ swim team. “[Andrew] is one of the harder workers on the team,” Anderson said. “He keeps the faster guys in line, [and] always gives advice and tips to anyone who needs it.”

Litteken leads the team by example and has been a key to the Clayton boys’ swim team’s success since Litteken’s freshman year. Litteken’s drive to succeed is also obvious to his teammates.

“If it’s neck and neck [in a race], he never loses,” Anderson said.

Katelyn Long, a CHS math teacher and the assistant coach of the boys’ swim team, also holds high regard for Litteken’s leadership abilities and has taken note of his outstanding performance in the pool.

“Litteken is one of the most driven kids I have ever met,” Long said.

“He has grown immensely as a leader. He leads by example, [and] the other guys on the team follow him. He’s been a huge asset to the team.”

Litteken, a CHS senior, entered the competitive swimming scene sev-

FRESH START

by CAMILLE RESPESS

On a 45 minute bus ride, the CHS girls’ varsity basketball team sat in silence. The only noise was the faint sound of the music playing out of the girls’ headphones.

Coach Steve McFall believes that this quiet time is the perfect opportunity for his players to focus and prepare for the games that they will play after getting off of the bus.

McFall has made a large impact on the girls’ basketball program, and it is only his first season at CHS. At the end of the 2013-2014 school year, former CHS girls’ basketball head coach Heath Kent moved to Detroit, creating the opportunity for McFall to fill in Kent’s shoes.

Prior to his new position at CHS, McFall had an array of jobs in basketball. After playing basketball at McKendree College, McFall coached in Illinois, spending eleven years as the head coach for the girls’ bas-

34

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(Photo by Ashley Chung)

en years ago. During the offseason, he has swam for CSP, a local swim team not affiliated with the school district.

Since he began swimming, Litteken has enjoyed the independent nature of the sport. Litteken believes it is essential in swimming to not only focus on personal goals, but also how the team can succeed.

“With swimming, you’re responsible for everything that you do. It’s up to you to meet the goals that you make ... you have to push yourself to reach the standards that you set for yourself,” Litteken said.

Litteken is acclaimed by coaches and teammates alike for his ability to compete in long distance events, such as the 500 freestyle and 200 freestyle, a testament to his exceptional endurance. He is not soley a long distance swimmer though. Along with the 200 and 500, Litteken sported the fastest time on the team in the 100 butterfly and 100 freestyle. He was also the anchor leg of the state qualifying 200 freestyle relay and qualified--for the second time in his career--individually in the 500.

Litteken is able to push himself, and has reached state competition several years in a row. He also set a school record in the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:01.71. With such a decorated résumé, Litteken’s future in the sport appears very promising.

“I’m really excited for him,” Long said. 

ketball team.

Coach McFall has enjoyed his time at CHS so far. “I like the kids. I like how smart [the players] are and I like that we have some talent,” McFall said. “We’ve got some really nice talent, we’re not very tall but the kids can play a little bit. I like their attitude; they play hard and I think we’ll be okay.”

Sophomore and second year varsity player Brooke Jones thinks that Coach McFall has had a positive impact on the basketball team.

“He is a very good coach,” Jones said. “He teaches us stuff that we really need to know, things that weren’t really given to us last year.”

Jones also added that McFall has helped her build up her confidence on the court.

“He’s taught me that being the point-guard, I basically control the whole floor and that I have a lot more power than I really know.”

Both Jones and McFall are excited to see how the 2014-15 season unfolds for the varsity squad. “I think we’re looking forward to seeing the kids progress and see them get better as a group and as a team,” McFall said. 

THE

CRAZY SPORTS MOMENT

OF THE MONTH

by KEVIN ROSENTHAL with ELISE YANG

(Hector Gabino/El Nuevo Herald/MCT)

(Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/MCT)

After the tragic loss of top prospect Oscar Taveras, the St. Louis Cardinals acted quickly by trading for the Atlanta Braves’ spunky young outfielder Jason Heyward. The trade came at quite a cost, however, as the Cardinals gave up starting pitcher Shelby Miller and young pitching prospect Tyrell Jenkins. Miller’s first two seasons with the Cards were solid, as he proved that he could both command the strike zone and consistently maintain the focus and tenacity necessary for a starting pitcher.

Heyward, however, seems to have even more upside than Shelby Miller because of Heyward’s extreme versatility. Heyward is one of the most well-rounded players in all of Major League Baseball. He is able to run quickly, hit consistently and hit with power. Not to mention, he is the best defensive right fielder in the National League.

An interesting aspect to the addition of Heyward will be the Cardinals batting order in 2015. Because of Heyward’s versatility, the Cardinals seemingly could place Heyward anywhere in the batting order 1-6. The placement of Heyward in the lineup will simply depend on which strengths of Heyward’s the Cardinals intend to focus on bringing forth.

It could be wise to bat Heyward in the leadoff position. Heyward dependably gets on base and is one of the most disciplined hitters in the Major Leagues. Additionally, he is very speedy and could be a huge threat for the Cardinals in regard to base stealing. In 2014, however, the Cardinals struggled to hit home runs, so it may be logical to hit Heyward second or third, creating a greater focus on going yard than getting to first base. Heyward combined for 25 home runs

in the 2013 and 2014 seasons when primarily batting leadoff, but when Heyward hit second and third in 2012, he hit 27 long balls.

The other appealing attribute of Heyward is his personality.

Heyward was beloved in high school, and was a fan favorite in his years with the Braves. Heyward is very intelligent, and both of his parents, who met while attending Dartmouth University, helped develop the deep drive Heyward has to compete. Heyward is known for always have a smile on his face, and should mold very nicely with the rest of the Cardinals clubhouse.

Another benefit of the trade was the acquisition of Braves’ veteran right handed reliever Jordan Walden. Walden, a former closer and All-Star in 2011 should bolster the Cardinals bullpen, and could potentially serve as the eighth inning set-up man for Cards’ closer Trevor Rosenthal.

Although Shelby Miller is a good starting pitcher, the Cardinals still have lots of depth in terms of potential starters for the future such as Carlos Martinez, Marco Gonzales, Eric Kaminsky and Luke Weaver. With the amount of money the Cardinals organization has, it is also conceivable that they could chase after a free agent ace such as Jon Lester, or Cy Young Award winner and St. Louis native Max Scherzer.

While Shelby Miller will be missed, John Mozeliak, General Manager of the Cardinals, seems to have made another smart trade, as the many strong attributes of Jason Heyward should help St. Louis maintain their dominance in Major League Baseball.

ka•ka•o

review

by MITALI SHARMA

(Mark Cornelison/Lexington Herald-Leader/MCT)

1989

by PETER BAUGH

Though elements of Taylor Swift’s album “1989” were very strong, at times Swift diverted from the type of songs in which she sounds best.

There were more pop pieces in the new album and they tended to feel out of place.

Songs like “Shake it Off” and “Bad Blood” had strong beats and did not necessarily sound bad; however, they did not fit with Swift’s voice or style.

There were also a number of repetitive pieces. “Out of the Woods” and “Welcome to New York” repeated the chorus far too often, turning what could have been good songs into slightly annoying pieces.

On other parts of the album, however, Swift did a great job. Songs like “Blank Space” and “I Wish You Would” had really strong tunes and really fit well with Swift’s voice. “This Love” also was a very nice song. She went away from her normal style in this song but less in a pop direction, which I liked.

I would have liked to see a little more variety in Swift’s song topics.

She wrote a lot about romantic encounters. In past albums it felt like she wrote songs about topics other than love. This album had much less variety.

Overall, “1989” was a decent album. With Swift’s past work, though, she has set a high standard. Despite its strong elements, “1989” was not as good as Swift’s past albums. It certainly was not a disappointment, but it lacked the number of strong songs that fans have come to expect of Swift. 

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review

Kakao chocolate, a new shop in downtown Clayton, has earned my A rating. From the location to the chocolate itself, this store far exceeds anyone’s expectation.

Located in downtown Clayton, in the same row of shops as Pastaria, it’s convenient to stop by Kakao in hopes of a cocoa delight. The store is not exactly new to St. Louis; it’s been a favorite for a while, but the recent addition to Clayton is certainly a good decision. Now, there are no more stops to Whole Foods or driving all the way to Maplewood just to get Kakao’s delicious treats.

The St. Louis based company also partners with other local businesses, including Missouri honey, jam and more. Brian Pelletier started the shop on Cherokee Street but since s expanded to sell his creations to other places in St. Louis.

The service is excellent as well. The staff was informed about their product and believed in the company’s mission, giving me the impression that this place actually cares and communicates with their employees.

That hooked me at once.

But, what’s a shop without its products? Kakao is a chocolate lover’s paradise. You can find all sorts of organic and fair trade chocolate, chocolate bark, chocolate covered caramels, even extending to cocoa lotion and chapstick. And the taste of all this? Delicious.

I tried several chocolate barks that Kakao offers. From the Mexican bark, a cinnamon, chili powder and dark chocolate mix, to the sea salt bark; although all were good, my ultimate favorite was a thin milk chocolate bark coated with coffee granules. The way the coffee subtly complemented the rich milk chocolate gave this bark a certain “addictive” quality.

Aside from barks, I also tried some chocolate bars. All three, milk, dark and white chocolates were nice. They were not overly sweet and yet had the rich, creamy component which makes chocolate so pleasing.

Kakao’s new Clayton location is surely one to be checked out. The chocolate is delicious, the location is convenient, the service is superb and the local and natural aspect of the products make the store a great addition to the Clayton business scene. 

Photo by Beatrice Engel

The title of “Interstellar,” director Christopher Nolan’s newest masterpiece, is misleading, as it only allows a small glimpse into the powerful and complex epic that the director presents to the world yet again. Described by some as a blend of Nolan’s previous work, “Inception”, and 2013’s seven-time Oscar winning “Gravity,” the movie extends far beyond that.

In the 22nd century, planet Earth and its inhabitants face extinction, and they are desperate. Our home is plagued by an airborne disease dubbed The Blight that affects both humans and plants. Earth, unfortunately, is slowly losing its ability to sustain life. What is left of human civilization is slowly crumbling away into dust.

A family of farmers, fathered by NASA ex-pilot Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), grows restless as the dust around them begins to erode everything away. One day a supernatural force from unknown origins, or as Cooper’s daughter Murph refers to it, a ghost, manifests its presence with strange messages in Morse code. He and his daughter decipher the messages, revealing the coordinates to an establishment that has long been abandoned: NASA. For years, NASA’s scientists have worked in secret to conjure up a solution for Earth’s impending demise with something that the future’s societies have turned away from: technology. The astronomers, with a sudden lucky break, discover a wormhole that proves to be their ticket off of the exhausted planet.

An old face, Dr. Brand (Michael Caine), greets Coop and presents him with his plan to find another home. In order to survive, two plans have been devised. Plan A, turning NASA’s last headquarters into a space station, or Plan B, creating a whole new colony of humans artificially on a new planet. The only way to do so is by sending a group of brave scientists and pilots through the wormhole to scout for a new planet.

Cooper is chosen to lead the mission, but to be a part of this mission he must leave his children and farm for an indefinite amount of time.

Ultimately, Cooper ventures into space along with a diverse team of intellectuals who are also leaving everything behind for the sake of humanity.

The ambitious team embarks on this journey, but they face many dangers and take many risks. However, for Coop and his team, their greatest fear is not traveling through uncharted territory light years away from Earth, not even death, but the passage of time.

The cast of the movie superbly represents their characters -- their flaws, strengths, fears and growth. The movie’s special effects are not spectacular or exaggerated, but realistic. The few times special effects are used, they are not only magnificent, but they do not leave the viewer thinking “That is totally not possible!” unlike many sci-fi films today.

Tribune News Service Another flawless aspect of the movie is the music score. Classical as well as electronic music, ranging in speed and volume, highlight the movie’s dramatic moments and enhance the experience overall. Hans Zimmer, renowned for orchestrating the best pieces known to cinematography, has lived up to his name once again.

As for “Interstellar’s” scientific accuracy, as noted by Neil deGrasse Ty-

Interstellar

ESQUIRE 2.0

by LAWRENCE HU and NICOLE BELIZ

son, the movie receives high marks. The consulted theoretical physicist, Kip Stephen Thorne, helped the film to be as scientifically plausible as possible. In the end, with the use of Thorne’s equations and Double Negative’s CGI, the visual effects of the movie would near, according to Wired, “800 terabytes of data with each individual frame taking nearly one hundred hours to render.”

Despite the slow initial exposition, the movie accelerates, becoming heart-stopping, intense, and containing a phenomenal amount of plot twists; the viewer will find it nearly impossible to predict an ending, proving to be exciting and somewhat maddening.

Over the course of nearly three hours, Nolan’s masterpiece takes the audience on an epic journey that will have it laughing, crying, screaming and on the edge of their seats. Anyone, regardless of age or opinions on astronomy and science fiction, will be able to enjoy the space-bound adventure. To say that this movie blew our minds would, honestly, be an understatement of stellar proportions. 

by JEFFREY FRIEDMAN

New seating, new eating, an entirely new type of screening--even the bathrooms underwent improvement during the recent AMC Esquire renovation.

The theater shut down all summer for facility updates, but the time off seems to have been well worth it. The multi-million dollar update yielded new digital projectors, screens, and even new sound systems.

Now, the Esquire is fully equipped with stadium seating, wide recliners and an upgraded concession area. And, quite honestly, considering the fact that it’s theater food, the pizza isn’t bad.

As if all of that weren’t enough, a full service bar is in order as well.

Although it’s not a dine-in theater, it sure looks like one to the unaware passerby--it’s hard to believe that a movie theater could get any more el-

egant than the new Esquire.

And at what cost for movie-goers? Tickets are no more expensive than they were before. The rows are so spread out that chairs can be fully reclined and still leave enough space for viewers to walk in between the rows. There has got to be some sort of catch: it all seems too good to be true.

The wider seating has, in fact, decreased the maximum capacity of the building by approximately 50 percent, but other than that, the new theater seems perfect.

“We want to stress quality over quantity,” Ryan Noonan, an AMC spokesperson, said.

Quality they have stressed, and they’ve done a nice job of it, too. 

Maroon V

by ELISE LEVY

Suave and seductive: Maroon Five’s “V,” released on September 2nd, takes their signature sound to a whole new level. This album has eleven tracks including “Maps,” the hit single released over the summer, and “My Heart is Open” featuring femme-fatale Gwen Stefani. Every track was written in part by lead singer, Adam Levine. This album is a new take on their old sound and was worth the sticker price.

“V” offers a musical kaleidoscope of somber lyrics and upbeat dance tracks.

Featuring a more contemporary sound, the songs were given a stronger, more electronic vibe than any of their previous chart-topping songs. Levine has great tone and an incredible falsetto included in most of the songs. His use of falsetto gives a small sense of throwback to the seven-

ties, with Maroon Five’s signature stamp of catchy pop lyrics. Many of the songs include a play on words or a clever lyric that will make a listener stop and smile.

Though Maroon Five possesses an unmistakable melody, it is easy for one to lump the songs on this album together.

The driving force of each song is a powerful beat that stays constant throughout the entire track. Most songs also feature Levine’s high notes with staccato phrasing.

These elements make it easy to confuse one song for another. Despite Maroon Five having a signature sound, the songs on the album itself all contain a common thread that makes them easily muddled together.

Overall, if you are on the fence about purchasing this album, do yourself a favor: buy it. 

Comet Coffee

by TARA WILLIAMS

Photo by BeBe Engel Comet Coffee is a small, locally owned coffee shop and micro-bakery, located on Oakland Avenue, right across from the Jewel Box. As I walked in, I saw people lined up in front of glowing pastries through a glass box. Inside the box were tasty, classic treats including tiramisu and snickerdoodle cookies, as well as some new inventions, in-

38

review

Official Album Cover

cluding the “pumpkin walnut muffin” and a delicious-looking creation called “the rebel within,” a sausage and asiago muffin with a surprise softboiled egg nestled inside. Some treats sat on an ice slab, which almost acted like a throne for the heavenly baked goods.

The barista, Matt, hand-brewed the coffee to order, adding quality milk from the “Ozark Mountain Creamery” if necessary.

Stephanie, the pastry chef, creates all of the micro-bakery’s pastries, from tiered cakes to cake pops.

The “Dragon Pearls Tea,” is a deep purple black tea with an earthy cocoa flavor, which was very floral, rich and deep.

Accompanying the tea was the pumpkin walnut muffin. The sweet crumble on the muffin met the salty crunch of the walnuts and smooth pumpkin in a delightful symphony of flavors.

As I looked around, I also noticed some hanging shelves, adorned with colorful bags of locally roasted coffee beans and a demo CD for a local artist.

Comet Coffee’s decor is almost as interesting as the people inside the café.

The patrons of Comet Coffee are bustling young people, probably jacked-up on an entire jug of artisan coffee (the coffee and tea is served in a glass jug with liquid measurements on the side).

As we walked out, I saw a purple painting of two children standing in front of a wistful roller-coaster. The painting was deep and complex, and was the same purple as the Dragon Pearls Tea. Matt waved us goodbye.

The café had a pleasant ambiance to it; it is hipster in a modest way, independent in a subtle way and brilliant in every way.

Comet Coffee, with its artisan coffee, house-made pastries, and, to my excitement, free Wi-Fi, is truly a local masterpiece. 

Photo by Erin Castellano

commentary

SIGNS WITH POWER

F

or two days in mid-November, the first thing students entering the main entrance of CHS saw were protesters supporting racial equality. These students were exercising their right to share their opinions.

But they aren’t the only people trying to share their views.

There have been many signs posted around the halls of Clayton sharing different messages about the Ferguson crisis.

To put up a sign at Clayton High School, a student first has to go to the office of Activities Director James Gladstone to get it approved. Once he gives the okay, each sign gets a green paw print in the bottom right corner.

Signs supporting Michael Brown, a resident of Ferguson killed by a white police officer in August, and signs supporting racial equality, were put up around school and taken down; because they didn’t have the green paw print.

The Politics Club posted signs which read “We Support Our Law Enforcement Officers,” which were approved by Gladstone and individually stamped.

These signs were also taken down, wrongfully, by a number of different parties. This upset many people who were involved in posting these signs.

After the signs were taken down, members of the CHS politics club were told that they were not approved to put any more signs up that said the same message. The rationale from the administration was that the signs had caused a disruption in the school day after a verbal argument broke out over one of them. A student had vandalized several of the posters. These students’ actions essentially suppress the rights of the Politics Club to free speech and expression.

The school did not stop the protests outside the front entrance, nor have any students shown public objection to them.

What is equality?

Is it equal that some students can protest and post signs when other students can’t? Is it equal that the Politics Club and Young Republicans Club (YRC) were told not to put up their signs in fear that it would possibly aggravate other students?

One student member of the YRC was so scared about other student reactions and retaliation to the signs that they refused to be affiliated with them even though they reflected his or her own opinion.

Teachers and students are constantly talking about equality concerning Ferguson, but why isn’t the focus extended to CHS? It is not equal for one group, the YRC or members of the politics club, a minority group, to be oppressed by their fellow peers and the administration.

This harsh injustice isn’t only affecting political clubs. Another CHS club submitted a flyer related to the Clayton police and fire departments.

After their original submission, they were told they had to change Police and Fire Department to workforce. In our current school environment, some students’ freedom of speech and expression are taken away because of fear of retaliation or a minor disturbance.

Administration said that we were no longer allowed to put up signs using the word “police” in them because it caused a disturbance. They’ve said there was a verbal altercation between two students in the hallway

by MICAELA STONER

which disrupted a class. Has no other student-to-student argument that wasn’t over the word “police” disrupted class? Did the morning protest not cause a “disruption” by slowing down the line of traffic in the drop-off lane?

I understand when disrupting class can inhibit the learning of some, but school is meant to teach more than just math and reading. It is important that kids leave CHS feeling as though they are ready for the real world. If we don’t allow students to talk and debate key issues, they’ll never be able to effect change throughout their lives.

Many social injustices, supported mainly by members of the Democratic Party, get attention in the media and around CHS, which has a predominantly liberal student body.

Almost no one, however, focuses on the injustices committed against parties with whom they don’t agree.

The Politics Club and YRC signs have been vandalized and torn down by the very same people protesting for social equality in the morning.

Why do some people want social equality only when it is beneficial to themselves?

The right to assembly and the freedom of speech are two important elements of our constitutional rights that keep the US government and even local school governments fair and in touch with the bodies they govern.

Everyone, no matter which party they associate with, what their opinions are, or whom they are involved with should not have to give up their rights to speech for a public education. It is wrong for the school district not to allow students to respectfully share their opinions. It is especially wrong that they will allow some students to voice their opinions and not others because of a fear of retaliation from other students.

As a young republican fighting for my rights at CHS, I am a minority, but I am not any less important. I might not be able to get a big enough following to hold a protest outside of school or be able to start a sign campaign to raise awareness, but I have the right to try, and the right to be heard.

Who is going to listen?

Many of my friends and fellow club members are experiencing similar troubles with their equality at our school. I have talked with them and tried to include them in my fight for rights, but they are scared. They are scared that if they share their opinions or frustration it will cause a change in their life at school and how teachers view them. Some are scared to tarnish a relationship with a teacher because they stood in opposition of them. Some are scared that they will get bullied by their peers if they share a different opinion. Some feel so powerless that they believe saying anything couldn’t possibly have an impact on the entire school.

Some of my friends and fellow club members think it is just too big of a hassle to try and fight.

This issue shouldn’t be an issue students are forced to “hassle” with.

Freedom of speech should be given without a fight, but at this moment it isn’t. It is wrong, it is hurtful, and there is a change that needs to be made, and a fight that needs to be fought to make free speech possible for everyone. 

commentary

39

A LATTE PUMPKIN SPICE

by JOANNE KIM

A

Photo from Anna Pakrasi

s fall makes its comeback after an unpredictable St. Louis summer, the colors of the leaves change and wither away along with a new school year, football and, undeniably, the pumpkin spice latte.

Flavored coffees are not the only products jumping into the industry. There is a pumpkin spice flavor for probably every food you can think of, including Oreos, marshmallows, chocolate, waffles, burgers, alcoholic beverages, lasagna and dog food.

Many companies dove right in to get their product to be a part of this new pumpkin spice trend. The pumpkin spice has taken over the industry, according to market research firm Nielsen. Retail sales of pumpkin offerings have experienced double-digit growth for the past several years,

reaching nearly $350 million in 2013.

Starbucks, a multimillion dollar company which has become a source for coffee addicts internationally, came up with the pumpkin spice latte in 2002. Since then, Starbucks reported in 2013 that they have sold over 200 million cups.

But is the pumpkin spice latte as amazing as people think it is?

A pumpkin spice latte at Starbucks consists of espresso, water, whipped cream, milk (or soy milk), pumpkin spice and, in addition, something called “pumpkin sauce.” According to Starbucks’ online store, the ingredients for pumpkin sauce include sugar, condensed nonfat milk, high fructose corn syrup, annatto (a seed that produces a caramel, orangish color), natural and artificial flavors, caramel color, salt and a preservative called potassium sorbate.

To sum it all up, there is zero amount of pumpkin in the cup. So next time you’re about to drink a pumpkin spice latte, just remember the 49 grams of sugar (more than a can of regular soda) and 380 calories in a grande cup with whipped cream and a little spice of cinnamon.

This is the part where people ask how Starbucks managed to sell more than 200 million cups. Their brilliant marketing scheme, a combination of treating the drink like a premiere and making the drink scarce by only offering it during a “season”, have definitely hooked on millions of people. The “season” gives a false impression.

The drink almost compares itself to Santa Claus, or an exclusive fall essential, something that should be consumed before time expires.

The pumpkin spice latte has also become an epidemic in the social media. As soon as someone sees a tweet or a picture on instagram, it makes people feel like they are missing out.

Anyone can look up the hashtag #PSL, which stands for Pumpkin Spice Latte, on any social media and find thousands of endless pictures.

Pumpkin spice latte has always been very nostalgic to the thought of autumn. Though the pumpkin spice trends have come out stronger every year, will it ever end? No one can know the tipping point, but everything has a way of working out. Until then, it can be an addition to the traditional pumpkin carving, raking leaves and enjoying the cool weather of autumn. 

T WALK, WALK

FASHION BABY

by EMMA EBELING

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he world of fashion may seem far removed from the everyday life of high school students. A recent St. Louis area fashion show of national importance shows that that is not the case. High school students, whether they are aware of it or not, express themselves artistically every day through their fashion choices.

St. Louis Fashion Week 2014 was hosted by ALIVE magazine. According to the magazine, “St.Louis Fashion Week was founded in 2006 with a mission of creating a platform for national designers to reach their Midwest customers and local fashion designers to launch their careers.”

The venue for the event was St. Louis Union Station. The St. Louis Fashion Fund Emerging Designer Competition was presented by Clayton’s Brown Shoe Company. Six designers from across the country com-

F T I X E N Next episode playing in 15 seconds. . .

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by NISHA KLEIN

inding someone in Clayton who hasn’t spent an entire day watching television at least once in their life is hard to do, especially when it comes to teenagers. Many come home after a long, tiring day at school, and all they want to do is unwind and rest their brains; in response, they turn to television, which isn’t always a bad thing. An episode or two of your favorite TV show can be the perfect thing when you need to relax. But, as many people know, it can be incredibly addictive.

So called “binge watchers” are people who watch entire seasons of TV shows in a week or less. These people also fall under the category of “Netflix addicts” (though the word “addict” has become largely overused and has lost its meaning). While some only “binge watch” over the summer, or perhaps winter break, others may continue during the school week, staying up late to finish an episode or putting aside their homework and other responsibilities to make time for their favorite hobby.

According to a survey conducted by PR Newswire, about 73 percent of those surveyed claimed binge watching was “watching between two to six episodes of the same TV show in one sitting,” and that this caused them immense pleasure in doing so.

Over the summer, I spent three weeks at Georgia Tech, staying in one of the dorm rooms. My roommate carried her iPad with her almost everywhere, and always had one earbud in. One night, she announced that she had watched 13 45-50 minute episodes that day.

Each night, she’d stay awake much later than I would, her eyes glued to the screen. Despite this, she somehow still remained attentive and focused during her activities during the day, and managed to read about 10 books in just those three weeks.

Many who love to read say that one of the main reasons is that they get to be someone else, and experience that character’s life for a while.

Readers often say that reading makes them feel better about their problems and their lives, or that reading is their form of “escape.” However, some have found that television is another way to “escape,” one that is actually easier to cram into a tight schedule.

For this generation, Netflix is especially good at filling that role. In the time that you are watching the plot unfold, you are able to “become” the characters in the story, escaping your own life and problems for that amount of the time, getting the same stress release you might get from reading. But for those with little time to spare, it can be difficult to sit down and start reading, only to have to get up and do something else in 20 minutes. But 20 minutes is a perfect amount of time to watch an episode of an NBC sitcom or a couple of YouTube videos.

Wasting 20 minutes relaxing is not really a waste if you are able to then get up and finish the things that need to get done, such as homework. However, some have trouble with switching mindsets like that, going from relaxing to working, and when the screen flashes “next episode playing in 15 seconds,” they let the next episode start.

When it comes to Netflix and “Netflix addiction,” there really is no “good” or “bad” verdict; some students may benefit from watching television for a short amount of time, while others may find it a distraction and a disadvantage. What is important, however, is to be aware of which category you fall into so you can make sure that whatever your “Netflix” is — whether it be playing sports, drawing, reading, or actually watching Netflix — you do not let it interfere with your life and prevent you from fulfilling your responsibilities. 

peted for a $15,000 prize. Five local designers competed for a $2,500 prize. The winners were Daniella Kallmeyer out of NYC and Truly Alvarenga. Charles Harbison was runner-up and earned a special prize for his outstanding line. The crowd went wild for him.

The looks in the fashion show were all stylish, of course, and each designer’s taste clearly showed in his or her line. Classy, plain, colorful, whimsical, flowy - each one unique. The winning designers had their own aesthetics and that’s how they got noticed and recognized for their work.

I was able to observe the runway show from the third row as the guest of Hannah Murray, a featured blogger for the show who writes about local shopping at Hantastic.com. The atmosphere of the show was breathtaking. We received bags containing shampoo samples and a magazine under our seats. We both got amazing pictures and had a great time together

comparing the styles of the six contestants. They looked so happy to be given this wonderful opportunity to show off their talents.

For all the lights and glitz, however, the styles were surprisingly accessible. High school students who think fashion shows only include crazy, insane, bold pieces that no one would wear would have been very surprised by the designs on display at this year’s St. Louis Fashion Week. A great many styles portrayed what Clayton High School students would be likely to wear.

Fashion is art. Unfortunately, it is often downgraded these days and not fully appreciated for what it really is. People can express their feelings and view on the world in clothing. That’s what makes it so phenomenal. 

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ESREVER PREJUDICE

by KARENA TSE

Nicki Minaj is one of the artists credited with skinny-shaming in her recent release, “Anaconda” (Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel/MCT).

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Racism is not okay. Body shaming is not okay.

To the average American citizen, these facts are obvious. But to many, racism translates to discrimination against black people and body shaming translates to the shaming of overweight people. These ideas are not untrue, but they are terribly incomplete.

Discrimination against white people is racism and the shaming of skinny people is body shaming. These facts are the ones that society tends to forget.

Why do so many people only look at part of the picture? Why do so many people think arguing against one side is acceptable while arguing against the other is simply outrageous?

The reason for this strange form of closed-mindedness is history. Historically, African Americans have been oppressed by white people. They have been denied basic rights and have had to fight harder than any other race to be viewed as equals. As a result, most people do not perceive an act of racism from a black person directed to a white person as racist at all, but rather as completely acceptable, and oftentimes, humorous. It’s why Iggy Azalea can dress up as a “white chick” for Halloween and post pictures of her costume all over social media and receive an almost completely positive response.

Similarly, the media has historically favored the skinny body type over all others. This is why Nicki Minaj can release a song rapping “F*** them skinny b******” with minimal backlash, and why Meghan Trainor can sing that she’s bringing booty back, and to “tell them skinny b****** that,” causing only a fraction of the controversy that would ensue if the term “fat b******” was ever used in a song.

Racism toward white people, black people and people of any other race is still racism. Shaming of skinny people, overweight people and people of any other body type is still body shaming. If society is to work toward equality, its members cannot give a free pass to certain types of discrimination just because it attacks the side opposite the historically oppressed, as this only greatens the rift.

The members of this community must recognize all forms of discrimination in order to establish a time in which discrimination does not manifest itself in the world in any form at all. 

Most people do not percieve racism from a black person directed to a white person as racist at all, but rather as completely acceptable.

the

Photo by Andrew Erblich

TRUTH

about STANDARDIZED TESTS

by NATALIE MILLER

The bright fluorescent lights glare down on the booklet paper, and after reading a passage about the fluctuation in sea urchin population on the coast of British Columbia from 1984-1994 for the fourth time over, the words seem to blur together into senseless gibberish.

Standardized tests are never fun. At least in the elementary days of Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) testing, candy was passed out during breaks, and how well or how poorly you did on the tests did not determine the outcome of your life as a young adult and possibly beyond.

The ACT and SAT are tests that all high school students must endure at some point or another.

Hours upon hours are spent studying and hundreds of dollars are spent on prep classes that lead up to the dreaded test dates, when students must sit in a room with a dozen or so unfamiliar faces.

These students all have a few things in common: they are fighting their hardest to maintain their sanity for the next few hours and to achieve the score that they so desperately need in order to gain acceptance into the college of their dreams or to earn grants for scholarship money.

Both the ACT and SAT organizations describe themselves as college readiness assessment tests.

All colleges accept both tests, although colleges and universities on the East Coast tend to be biased towards the SAT (the organization was created in Princeton, New Jersey). Most students, and especially those living and planning to attend college in the Midwest, tend to gravitate towards the ACT. Senior Noah Engel has taken the ACT, SAT and SAT subject tests. He described the SAT as a series of smaller and shorter sections, while the ACT consists of a fewer number of longer sections. “I thought that the SAT was harder. I didn’t do as well on it,” Engel said.

Many students are likely to agree with him. The questions on the ACT tend to be much more straightforward, while SAT questions require more logical thinking.

There are many factors that play into how well a student will do on a standardized test. Along with simply the amount of time spent studying and preparing for the test, things such as anxiety, comfort, how someone

is feeling that day or how much sleep they got the night before all have the power to affect how well a student will do and to alter the outcome of their score.

Engel and Clayton High School college counselor Mary Anne Modzelewski agree that standardized tests are not accurate indicators of intelligence, but simply a judgement of how well a student is at taking standardized tests.

“It’s a business, a corporation, an industry fueled by the fear of ‘Am I going to get into college?’”

Modzelewski said.

Many smaller liberal arts colleges are becoming “test optional.” This gives students the opportunity to submit some sort of work that showcases a talent, such as essays, videos or a piece of music, rather than submitting their SAT or ACT scores. These schools understand that a student’s grades and the classes that they take in high school are more important than standardized test scores. Therefore admissions offices focus on transcripts and other skills that a student might have to offer rather than their standardized testing report.

Despite all of the stress surrounding the SAT and ACT, they are good practice for tests in general, memorization skills and working well under pressure.

“Standardized tests are good at testing a student’s intuition, and how they can use their intuition to think quickly,” Modzelewski said.

It is important to study for the ACT and SAT, and practice does make a significant difference.

In the future, hopefully more colleges and universities will become test optional. That way students with a wider range of talents, as well as those who are not granted with the gift of excellent test taking skills, will not be discouraged from applying to colleges and universities known to have high requirements for standardized test scores.

In the meantime, for all of you future SAT and/or ACT test takers out there, study as best you can, get a good nights sleep before the test, eat a good breakfast and try your best to keep a level head (and remember that the score you will receive in a few months should not serve as an accurate rating of your intelligence or worth). 

“Standardized tests are good at testing a student’s intuition, and how they use [it] to think quickly.”

- Mary Anne Modzelewski

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BY MICAELA STONER When you drive into the heart of Clayton during the day, there are bustling store fronts and overcrowded restaurants. However, if you drove through the same area that night, you would never realize it.

Clayton is a working town, with a population of 40,000 or more during the day and only 18,000 at bedtime.

How is our city supposed to grow if it loses all of its life after 5 p.m. and on the weekends when Clayton employees leave the city to spend their money in other towns?

Stores have gone out of business, and some streets of Clayton have almost shut down entirely. We need more people if we want to keep improving the thriving metropolis Clayton strives to become.

The answer to Clayton’s problems may lie in the development of The Crossing, a new 29 story building located on the corner of Meramec and Bonhomme.

This new residential building will add 220 new units to the community of Clayton, with mostly one bedroom units directed for working professionals, many who do not have children under the age of 18.

These new 220 units will provide Clayton with more residents after 5 pm, more tax revenue and will increase the revenue going to our local businesses in need. This is the next step to getting the for sale signs or rent signs out of the store windows in downtown Clayton.

The building is also projected to bring in $16 million dollars in tax revenue over its first few years.

But, not everyone is happy about this new source of income.

Since the area in which the new building will be located is considered blighted, the developers, GTE, are receiving a tax abatement of 50 percent for the next 20 years. The tax abatement, which is upsetting to some in the Clayton community, will provide more property tax than the buildings currently occupying the property.

The School District of Clayton, SDC, believes that the deal will disproportionately hurt the school district, but their complaints have no strong facts to back them.

The Crossing is mostly one bedroom or studio units that will bring in people without kids to Clayton, not large families who will be sending their kids to Clayton Schools.

If the SDC does enroll a few more students into the school district, the kids will be spread out through the five schools in the District. Also, additional student costs will be funded, since the school will indeed be receiving more revenue from property taxes than in past years.

Even if this new building sets a precedent for further building projects in Clayton, these new buildings will also bring in more tax revenue. These new buildings will not receive a tax abatement, because no other area in Clayton is considered blighted. The resulting costs of new students will therefore be compensated with the new tax funds, which currently represents 80% of the schools budget.

Ultimately, The Crossing is the first step in livening up downtown Clayton, bettering our District, and saving small businesses in need.

If the City of Clayton needs to agree to a tax abatement to fuel this project, then it is a compromise they need to make to ensure that Clayton can continue to be an iconic, and amazing city in St. Louis County. 

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PRO/CON:

A TAXING DECISION

BY SOPHIE BERNSTEIN

Considering all that Clayton has to offer including a first rate public school education, many interesting shops, indoor and outdoor recreational facilities, public art, parks and eclectic restaurants, Clayton is truly a premium location. Real estate is highly sought after, valued and appraised. We should not have to give incentives to developers to build in Clayton.

The School District welcomes new developments, but not at the risk of losing critical funding. If one developer receives a tax incentive, then all future proposals in the School District could potentially expect a similar tax abatement. Over the next decade, this could result in a loss of millions of dollars in revenue to the School District.

Developer GTE has proposed a $72 million apartment building, called The Crossing, in downtown Clayton. Before doing so, the City of Clayton blighted an area between South Meramec and Bonhomme.

Clayton, MO does not appear to be blighted or struggling with urban decay. Section 353.110 in the Missouri Urban Redevelopment Corporations Laws states that if an area is declared blighted, in despair, then a developer can request and take advantage of a tax incentive. This enables the developers to receive a tax abatement of 50 percent on their property taxes for 20 years.

With the construction of one, two and three bedroom units, there will likely be an increase in the student population at the School District’s five schools, an expense for which the Crossing’s building owner would not be paying an equal share in taxes to support.

Revenue generated from property taxes are the primary source of funding for the School District. How will our community continue to support our world-class school district’s growing and increasing costs and improve our educational offerings without this significant tax base? 

BY MAX STEINBAUM

BY NICK LEE The recent debate surrounding the development of The Crossing, a $72 million building from GTE Properties, marks a historic decision as the City of Clayton grants its first tax abatement for residential property.

Fears that the tax abatement will set a precedent for future decisions have spurred petitions calling for referendum.

However, it is unlikely that these fears will ever be realized and Mayor Harold Sanger insists that each decision in the future will be evaluated individually.

While it is true that the tax abatement will give The Crossing a 50 percent break on new taxes for the next 20 years, GTE partner Jerry Crylen says that even with the tax abatement, the new development will still generate about four times the tax revenue of the existing property.

This means that The Crossing will still generate approximately $8 million in tax revenue, with $4 million going towards Clayton schools.

The Crossing will also replace the existing outdated and inadequate infrastructure with newer, more modern facilities.

In their proposal to the City of Clayton, GTE argued that the interior components of the existing buildings showed signs of neglect, as they displayed evidence of cracks, warping, damage, and mold growth. GTE further showed that these defects could not be fixed through normal maintenance and needed replacement, renovation, or rebuilding.

Joe Connolly, the owner of two duplexes on the development site has been a strong supporter of the tax abatement saying that “there’s not a big market for a duplex in the center of Clayton.”

Other criticisms for the tax abatement include worries that the new residents that The Crossing brings will contribute to the traffic congestion in downtown Clayton.

However, plans for The Crossing include transit-oriented developments that encourage the use of the MetroLink and bicycles.

The Crossing will be designed to meet the needs of young professionals, corporate travelers, students, and young couples who want to live in an urban area, thus attracting people who cannot afford Clayton’s million-dollar condominiums, which make up the majority of all other residences in downtown Clayton.

GTE has plans for a $350 million development project in which The Crossing is just Phase I. The City of Clayton cannot afford to lose a project that will increase tax revenue while modernizing the downtown area and attracting new demographics of people to Clayton. The tax abatement should not be seen as an attempt to drain money from the City of Clayton but as a necessary measure needed to benefit the overall community. 

It seems as if Clayton may have gotten into the holiday spirit a little early this year. With the municipal government gifting a tax abatement to the developer of a 24-story luxury high-rise, the City may have improved the skyline, but at the cost of lying to its residents and stealing from its own school district’s stocking.

As a pretext for allowing the Chicago-based firm CA Ventures to construct the high-rise, Clayton declared the area proposed for the development to be “blighted,” meaning the section of the city is “detrimental to the safety, health, or welfare of the community.” Aside from the fact that this transparent statement, inapplicable to any area in Clayton, was an obvious attempt to attract developers and expensive construction projects, the negatives of Clayton undertaking this enterprise far outweigh any possible benefits.

Of the six aldermen in Clayton, Michelle Harris was the only one to vote against providing the partial tax exemption.

In addition to feeling wary in general regarding the use of tax abatements for residential proposals, Harris is concerned that this project has the possibility of establishing a dangerous practice for future residential undertakings.

“Going forward, we need to make sure that The Crossing does not set a precedent for tax incentives for new developments in Clayton,” Harris said. In other words, because of the abatement offered to CA Ventures, future developers might apply for similar deals when they originally might not have done so.

While Harris does believe tax abatements for business projects have benefitted Clayton in the past, the largely residential project is of particular concern because it has the possibility to hurt the School District as an unintended consequence as well.

“A residential building has the potential to attract new students to the school district,” she said. “At some point, if we give away enough of the tax revenue, it could [result in] an increased cost for the school district.”

Many of Harris’s concerns are shared by the school district’s administration, which also strongly opposed the tax abatement for The Crossing. In a briefing of the September 9th meeting between the Clayton Board of Education and Board of Alderman, the district outlined why it took a stance against the proposed tax abatement.

“Where does the School District’s money come from?” the document reads. “...80 percent comes from the taxes we pay. So when more students come without a corresponding increase in tax base, you’ve got our attention.”

In the briefing, the district also cites greater class sizes due to the incoming students and the possibility of having to cut school programs due to the decrease in funding per student as other areas where the tax abatement could cause damage.

Larger class sizes, fewer school programs, and less money for the district is not the future we want for our school or our city. By giving money away to developers at the expense of our school district, Clayton might get a better skyline, but we won’t get a better education. 

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Graphic by Audrey Palmer

Staff Editorial Transparency

T

hirteen percent.

According to a 2014 CNN/ORC International Poll, this is the percentage of Americans who trust their government to do what is right always or most of the time.

This staggering statistic is indicative of a festering problem within America’s government: trust. In a country built on principles of government “by the people and for the people,” a vast majority of citizens do not feel as though they can trust their country to represent them according to basic just standards.

This is not the way a country should be run. This is not the way a community should be run.

So where does America’s lack of trust originate?

In the past year, two events come to mind that capture the source of this mentality.

The first arrived on a national level in June 2013, when Edward Snowden released thousands of classified documents that, among other things, revealed frightening degrees of national surveillance by the NSA on American citizens.

Rather than being unanimously shunned as a traitor--as many sources of government leaks have been in the past--Snowden was heralded by many as a hero of his times. Millions of Americans were shocked at the evidence of surveillance that Snowden revealed; but beyond the facts themselves, there was an overwhelming sense of hurt and fear concerning the way the facts had been presented at all. Instead of being informed of growing surveillance methods--which perhaps might have been supported by some, especially in the years following 9/11--the American people learned of the NSA’s policies only when someone dared to break the law.

This isn’t to say that the federal government needs to disclose every detail of unfolding situations; sometimes, this could in fact endanger American citizens. However, they do always have a responsibility to American citizens to be open and honest about the context in which they make these decisions.

A similar lack of transparency--with even more catastrophic effects--is currently unfolding at a local and national level as the St. Louis and American communities await a decision on the indictment of Darren Wilson, a police officer who shot an unarmed African-American student, Michael Brown, in Ferguson three months ago.

Since the shooting, thousands of complaints have been directed against the Ferguson Police Department and the grand jury over the han-

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dling of evidence and information concerning the case, including the release of video tapes of Brown minutes before his death and photographs of Wilson’s alleged injuries after the altercation.

As the grand jury approaches a decision on the indictment, there have been several leaks of hints about which way the jury is leaning. Some have claimed that these leaks were designed to dissipate anger over the decision by preparing the public with fragments of facts.

This begs the question: why should this information have to come to the public through back doors and dark alleys? Why should it come cloaked in secrecy and doubt? If allowing the public to be privy to the proceedings of the grand jury trial--even to a limited extent--would help to reduce the violence, pain and destruction suffered by our city, why would our nation’s legal proceedings forbid it?

Such withholding of facts and explanations by those in positions of authority and the lack of trust it results in can extend even to CHS, albeit to a lesser degree.

In the past few years, CHS has undergone a series of budget cuts and adaptations. Many of these have received heavy community frustration and opposition from faculty, students and families.

Again, the cuts or alterations to Clayton’s functioning might not be so upsetting--or even so frightening--if they were ushered into the community accompanied by explanations and opportunities for opinions to be shared and taken into account.

It’s when new policies and programs are forced onto the CHS community without any semblance of transparency that faculty, staff and students feel threatened.

When any institution chooses to withhold the entirety of a situation from the people they are meant to serve, they decide to create a hostile environment that does not need to exist, and to encourage an us vs. them mentality that only fosters further discord.

These trends of dishonesty and withheld information and the resulting mistrust are forces that threaten all of America’s institutions, whether at the local, regional or national level, and they are part of what makes that 87 percent of Americans unable to say that they truly trust their own government.

An institution without the people’s support is baseless. An institution that does not encourage mutual respect has no strength to effect change.

And an institution lacking a foundation of trust--well, that is no true institution at all. 

Q&A With Roz

By Grace Harrison

Did you grow up in STL?

Do you have any pets?

Well, I was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I spent my first 15 years there, and I started high school here in St. Louis at Central High School in the city.

I have three fish! I also have three grandogs and a grandcat, and that’s the extent of my pets.

How long have you been working at CHS? I’ve been here for 16 years. I started with support staff for the art department, then I moved to the school store, and then I moved up to being the relief person for the receptionist who was here before, and now I am the receptionist!

What is your favorite part of the job?

I think meeting the kids and the parents. Kids will stop by the window and talk to me, and I get to learn their personality and they get to know me. And when their parents come in, you can just see the similarities, you know, and understand how students are the way they are. I enjoy it.

What is something people don’t know about your job?

I think that the kids know I do a lot of things because I am the central location, so if they need something this is where they come!

What made you want to work in a school, or at CHS specifically?

It’s like I’ve been around children all my life. I’m the oldest of seven, so I helped raise my siblings, and then I worked in my high school jobs dealing with kids in music, so it was like that was my calling–young people.

What is one thing about you that people may not know?

I am a minister of a gospel. I got my calling about 25 years ago, and I love it. I love working with people. I started a ministry called Cover a Friend Ministry which deals with the homeless, so I supply them with toiletries, blankets and coats. I am also a choir director. Pretty much, anything that is away from [CHS] is geared to church. I also play clarinet!

I started that in middle school, so I used to play it in church.

I’m a student of deaf communication. I got really interested in deaf communication when I was working in a different district, and they didn’t have anyone to interpret, so they counted on the student, because the student had deaf parents, so the student was interpreting. I just happened to be sitting in that meeting and I was watching the expressions on the parents’ faces, and that’s when I knew that he wasn’t interpreting what the teacher was telling him to say! So that’s when I got interested.

What is the most unusual thing that has happened?

One time, an outside student wanted to ask a student here to their homecoming. So they brought in bouquets of roses, and I had to call that same student every hour to give them some roses! I think I was like, ‘Wow, you really like this girl.’ 

Photo of Rosalind McCoy by Noah Engel.

Q&A

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