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The Man That Is In Charge Of It All Jan. 20, 2015

I taught at Clovis High School 13 years and at Yucca for 3. I became the Assistant Principal for 2 years and then followed that up as principal for 7 more years. I came back to Clovis High and for 5 years I was the principal.

Christa Lemmons Then I retired with Kyle Dunning exactly 30 years of Staff Writers education. Then a good friend of mine, Dale

Before ChristFullerton who is now mas Break, Purple the athletic director at Press sat down with Mr. CHS and who was the Jody Balch, the SuperSI at Bovina, called intendent here in Cloand said “We need a vis. Mr. Balch, as talked new principal, are you about below, has an interested?” I said no! impressive career with So he replied by insist30 years in education ing that I take a look followed by his path to at the job…”it’s totally being Superintendent different.” So…I did. after a short retirement. I liked the job so for The following interthe next year I was view was an incredibly principal, and I really great opportunity to enjoyed it. Bovina had learn about the indigreat people, students vidual who has the final and staff. Then, some say in what policies jobs opened up back affect us, the students, here in Clovis. I applied here at CHS. for Personnel DirecKyle – This is my usual tor and as I was being first question. How has interview I got asked to the year been so far? be Director of OperaBalch – It has been tions SI instead. At first great! Really fast…I I did not want that but I cannot believe the first ended up as DOSI for a semester is already year. Then for the next over. year I was the Deputy Kyle – So you just SI. And then the job started as Superintenthat I currently hold bedent (SI), correct? And came available. It was how did you get to be quite a path. our SI? Kyle – What does the Balch – Yes. I have SI do exactly? been SI since June.

Balch – Oh. SIs are

Count Down To Graduation:

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the final answer in the school district. They work with the board very closely and, in fact, the board is the SI’s boss. He/she works for the 5 board members that represent our different zones. Their job is to choose an SI and to, of course, pass school policy in the district.

Kyle – An issue like exam exemptions: where if a student has a high enough grade in his or her class then they can choose to be exempt from final exams. Do you have a say in that policy being passed if it comes along?

Balch – Did you know that idea was around when I was a teacher at CHS? If students came every day and had a C…a C! If you had that C then you did not have to take the finals.

If you only missed two or three days then you could have a B and be exempt. Anything less than 5 was an A. Anything after that was mandatory finals. The idea was to motivate kids to go to school and not skip. (And it was very good at that.)

The only problem with that is that we were cheating kids of preparing them for exams in college because in college…you’re taking that exam. So if you

were not used to taking a large cumulative test then it could be a rude awakening for you in college. At one point… that policy changed and everybody had to take finals so kids could prepare for college level exams. Candidly, it makes sense to me.

Sadly I do not have a say in that. Not anymore. Students have to pass the SBA and if not the SBA then another EOC for that subject.

So if you pass the EOC and not the SBA then you’re in the clear.

Those are state mandated so there really isn’t any way of getting around those. All-in-all, it is out of local control.

Kyle – Out of all of the jobs that you have had which one would be your favorite?

Balch – They have all been pretty unique.

When I was the AP at Yucca we had the best kids and the best teachers and the best staff.

We had the best of everything. By the time I had left the school was running itself; it was like clockwork. Even our sports programs were great. Most of the coaches that worked with me are now head coaches everywhere else. My last two years at CHS were also pretty amazing. High school kids are just cool.

They’re young adults

and they know what they are going to do and they usually cannot

be persuaded. They are who they are. I taught auto mechanics and electronics and that was a big machine back then. “Agriculture” has gotten smaller at CHS, I’ve noticed, but is starting to get bigger again. When I was teaching, agriculture was huge and we (the other teachers) had a lot of fun there and it also gave me some experience with working with my hands which would hopefully benefit after my work in education.

Kyle – What drove you to work in educational

really good friend, a woods teacher at CHS with whom I went to graduate school with.

We were going to school at night and I’d get off work at 4 o’ clock and then get to school by 6:30 or 7:00 and stay until 9:30. We had to pick a master so after some thought we decided on Educational Administration.

Kyle – Well that’s all I have for you. I hope that wasn’t too short.

Thank you for your time!

hard! Lucky number 6

Something bad will happen but it's a blessing in disguise because you will benefit from it.Just watch yourother side that you have, only you can see but others know its there. It has a reat impact on your surroundings. Lucky number 1

things will come and go likd of like the people in your life. Your life is like a revolving door always sucking people in while pushing others out. You need to figure out a way to make it stop, because sooner or later you will be stopped with nobody with you. Lucky number 19

are hurting others that you may need in the future. Lucky number 47

administration?

Balch – Well when I was teaching I had this

Jody Balch, Superintendent of CMS

The Splash: A Grain of Salt

Jerrika Lopez-Wilson Michael Lynch Co-Editor Staff Writer The sun is lined with

Venus. Look for you number and lucky signs. Watch out for your horoscopes, they could be bad, they could be good, or they could be both! You honestly just got to watch out for what is currently happening in your life these little subtle changes could be a huge impact on your future. You just got to be careful on your choices.

Capricorn: This month is going to be hard for you whether it be with school, famil or friends. Be careful with who you have in your inner circles. Always be aware of the personalities you surround yourself with. You got to stay calm with yourself, and stay on

track on things that are most impoortant to you!

Lucky number 55 Aquarius: This month you will find happiness within yourself.

You have been feeling like you have been in a dark tunnel but you'll find the light at the end.

Just keep your eyes on what you want; you just got to heave a little faith to get you to what you want! it may come sooner than you may expect. Lucky number 32 Pisces: This month your grades will suffer but yourr social life will not. While your grades are decreasing your popularity will be rising. Watch both, one is more important than the other. At this time you must choose which one will help you better in the long run and where you are going with your career. You must think about this

Aries: This month you will run into wealth.

Not just in money but in friendship. Both are something to look forward to this month. you have a wonderful month ahead of you!

Nothing horrible should happen to you at all, but remember any litle choice that you make can change the future.

Lucky number 2 Taurus: This month watch your surroundings they may seem good but in reality they are despicable. Watch for the snakes in the grass when you least expect it, it will bite you in the sneakiest way possible, just wath your back. This month may not be good at all, but you do have the power to change it if you want to. Lucky Number 6 Gemini: This month is both good and bad.

Cancer: This month that missing puzzle peice that you have been searcing for a while, will come out of hiding and complete the unfinished picture.

Lucky number 71 Leo: This month will be unpleasant. It will rain on your parade, you bubble will be busted, and the dark could will follow. The way to get rid of this is to ignore it and let it pass, that's the best way to let it pass, it will hurt at first but you will get used to it. Lucky number 25 Virgo: This month

Libra: This month things will change, and for the better! The change was necessary, for you to find the person you will be later in life. Self-love is key. that is all you need to know at the moment.

Lucky number 23 Scorpio: This month stop acting like you're such a high-power, because in reality you're not. If you want people to respect you need to give people of the same recognition they deserve. You do need to realize this because you

Sagittarius: This month don't take everything so seriously, don't go rain on others parades.

Worry about you and onlly you! Respect yourself by respecting others. That is all that's in store for you this month. Lucky number 63 **Disclaimer** All of these are to be taken with a grain of salt, while producing this amazing content both of us, Jerrika and Michael, had a good time coming up with these horoscopes. They are in to way proven true, or are they? Anyway have fun with your future plans! Watch out for our splash!!

2 Purple Press, Jan. 20, 2015

Let's Talk-

Does The Year Really Change Us?

Point: Christa's Point New Year, Same Old You. We all know The tradition is that on the night of New Years Eve everyone makes a new years resolution; to do better, be more active, be nicer, try harder at least those are the most typical of sorts. I am sure there are more personal resolutions in existence.

The question is, do people ever keep their New Years resolution and, so do they ever really change? From watching my family and close friends around me I would have to say no, people tend to keep the same habits. The moral of the story is people don’t change after one night it just isn’t possible. As humans we hate change, despise it even. We prefer to stick to the same old schedule, old life, old habits. For most when we have a natural flow and we try to improve on a specific aspect of ourselves we can become scared of the possible outcome.

Change is a terrifying thing so it is not hard to understand why people typically do not pursue it; or at least go after it full force. If it were easy to achieve a better life after one night everyone would do it.

Being as it may change is one of the hardest things you could ever attempt to do because our old tendencies are our weak-

Danelle Kirven Staff Writer The 2015 Wildcat basketball season is taking off with full force. Games began in late November with the Varsity and Junior Varsity boys teams traveling to Rio Rancho, New Mexico and with the Varsity and Junior Varsity girl teams traveling to Amarillo, Texas in early December. This season the Wildcats are definitely putting the power in the Cat, the following young men have been displaying their good character and dedication on and off the court. These are your 2015 Junior Varsity Wildcats: Isaiah Joyce Junior Skyler Wadas Sophomore Luke Bussen Junior

ness, it is our kryptonite.

An example of this is you are trying to create a new bond with a new optional lover and your ex just so happens to stroll back into your life, chances are you will choose to try things with your ex again instead of trying something new because it is easier. It is this way because our minds usually avoid complicated situations so instead of taking a chance and getting to know a new person, we are going to choose the one that we already know because it is a more simple path.

If you are one of the few who is not afraid of change maybe it is just too hard to have a new lifestyle, or you just simply don’t have a time to alter the little things in your life. Whether it be out of your control or not, people do not change their ways at least not usually. It is very possible, the problem is that people just choose not to. Which is why resolutions go out the window because who has time to become a new person anymore right?

Another thing is people nowadays are just

lazy we have no motivation to improve, which is disappointing but true.

Everyone is capable of changing, but no one wants to. Unfortunately change is not trending, not in this generation.

Those of you who stick to your guns and keep your resolutions thriving, Good job I am so proud of you but the majority do not; which dims the light of the shining stars who do evolve and become exactly want they want to be in the New Year.

Look in the mirror everyone, the year might have changed and the weather and the season, but you my friend are still the same old you.

Counter Point: Mackenzie's Point

New Year, New Me! In January, you will often here people utter the phrase “New Year, New Me.” But do they really change? I think they do, because I have seen it.

When someone’s New Years resolution is to work on being nicer to others, and they actually do it. Sure. plenty of people have said they will change and not, but there is a special few who have a sort of superpower to make the change happen.

An example of this superpower is I want straight A’s, so I study and I change. The change can be partial effort and not stick, like the snow when its really cold, it just blows over. When I really try and do things right for one semester, the

study habits will stay with me, and I will have changed into a new person that cares about their grades and wants to succeed. Applying yourself to the goals that you want to achieve is a good resolution, but actually changing would make it easier to do in the future.

The University of Scranton Journal of Clinical Psychology said almost half of Americans made resolutions, while only 8% of those people actually followed through in 2014. There is a rhyme and reason to changing.

If you try to change too much at a time, you will not be as successful as a person who tries to do small tasks that contribute to the overall goal. If my goal were to organize your life, I would start by doing a small task of getting rid of and organizing my closet instead of reorganizing my entire room at once. Plus, make physical goals. It is easier to say you are cutting sugary drinks instead of saying you are eating better, because cutting sugar is a tangible goal.

A person can change for the good, but they can also change for the bad.

They say it usually takes around 21 days to develop a habit, and in all honesty, it takes

even less time to develop a bad one. It becomes like a rut, like when teens stay up really late on a break and sleep ‘til noon.

It is really hard to break the routine of staying up when you go back to school and need to be up early enough to be there on time. The bad news is that once you make a habit of something it never really goes away, and this explains why bad practices are hard to kick.

The good news is there is ways to help you not change for the bad. You can avoid the routine altogether, such as if you are trying to detach yourself from a cell phone, then don’t charge it by your bed where you can easily grab it. Or try a better replacement, like reading before bed instead of checking Facebook. This is my goal for the year, so I am also getting gentle reminders of how many times I checked my phone the previous day, and the huge numbers make me realize my usage to help me cut down.

In short, people do change in the new year.

They work harder to be the best version of themselves, and they grow up a little inside.

Humans are surprisingly not creatures of habit, not as much as previously thought. If you want to change, you will eventually do it. It can take some time, but if you press on, you can have a new you!

them, this season will be their last as Wildcats, but they are definitely making the most of it. The following young women are your 2015 Varsity Lady Wildcats: Abby McCarty Junior Danni Williams Senior Jenna Spencer Junior Arianna Meza Junior Holly Duval Junior Chelsea Varney Junior Jaci Sievers Sophomore Serena Garcia Junior D’Lanor Briggins Senior Nichele Hyman Senior Teya Morris Freshman Shelby Jones Senior Monay Phillips Sophomore Kansas Huysman Junior

No matter if your day is good or bad you can go shoot and clear your mind. It’s good relaxation.

Describe the feeling after winning a game.

It depends on the game. If it’s a normal game it’s expected and kind of chill.

But if it’s a big game it’s like all your hard work has paid off.

What are your goals or expectations for/of this season?

Nothing less than a state championship.

Upcoming Games: Jan. 23rd JV Boys vs. Hope Christian 5:30 V Boys vs. Hope Christian 7:00 Jan. 27th JV Boys vs. Hobbs 5:30 V Boys vs. Hobbs 7:00 TBD Clovis Shoot Out JV/V Girls Jan. 30th JV Girls vs. Alamogordo 5:30 V Girls vs. Alamogordo 7:00 Purple Press encourages all students, staff, and community to go out and support all of our fighting wildcats. Your attendance and support is appreciated and vital to Clovis’ Wildcat Pride.

On The Court

Jared Duncan Junior Trenton Gaither Sophomore Hunter Pipal Junior Sebastain Roanhaus Sophomore Tyler Bonds Junior Cory Knight Junior Timothy Smith Junior David Griego Junior

These hardworking Wildcats are devoted and are showing growth and great promise this season.

Especiallyv after beating Goddard 85-78. These following young men are your 2015 Varsity Wildcats: Micah Gray Sophomore Tristen Pautler Senior Elighio Rodriguez Junior Tucker Dobbs Junior Luke Bussen Junior Kaine Bender Senior

Sebastain Roanhaus Sophomore Logan Cole Senior Roland Chavez Junior Cory Knight Junior

Tomas Acuna Senior Devin Roberts Junior

Sitting down with Coach Robinson we discussed the progress of the Varsity Boys this season and he had the following words for thy years team: “The boys basketball team this year is very young. We only have two returning players this year Roland Chavez(Junior) and Kaine Bender(senior). Unfortunately Kaine is not able to play with us this year due to a knee surgery after the football season. The lack of experience we have on the team this year has resulted in inconsistent

play. This combined with a new head coach and new system has made progress slow. Good news for the Cats is with only three seniors we have several underclassmen gaining experience; which will be beneficial to the team next season.

The boys are working hard and represent CHS with Wildcat Pride.”

The following ladies are part of the fight lady wildcats and are your Junior Varsity Lady Wildcats: Alyssa Loya Sophomore Sarah Samora Sophomore Katie Trujillo Sophomore Ashlon Snipes Sophomore Sierra Stacy Junior Alicia Segura Sophomore Shelby Mayfield Sophomore Cassie Cotton Sophomore Sierra Figueroa Sophomore Monay Phillips Sophomore Hailey Brady Sophomore Franca Kraemer Sophomore This team of young ladies are working hard and bringing their all to every game. For a few of

I got a chance to sit down with the Lady Wildcats very own Danni Williams.

She is a two time Gatorade Player of the Year and has been selected as Player of the Game on numerous occasions; Williams also has committed to Texas A&M. She had the following words to share with us: When did you start playing basketball?

As soon as I could walk, I guess you could say I was ballin’ out the womb.

What is your favorite part about basketball?

A Real Life Pin

and tried to copycat an outfit off of there! All we practically did was dress her up, and tried our best on trying to match the photo. Most of the clothing items I believe were purchased in Clovis, but the master list of where everything was purchased will be down below. To me I honestly think we did an extraordinary job at copying the photo.

As I said before a costaff member and myself took our "model" as they would say in the industry.

What we did was we took three separate photos of pinterest of outfit ideas or "ootd" as some may know it as. We tried our best to copy them to actually wear, and we picked

our personal favorite, to me I get very winter-fall vibes. What we went with was a cream or off-white infinity scarf, a dark maroon long sleeve sweater, a mid-thigh skirt with ruffles with black tights underneath, thick cream or off-white knee

The assured way to fall short of your goal is to make your Resolution unattainable. For instance, resolving to never eat your favorite food again is setting you up to fail. Instead, strive for a goal that is attainable, such as avoiding it more often than you do now.

2. Create A Plan Once you get crystal clear on your inten-

tions, consider how you will allow your vision to come to attainment.

Developing a strategy such as, “I will run two laps on the track everyday after school starting tomorrow” is much stronger than, “I will try to exercise more.”

This helps you to stay on track with your plan, and even make a layout about how you would like to do things.

On your marks, get set, broken. We didn’t even have to think twice about it and we’ve already broken it. These are New Year’s Resolutions of course! Why is it that we work harder on trying to figure out our resolution than we do trying to actually keep it? Three-hundred and sixty five days seem to long? That chocolate cake looks too scrumptious? The car ride to the gym seems to long?

Or maybe the fact that February seems like a better month to start your new goal than January.

posting crazy pictures on Instagram and I cannot keep these comments to myself. Then the next day comes and your friends has really juicy information to tell you and can’t help but share the information that someone else had texted you that morning, so you decide to hold it off until February, but gossiping is your sick addiction and it’s what drives you.

You come to the “rational” decision to wait until the next year to stop gossiping, “New Year, New You” right?

Therefore it’s only logical to wait a whole other year to attempt to try your resolution again.

television or get off the couch to even try and drive to the gym. Laziness has hit you hard and weather you want to believe it or not your New Year’s resolution is doomed. We try to fight laziness but somehow it always seems to win. Once it kicks in our resolution has been broken for good, but it is okay next year seems like a better year to send those 10-15 pounds away and fly in that perfect 6 pack.

The fact of the matter is procrastination will always win. On December 31st, we have nothing but high hopes for ourselves for the New Year, but come January 1st when we roll over in the morning and get out of bed to fix ourselves that cup of coffee we realize that we can’t stop doing the things we love just yet and plus after a long night we need to get on the phone and gossip to our friends about what happened the night before.

Then there you just broke your resolution, so you say to yourself I’ll stop gossiping tomorrow there is just so much that I have to tell my friends about today and so many people are

“I just want to lose 10-15 pounds so starting January 1st the gym will be my best friend.”

Comes January 1st you get out of bed and you put on your running shoes and you are ready to hit the gym.

Nothing and no one can stop you from losing that weight or gaining that 6 pack you’ve always wanted. You put in blood, sweat, and tears that first day and you feel so good about it. Then January 2nd comes around and you put those gym shoes on, but you decide, I’m just going to do 20 sit ups at home and then that will be good enough for today. Then days start to go by and you just can’t stop watching

Michael Lynch Staff Writer

Pinterest, we all know of that app, and we all have downloaded it at least once onto our smart phone. We love to see the cool ideas people do with random household items and completely transform them to something different! It can differ from house décor, make-up ideas, and DIY's. One of the great things that show up on the application is fashion ideas and advice, and that’s what some of the staff writers of purple press staff conducted one day!

Jerrika & I took our editor and chief Denica Aragon,

Purple Press, Jan. 20, 2015

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high socks which are rolled down, and some basic black combat boots.

There will be a photo of our example below!

We went with that style, because we felt that we did that outfit the best as long with the weather we experience here in Clovis.

We also did a makeup tutorial with the outfit itself but we did not picture it for some odd reason, but other than that we had a really fun time creating this during our fourth and fifth periods, Denica herself actually wore that outfit for the rest of her day, which is that does not say she liked it then I don’t know what does!

That’s pretty much all we did, I put as much detail as I could into this article, on articles like these you cant really put as much detail as you would like to, you know? I do hope you enjoyed this article and I do hope to put more of these type of article out, just keep your eye out for the latest Purple

Press!

Wheretoget.it is a great website for you to find any of your fashion needs. This is where the photo was posted originally, it is a community of people that will help you find whatever you are looking for. You should check it out if you are having trouble finding anything.

My outfit cost me less than 20 buck. First off, every girl owns a pair of black tights so no need to buy a new pair. I bought my skirt at Rue 21 for $5 and my shirt I borrowed from my mother's closet. The same with the scarf.

3. Ask For Support If your resolution matters to you, tell it to someone you know and trust. Be clear to the person about what you want in terms of support. Make sure your partner knows what you want them to do if you get off track. This ensures that you can get right back on track if you lose your way.

Also, it may be easier to ask a friend to participate in your Resolution with you. Having someone to participate with you tends to keep you more motivated than doing it by yourself.

4. Don’t Give Up On Yourself Forget past failures, everyone fails from time to time. The difference between successful

people and those who disappoint themselves isn’t that the successful people don’t mess up, they simply keep going after failure.

Are you feeling more prepared to tackle your annual resolution? If you haven’t made one already, you can still get started. Here’s to your 2015 goals.

All our ideas for New Year’s resolutions seem good in our head and make us seem like great people when we

tell them to our friends and family members, but the minute we try to commit we run into tons of problems that we didn’t even think

about. Hopefully one day we can all come up with a resolution we can master and kick that New Year’s butt!

How To Keep Your Resolution

Holly Robinson Staff Writer If your New Year’s resolutions from last year have gone unresolved, you’re not alone. Now, the New Year offers another opportunity to achieve your goals, and these tips should help you keep your New Year’s resolution.

1. Set Realistic Goals

Maya Mack Staff Writer

How To Break It

Some people view meat as their favorite vegetable, they don’t know how they would survive without meat, but you decide that you don’t need meat you can become a vegetarian and not even look back. You seemed to have overlooked all the things that you couldn’t eat since you proclaimed that you were a new member of the vegetarian community. You go to add grilled chicken into your salad without even realizing that you can’t have that anymore. You say, “But it’s grilled!” not realizing that you didn’t just cut out fried foods, but you cut out all meats, including all the different ways you can cook them to make you feel better about eating them. Overlooking the things you say you won’t do in the up and coming year is a big reason why we break our resolutions.

Happy New Year

4 Purple Press, Jan. 20, 2015

From the Purple Press @CHS

Purple Press is a Publication Vehicle for Student Expression The School Board encourages students to express their views in school-sponsored publications and to observe rules for responsible journalism. This means, expression that falls into any of the following categories shall not be permitted: any expression which is false or obscene, libelous, slanderous, or defamatory under state law; which presents a clear and present danger of the commission of unlawful acts, violation of school rules or materials and substantial disruption of the orderly operation of the school, or which violates the privacy rights of others.

Student editors of school-sponsored publications are responsible for determining the news, opinion and advertising content of the publication. The publication’s adviser is responsible for supervising the production of the publication and for teaching and encouraging free and responsible expression and professional standards of journalism.

The views expressed in The Purple Press are not necessarily those of Clovis High School or the Clovis Municipal School Board of Education.

Advisor: Augustine Martinez Editor-In- Chief: Denicia Aragon Co-Editor: Jerrika Lopez-Wilson Layout Editor Specialist: Dalton Kroeger Layout Editors: Michael Lynch, Jerrika Lopez-Wilson, and Mackenzie Credle Staff Writers: Christa Lemmons, Mackenzie Credle, Kyle Dunning, Michael Lynch, Dannelle Kirven, Maya Mack, and Holi Robinson Publisher: Clovis News Journal • 521 Pile St PO Box 1689 Clovis, New Mexico 88102

New Subscriber Special

For Parents & Teachers of CHS Students!

You can receive HOME DELIVERY of the print edition and access to the E-Edition of the Clovis News Journal for the Special Rate of just $10.00 a month.

Your print subscription to our community newspaper includes home delivery Tuesday through Sunday, local & national news stories and pictures, sports, weather, Classified ads, obituaries, Parade magazine, comics and local grocery store ads, and the monthly issue of the Purple Press!

Please call 575-763-7350

to start your subscription!

Be sure to mention th this hiiss ad a to ensure your Special Rate Rate.

Top Row: Kyle Dunning, Christa Lemmons, Makenzie Credle, Dannelle Kirven, Augustine Martinez (Advisor) Bottom Row: Holi Robinson, Michael Lynch, Maya Mack, Jerrika LopezWilson, Denicia Aragon