ROTC Lettering State of Bathrooms

Above: CMR JROTC members practice at Great Falls High School. Photo by Josiah Favela.

Right: Cadet Jamela Munsinger. Photo by Beth Britton.

CMR CADETS ACHIEVE THEIR OWN LETTERING

by Josiah Favela, staff writer As many CMR cadets are excited for the new addition to their flight. Many cadets will earn a letter to their names in the following weeks, mostly like the design of the jacket. Cadet Jamela Munsinger is a senior staff member for the Air Force JROTC program.

Q: What were your thoughts on the design of the jacket? A: “It looks bright and it looks recognizable. It looks nice with the big “R” for ROTC and for CMR [Rustlers].” Q: What would you feel about wearing it and what is the meaning of it like overall for you? A: “I’ll feel proud for what I did with the program. I dedicated all of my high school years into this program and getting something to wear to represent all of my work in this program is great” Q: How do you earn the lettering? A: “In order to get it you must maintain good academic standing, and perform above and beyond. You can also earn pins by doing color guard and other activities.”

Vandalism

by Anthony Matury, staff writer CMR’s Detective Taylor is no stranger to vandalism in school, especially in the bathrooms. He has been encouraging staff to check the bathrooms for any damage during passing periods or when they use the facilities. Even then, Taylor has difficulties trying to pinpoint culprits largely due to the number of people coming in and out of the restrooms and the large windows of time before the incidents have been reported, but he says it isn’t impossible. “I wouldn’t want to be stuck on bathroom duty,” said Taylor. Taylor said the most frequent and common form of vandalism in bathrooms is the destruction of gooseneck spouts meant for handicapped people. He also says that destruction of sinks is the worst form of vandalism here at school because of how often it occurs and how expenive it is to fix. The vandalism in the bathrooms is tame compared to Taylor having to deal with smashed windows and broken doors. Taylor says finding the culprit in those cases is much easier. Taylor also says that the amount of vandalism has gone down this year, despite someone recently turning off the water supply to the urinals. In the end, Taylor said that dealing with vandalism is frustrating for everyone involved, from him to the engineers. Shattered sinks, busted bathrooms, withering water fountains. The vandalism at CMR has reached deprecating levels causing the school to spend money on shameful repairs.

Lead Engineer Alan Burley is also no stranger to vandalism in bathrooms. From writing on the stalls to busted sinks, he’s seen it all. Although writing on the wall has been civil for the most part, there have been occasional forms of hate speech either drawn or etched on the walls. “If it’s hate speech, it bothers me more than anything,” Burley said. Burley said that students occasionally pull pranks and either plug up the toilets or break things in the bathroom. No matter what it may be, Burley sees acts like those disrespectful. For the 25 years Burley has been working here, it has cost the school thousands of dollars to repair things in the bathrooms, ranging from $150 to $200 per fixture. Burley said that the worst form of vandalism he has seen is a stall door ripped off of its hinges completely. “I’ve been around long enough to see a boom and bust,” Burley said. Burley said that vandalism this year, compared to other years, is slightly worse. He also said that he has seen a lot of vandalism for a couple of years in a row, and not a lot of vandalism for a couple of years in a row. Burley is encouraging students to not grafitti and vandalize the bathrooms for if you’re caught, you’re paying.