the Connection
John B. Connally High School 13212 N. Lamar Blvd. Austin, TX 78753 (512) 594-0800
Friday, Sept. 21, 2018 Volume 23, Issue 1
What’s inside?
POD Page 3
New District Alignment Page 7
Homecoming surprises
Page 8
15 Minutes of Fame with Daryl Cardosa Page 6
the Connection
Letter from the Editors
the Connection 2018-2019 Staff John B. Connally High School 13212 N. Lamar Blvd. Austin, TX 78753 (512) 594-0800 Editor in Chief Emily Lane Audrey Garcia Copy Editor Kelly Tran News/Opinion Editor Emily Lane Life & Arts/Sports Editor Audrey Garcia Marketing Manager Evatica Agundis Reporters Carlos Ordaz, Aden Arredondo, Michael Caceres, Dom Colon, Khayla Lane, Michael Cedillo, Jennifer Nguyen, Kevin Hernandez Alfonso, Tiere Turner, Miranda Morua, Ronald Hernendez, Amina Mukaty, Cheyenne Trujillo, Teresita Cervantes, Mikayla Thompson, Ciera Turner, Jahdae Barron, Jade Davis
Hey Cougars, welcome back to what will be known as the best year in the history of journalism at Connally. This year we plan on putting a new twist on the classics. We’re excited to start the new year with fresh faces. With a brand new staff, you’ll expect to see a lot more diversity in our issues. For our first issue we went with the topic of “Making the most of your high school career”. It’s all about ways to either improve or change how you handle your high school experience. Part of our goal this year is to include not only the input of our collective staff, but also to hear from you guys. This issue we’ve included a feature from our very own assistant principal Daryl Cardosa, a comic strip and a collage of photos that resonate the talent of our students in the photojournalism class. If you have any grievances, cartoon drawings/graphics, or ideas that youd like to contributre to the paper then feel free to contact us through our adviser, Haley Gluch at haley.gluch@pfisd.net. Remember to follow us on social media and check for coupons and videos in later issues. -Audrey Garcia, Emily Lane & Kelly Tran
Photos of the month
The Connection staff chooses their favorite photos this month @chspublictaion on Instagram and Twitter
Adviser Haley Gluch Principal Sheila Reed Editorial Policy The Connection is published throughout the school year by the newspaper staff at John B. Connally High School. The paper serves as a forum for student expression and as a voice in the open discussion of issues. Opinions expressed are those of students and do not necessarily reflect the views of the adviser, administration, CHS faculty or Pflugerville Independent School District employees. Editorials represent the majority opinion of the Connection staff. Letters which could be libelous, malicious, hurtful or disruptive will not be published. All letters are subject to editing. The Connection welcomes your opinions on any subject. Letters to the editors and questions for our advice column can be dropped off in the journalism room, C303.
At their Waco Volleyball Tournament, junior Savannah Townsend bonds with her fellow teammates. The team played a game of Jenga while they waited for their next activity. “I was scared because I didn’t want to make it fall and let the team down,” Townsend said. Photo by Audrey Garcia.
2 EDITORIALFriday, Sept. 21, 2018
The Connally cheer team stands tall while performing a routine for the crowd during the Senior Night football game. “I was always looking forward to this day as a freshman. This was my last, first home game. Even though we took an ‘L’, I had an amazing time,” senior, varsity cheerleader Kristi Thai said. Photo by Jane Nguyen.
While preparing for the halftime show, junior Jasenia Sais, waves at the crowd. As part of the Pit, the front ensemble of the Band, Sais setup as the STARS performed. “I felt excited, but overwhelmed by the amount of people,” Sais said. Photo by Deziree Sierra.
the Connection
SAVE THE DATE
September
Sun. Mon. Tue. Wed. Thu.
Fri.
Sat .
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
October
Sun. Mon Tue. Wed. Thu.
Fri.
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3 4 5 6 7 9 10 11 12 13 1415 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 1 8
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Sep. 25
PfISD College Fair: It will be held here at Connally, come meet some colleges!
Sep. 26 & 27
Picture Day for Seniors: Pictures will be take at the cafeteria
Oct. 1 & 2
Picture Day for underclassmen: Pictures will be taken in the cafeteria
Oct. 5 & 8
Student Holiday: There will no school from Oct. 5&8. Enjoy!
Oct. 10
PSAT: All 9th and 10th graders have to take it. Optional for 11th graders.
Oct. 16
End of 9 weeks: The end of the first 9 weeks is coming up, pass your classes!
Provisions on
DEMAND
Cafeteria food gets a fresh, fast new look By Aden Arrendondo The new POD (Provisions on Demand) is up in the cafeteria and has many wondering why it exists in the first place. Although there are mixed opinions, it does serve a purpose. The bottom part of the cafeteria has gotten more dense, but no existing problems have occurred or worsened. The top section is much more spacious and less crowded, we are currently unaware if anything else is to change in the cafeteria layout as of now. The POD has presented a few new options as far as food goes, but mostly consists of supplementary snacks like chips, Pop-Tarts and Rice Krispie Treats. “The POD is there because Mrs. Reed wanted students to have another choice and speed up the lunch lines” assistant
GLOBAL NEWS BRIEFS News from all
principal John Edwards said, “it gives more of a college vibe for students when they eat.” The POD replaces about six tables in the cafeteria at the top row, and the tables have been relocated to the bottom level of the cafeteria near the stage. “It’s basically regular cafeteria food but it just costs money,” junior Ricardo Padilla. “It only impacted us by reducing the size of the lunch line.”
SENATE RACE
By: Michael Caceres, Dom Colon, Michael Cedillo, Khayla Lane and Aden Arredondo
Republican Senator Ted Cruz faces a challenge in the election for U.S Senate in Texas: Democrat Beto O’rourke from Dallas, Texas. Texas has voted to send a Republican to the White House in every election. The battle between Cruz and O’rourke is now becoming the most expensive U.S. Senate race, an average $47 million between the two candidates. “My focus is and remains fighting for 27 millions Texans,” Ted Cruz said. “That’s my job, that’s what I wake up everyday thinking and focusing on.”
Michael Cohen, a former attorney of the POTUS, has said that Donald Trump violated campaign rules by giving money to two of his mistresses, one of who is adult-film actress Stormy Daniels. He spent roughly hundreds of thousands of dollars in hush money, which could result in his impeachment. Trump claims his impeachment could lead to a drastic drop in the stock market. The lawsuit is still standing, but Daniels continues to fight Trump and his lawyers’ hush money.
On Aug. 26, a mass shooting took place at a ‘Madden’ video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida, killing four and injuring 11. It is reported that the shooter began shooting randomly after losing a match in the virtual football game ‘Madden’. The suspect, David Katz, committed suicide shortly after. “It’s very tragic that something like this happened and this type of thing happens too much,” junior Austin Anderson said. Allegedly, Katz had a long history of mental instability and issues.
around the world
TRUMP IN TROUBLE
MADDEN MAYHEM
MOSQUE ATTACK
A man has been seen by surveillance cameras attacking a North Austin Mosque on Aug. 29, Sept. 2, 13, 17. He has been reported slashing tires, shattered windows and doors and what security said to believe to be an attempt of entry. “There should be more security at the mosque, and people who attend it may not feel safe” Carlos Ordaz said.
NAFTA
President Donald Trump is trying to end the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) against the wishes of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, leader of the Canadian Liberal Party. “No i don’t agree because it was a bad decision he made on it and that is bad for our world,” junior Miguel Cervantes said.
Friday, Sept. 21, 2018 NEWS
3
Best Memories
Students share their favorite moments from high school “My best memory is when we had power puff last year at the field it was super dun and i felt the school spirit.” -Saray saucedo (12) “My best memory in high school would be meeting the most amazing people and getting to bond with others and really just having fin in any of my classes.” -Adriana ramirez (12) “The first MYST performance we did ogether with my friends.” -Sarah Nguyen (11) “My best memory was able to go to a National League meet in California and swim against other elite swimmers and olympians also.” -Michael Shay (12) “My best memories was when I first won a medal in tennis.” -Hien Tam Pham (10) “Though there are many, one of my best memories is going to California with my family.” -Emily Do (11) “My best memories in high school was being involved in color guard and marching band during sophomore.” - Tiffanny Nguyen (11) “My best high school memory would be just meeting new people and getting to experience diferent. also getting to be part of the cheer team.” -Jocelyn Rodriguez (12) “My best memory of high school was going to history class last year becasue the teacher is cool and funny also it helped me understand class work” -Yexceli Sanchez (12) “My favorite memory of high school is the football games ,all the students get together and cheer for our football team wih a smile.” -Cristal Cordova (12)
4 CENTER Friday, Sept. 21, 2018
the Connection
Making it COUNT Students give advice to new freshman on making the most of your high school career By: Jennifer Nguyen & Teresita Cervantes The beginning of high school might be a rush of adrenaline, but for some, can be nerve-wracking and stress inducing. “Don’t get caught up in the demands that school presents. Have fun, be spontaneous, and realize it’s okay to mess up,” senior Joseph Mayang said. Your pathway prepares you so that you know what it takes to get a good job. It opens your mind to all kinds of careers opportunities. A pathway is a group of classes a student will choose to stay with all four years of high school and they range from journalism to engineering. “My pathway will help achieve my goals in the long term with professional advice and help,” junior Emily Do said. There are many high schools who encourage students to take challenges so that their future will be the best. “Things I’ve regretted through the year is not taking chances at pursu-
ing things I wished to pursue even when the opportunity is there for me,” senior Michael Shay said. Male and female students of all ages can be motivated to perform well when working with others in a noncompetitive environment. “My motivation comes from getting a job through high school and my sister who just graduated two years ago. Also, I see myself being an engineer major with a business minor in UT,” sophomore Hien Tam Pham said. Eighty three percent of teenagers say that their best school memories revolved around “friends,” the #1 ranked category. “My best memories in high school was being involved in color guard and marching band during my sophomore year,” junior Tiffanny Nguyen said. According to the Bureau Of Labor Statistics, in October 2017, 66.7 percent of 2017 high school graduates, age 16 to 24, were enrolled in colleges or
universities. “After my senior year is over, I see myself hopefully working for the government in my own office,” senior Guadalupe Salgado said. Each grade-level student counselor are always there to encourage them to try new things and take many opportunities that will benefit their future. “Throughout my high school years, one thing I’ve regretted was not joining a sport in school,” Do said. Students have many motivations and are encouraged through different ways to be successful. “One of my motivations would be my parents. They encouraged me to actually finish all my homework and stop procrastinating,” Shay said. In 2018, a projected 12.3 million college and university students will be under the age 25, and 7.6 million students will be 25 years old and over. “I realized my future career when I was around 4th grade also
Who are the
Principals
Sheila Reed
Head Principal
John Mark Edwards Associate Principal
Rachel Roepke
Assistant Principal
Laura B
Assistant 9th G
the Connection Choosing a
Pathway
Pathways offered at Connally help students reach their career goals “My pathway will help me achieve my goals in the long term with professional advice and help.” -Emily Do (11) “My current pathway is going into the business industry because I want to have my own business.” -Julie Thi (9) “My pathway is AVID. The reason I choose it is because I want to go to a good college and do something I really love.” - Guadalupe Salgado (12)
when my uncle sat me down to have a talk about my future,” Pham said. Going through high school is already the hardest transition of a new journey, but you can always make memories with friends. “My best memories so far is about tennis, spending some bonding time with my teammates, now who I call more than family. It was a really fun day to hang out with my team and it’s not really a team, but we are more like
Brown
Principal Grade
family now,” freshman Johnny Tran said. One of the most frequent piece of advice that seniors or older students give would be to not procrastinate and just enjoy every moment of high school. “Work hard your junior and senior year by enjoying and doing things out of your comfort zone, and of course, always work hard till your last moment,” Salgado said.
“I picked engineering as my pathway mainly because I want to become a chemist in the future.” -Hien Tam Pham (10) “My current pathway is business because I WANNA BE RICH.” -Sarah Nguyen (11) “My pathway is business and music because I want to connect through people with music.” -Vi Che (11) “I’m in the medical pathway. I choose it because I like helping people and making them feel better about there situation may be.” -Jocelyn Rodriguez (12) - “ My pathway is principles of human service .” -Perla Ponce (9) “My pathway is the child development pathway and I chose it because I want to go to college for scenography.” -Makayla Louis (12)
Daniel Andreano Assistant Principal 10th Grade
Nancy Young
Assistant Principal 11th Grade
Daryl Cardosa
Assistant Principal 12th Grade
Club
Breakdown
Join a school club to add to your college applications, resume Student Council
Sponsor: Iesha Williams Meetings: Wednesdays “Student council is a great way to help build school spirit and helps you join a community that you can be proud to be a part of. You are able to make your mark on this school and leave a legacy that many students can be happy to be part of. Being in student council means to be a great representation of the school that not only our students but students in various schools can be envious of.” -Proma Saha (12)
FCCLA
Sponsor: Amber Ham Meetings: Tuesdays “It looks great on your college applications and your resume, it is a leadership club that will help build skills you will use for the rest of your life. We have fun we do team activities and competitions, I’m amazing.” -Amber Ham
No Place for Hate
Sponsor: Lisa Goldberg Meetings: Friday mornings “I think now is a very good time to become involved in this group because students need a forum within which they have the opportunity to help set and nurture a school environment that is safe and welcoming. All students should feel safe and supported at their school, and this group can lead the way!”
UIL
Coordinator: Madeline Grader-Jones First meeting: September 26 9:00 a.m. “Participating in UIL academics is a great way for students to compete in subjects in which they excel, sharpen their skills in subjects they enjoy, meet requirements for NHS, add to their college application, and potentially earn scholarship money. UIL Academics is a collections of ‘teams,’ the same way UIL sports covers a collection of teams. This year I hope to see students participating in a variety of subjects on a variety of academic ‘teams.’” -Madeline Grader-Jones
National Art Honor Society
Sponsor: Christopher Locke “It’s a good way to earn community service hours for doing volunteer work that is related to art. You also get to spend time around others that like art, it’s a lot of fun.” -Christopher Locke
Friday, Sept. 21, 2018 CENTER
5
the Connection
of fame with
00:15 :15
Daryl Cardosa
minutes
ORDER FROM YOUR PHONE.
Administrator in charge of safety protocol comments on new school procedures
www.thundercloud.com
By: Emily Lane With the inordinate uprise of school shootings and violent misconduct across America in the past few years alone, the question of safety burns in the minds of teachers, students and parents and guardians alike. Gun violence, fist fights, bomb threats. Luckily, we have 12th grade assistant principal Daryl Cardosa tackling school safety one step at a time. “I think our number one concern is having anybody who’s not supposed to be here on campus wandering around the halls or just being here in general,” Cardosa said. “Especially if it’s not for a positive reason.” Aside from moral reassurance, Cardosa has also supplemented his promise by providing training to the staff and teachers prior to the beginning of the school year. “We’ve mainly taken precautions by retraining the entire staff to conform to new protocols that enforce safety,” Cardosa said. In addition to training employees to
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handle and properly contain dangerous situations, Cardosa had also taken the time to inform students about staying safe in school and what to do during emergencies through PAWS presentations throughout the beginning of the school year. “If we want to keep kids safe,” Cardosa said, “in my own personal opinion, which isn’t reflected on the school or district- less guns. I don’t believe that teachers should be armed at all or anything like that, we just need to keep guns away from schools. Period.”
6 EDITORIALFriday, Sept. 21, 2018
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Q&A Cross Country
By: Miranda Morua
The cross country team gained a few recent accolades during their last meet on Sept. 7 at the Northeast Metropolitan Park. Senior Diana Jaimes placed 3rd, junior Aria Whitney placed 4th, senior Merilynn Hernandez placed 5th and sophomore Morgan Flores placed 10th. Senior Jesse Lopez placed 10th. Juniors Jesus Luna, Antonio Torres, Leonardo Morales and sophomores Lincoln Wienk, Grant Dzurenko received an overall team award for finishing before the 30th person passed. “The main obstacle I had to put up with is my mental toughness. At times I would feel like I couldn’t keep running, but I’d tell myself it will all be worth it by the end. I’ve been in cross country for three years and found out about it my sophomore year from my friends Brianna and Sotero. If you realize that you’re good at something, especially like running, take advantage of it because it can help you in the long run.” -Diana Jaimes (12) “I decided to join cross country to get in better condition and prepare myself for soccer season. The obstacles I faced were trying to keep up with school work and attend the meets at the same time. I’ve been in cross country for 3 years. The meets are very enjoyable, especially the team bonding we all get to have, and the coaches are the best, they’re also your backbone and support.” -Jesse Lopez (12) “The reason why I decided to join cross country was to get my stamina up to become better and prepare myself for soccer season. My hardest obstacle tasks would be waking up early in the mornings for practice and competing with other schools. I think you should join cross country because it’s relaxing and keeps you in shape. Also, the coaches are really great.” - Aria Whitney (11)
the Connection New year
New achievements
New district alignment proves new challenges for cougars By: Jade Davis & Jahdae Barron With the new district alignment that occurs every two years, we are welcoming four new teams Connally is preparing to play. The new teams in this district includes Pflugerville and Manor. “I wish we played Weiss, Elgin and LBJ because I’ve heard they bring good competition, but I want to see for myself,” sophomore, varsity running-back Demetrius Gardner said. With the new teams entering the district, athletes are mentally preparing for the games ahead. “I think the kids are absolutely prepared to play these new teams,” Coach Barnard said, “They’re talented kids and hungry to prove. They work hard everyday and come to practice prepared, I believe they’re the best team in the district.” The volleyball team faced their first new district match against Pflugerville on September 7. “We felt confident going against Pflugerville at first, not too cocky, but we weren’t nervous.” sophomore Jaylin Foster said. They suffered a tough loss in four sets. “We thought we were going to be able to capitalize as a team and get the win but ending up losing,” junior Alyssa McClure said. The girls struggled with a few things throughout the game, but also made a lot of achievements along the way.
DIG
Deep
“We need to work on finishing the game strong and having consistent serves, mental toughness when were playing also handling the hard plays under pressure,” sophomore Michera Moffett said. “We worked as one and moved as a unit. We played good as a team.” The volleyball team has nine more district games. “Hopefully we accomplish more wins and get a better bond. I know we got it. It’s going to be a great season,” McClure said.
New District Teams Weiss Glenn
Pflugerville Marble Falls
A bittersweet beginning to the volleyball season By: Mikayla Thompson
Last year the cougar volleyball team only won two games. This year they are starting off by having 17-14 overall. “We have been winning more games in the first month of the season than we had done in the two past years,” senior varsity player Tiara Herring said. “I feel great about this year because we have a better connection with each other. Also, we became a more confident team and started to believe we can win.” With the outstanding wins the school has witnessed, there has been question
as to how this was accomplished. “What stands out the most about the team is the offense,” new assistant varsity coach George Piña said. “I’ve seen a lot of chemistry this year. We are playing a lot better as a team.” Just last week, the volleyball team played against Rouse. Unfortunately, they did not win the game, with 12-25. “Our communication and us working as a team was not there,” junior, varsity player Leilani Smith said. “I think that we could’ve done better as a team.”
Friday/September 21 vs. Glenn FR/JV 5:30, V 6:30 Tuesday/September 25 @ Weiss FR/JV 5:30, V 6:30 Friday/September 28 @ Cedar Park V 5:30, FR/JV 6:30 Tuedays/October 2 vs. Pflugerville FR/JV 5:30, V 6:30 Friday/October 5 @ Rouse V 5:30, FR/JV 6:30 Tuesday/October 9 @ Marble Falls FR/JV 5:30, V 6:30 Tuesday/October 16 @ Glenn FR/JV 5:30, V 6:30 Friday/October 19 vs. Weiss FR/JV 5:30, V 6:30 Tuesday/October 23 vs. Cedar FR/JV 5:30, V 6:30
Friday, Sept. 21, 2018
SPORTS 7
Here are some photos from the first two home games of the season: Caption 1: Seniors Edgar Perez and Diana Jaimes win homecoming king and queen. Caption 2: STARS dance team get ready to perform “Crazy In Love”. They practiced for weeks for this performance. Caption 3: Diana Jamies, Senior, gets announced as homecoming queen. She was among the top five finalists competing for the crown that night. “There was a lot competition with the other girls, I would have been happy if the others had won so when my name was announced, I was shocked,” Jaimes said.
the Connection 1.
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Caption 4: Seniors Dante Miller, Jeremy Clemons and Dom Howard show school spirit after a 26-21 defeat against Del Valle. “We had just lost the game, and we were disappointed. We had prepared for this game for weeks, and felt that we would have won,” Clemons said. Caption 5: After a touchdown, the varsity cheer squad flips senior Jocelyn Rodriguez into a stunt. Caption 6: Senior Diamonte Francois runs the ball for pickup of four yards. “I think a screen play was called and I was able to pick up about three to four yards on the play,” Francois said.
8 Back page Friday, Sept. 21, 2018