Sochi Olympics Recap pg.26
VASE pg. 13 & 19
Graduation Updates pg. 8
Novelist Matt de la Peña speaks to Clear Creek By Jasmine Garza Editor-in-Chief In February, Hispanic novelist, Matt de la Peña, visited students selected by teachers and counselors from Clear Creek High School, after Ms. Christina Varsos and Ms. Laura Gladney-Lemon decided to invite Peña to talk about his journey growing up as a “Mexican Whiteboy” and how he became the person he is today. “I recommended and contacted Peña because I was familiar with his books and a blog posted on NPR just weeks before Ms. Varsos asked for my recommendations.” Gladney-Lemon said. “As soon as I received a yes, I found someone to make a donation of $700 so he could speak at Clear Creek.” Peña spoke about how he grew up in San Diego, just hours away from the Mexican border, in a town with little wealth. Financial issues were always present, and the thought of him attending college was just a mere vision. Going to college was never in the bigger picture for Peña until an appearance by a famous basketball player at his middle school, changed his mind. “I felt like he was speaking directly to me,” Peña said. He finally became interested in what happened after high school and began asking questions. Peña, coming from a household where no one older than him had attended college, his first instinct was not to question why they had not attended. Instead his first question about college went to the mother of one of his best friends. He asked her what college was and what he needed
to do to get there. After the speech given I said no. I needed that time to better myself by the athlete and his friend’s mother talk- and become the best I could be,” Peña said. ing to him, His hard he began his work paid new life tooff when wards a bethe began to ter future. play for his A c a high school demics were basketball not Peña’s team. His strong point. continued He underdevotion stood that to be all he to get into a could be, good college later earned you needed him a full money, acascholarship demics or to the Uniathletic abilversity of ity. Since he the Pacific had neither for his athwealth nor letic capaacademic bilities in desires, his basketball. go-to plan But, before was to perPeña could fect his basreceive his ketball capadiploma, bilities. He there was would spend one thing his spare left for him time practo do. It ticing baswould be ketball and s o m e t h i n g Photo Courtesy of Charlie McKillip getting his body into that changed his life forever. the best shape possible. His English teacher opened “I would practice, and practice. When Peña’s eyes to what she already knew. people asked if they could workout with me “Instead of giving me a final, she
handed me a few blank pieces of paper and told me to write whatever I wanted for the next couple of hours because she had already given me an A,” Peña said. After entering college and playing his first basketball game as a Tiger, he soon realized he might not be the best player and had begun to look for alternate possibilities. While thinking about what else interested him, writing became an option. “I didn’t realize how much my teacher had done for me,” Peña said. “I wrote poetry in the beginning, spoken word mostly, until I was introduced to really amazing multicultural literature.” While attending the University of the Pacific, Peña earned his Bachelor in Arts in and his Masters in Fine Arts for creative writing at the University of San Diego. A few years later Peña published his first novel Ball Don’t Lie, in 2005 and from that moment, his career took off. Peña is now the author of five critically-acclaimed young adult novels, a creative writing teacher at New York University and Vermont College, and a public speaker to high schools and colleges all over the country. Before leaving Clear Creek, Peña answered questions and gave tips to the students. “Give a book time, at first it might be boring but give it at least 20 to 25 pages to decided whether or not you want to continue it,” Peña said. Encouraging students to become the best person they could be, he encouraged them to continue writing and perhaps find a love they did not know they had.
New Graduation plans change under House Bill 5 By Lisa Nhan Managing Editor
Under the new House Bill Five passed by the Texas State Legislators, graduation plans have changed for all incoming 9th graders for the 20142015 year while these new plans remain optional for current high school students. “We’re going to ask that you think about what is in your best interest if you are considering switching. Think about where you are and where you need to go. It’s a personal decision that students and parents will have to answer for themselves,” Suzie Thomas, CCISD Director of Student Personal Services, said. A big change in the plan is the elimination of speech for graduation credit. In addition, now all students will have to have two credits of a language other than English (LOTE) to graduate. Students will now only need three Social Studies credit, where before it was a requirement of four. But the biggest change is the introduction of the Endorsements
and Career Pathways into the plan. “In the end it all goes back to the
it’s college or another path,” Thomas said. These plans come with three
Photo courtsey of HiLife Staff
students. We’re looking at what we think the students will need to prepare themselves best for what they decide to do outside of high school, whether
new levels. The first is the Foundation High School Program, also known as FHSP, requires 22 credits. The next plan is what all incoming freshmen
will enter on. It’s called FHSP with Endorsements that requires 26 credits. The highest level is called Distinguished Level of Achievement that also requires 26 credits. Each plan is looked as a tier to build off the other. To reach the FHSP to the FHSP with Endorsement requires an additional Math and Science credit and seven credits in Electives. To go from the Distinguished Level of Achievement, students must meet the qualifications of the FHSP with Endorsements in addition to completing Algebra II. Each level requires four credits of English, one credit for Fine Arts, one for Physical Education, and two credits for LOTE. A difference between the new Distinguished Level of Achievement and the previous one is that the new one requires just two credits of LOTE, as opposed to three. The previous plans, which is what currents high school students are on, were the Minimum High School Program with 22 credits. Next is the Continue on page 8.