Central Times September 2019

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Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019 Volume 31 - Issue 1

CENTRAL TIMES

Revised dress code permits wearing hats

Also in this issue...

Special education staff shortages Page 2

Cameron Rozek @crozekCT

As of the beginning of this school year, students are now permitted to wear hats, hoods, and other non religious head coverings that had previously been prohibited.

The ‘no hats’ rule is a long standing policy in many schools and dates back several decades. For years it was seen as disrespectful for anyone to wear a hat indoors in the United States.

However, this unwritten rule has long since dissolved. Most schools still implement the no hat policy because of its relation to gangs. In the 1980’s and 90’s, gangs ran rampant, using hats as a symbol. Schools were quick to outlaw hats, and the rule stuck, even after the gang violence died down, especially in the Naperville area.

This change to the dress code was first suggested two years ago. Dean Kathy Howat tells Central Times that the hat committee, a group of teachers and staff, examined dress codes from nearby school districts and state guidelines and compared them to Naperville Central’s.

Howat explains that two major differences were found between the Central dress code and those of the state and other schools. The first and more minor change was outlawing hate speech as well as pornography. The second, larger difference that the committee noticed was that other schools were beginning to allow hats. “If you look at Hinsdale’s or if you look at Stevenson High School, Evanston High School, they have started doing away with the rule on hats,� Howat said.

When communicating with Hinsdale Central, Naperville Central inquired about the consequences of changing the rule. When the new policy was put in place at Hinsdale

Break your Starbucks habit with these dining ideas Page 4 Art by Isabel Zhou

Central, the administration saw no rise in disrespect or behavioral issues.

However, Howat says the determining factor was the blanket school dress code policy. The policy reads, “Students’ appearance, including dress and personal hygiene, must not disrupt the educational process, interfere with the maintenance of a positive teaching or learning climate, or compromise reasonable standards of health, safety, and decency.�

Hats are usually worn by students as a dress preference, and allow students to express and enjoy themselves. “We shouldn’t be putting a rule in [the dress code] that is arbitrary, or keep one there just because it’s always been there.� Howat explains, “The board policy is disruption to the learning environment, and how does a hat in and of itself, create a disruption?�

Most teachers have accepted the change.

None of the teachers on the committee were cited to have an issue with accepting hats into the dress code.

Annette Hennessy is an English teacher here at Central who has taught for several decades and has seen dress code changes in the past, as well live with the old hat policy for most of her teaching career. When asked how she felt regarding this change, she offered her take on the topic. “I think that in a school situation, or in any type of formal situation, taking your hat off is a sign of respect. But I want students to be able to express themselves creatively by how they dress.� Henessy said, noting formal situations should still be treated with respect in the form of removing a hat.

As for students, not one of the twenty randomly questioned in the hallway had any objection to the rule, and several welcomed the change, happy that hats could be incorporated into their wardrobe.

Students can now rest assured that a simple hat or hood, whether a fashion statement, or simple a coverup for a bad hair day, is perfectly acceptable.

Pritzker signs law clarifying schools’ responsibilies when questioning students suspected of criminal activity William Tong Prompted in part by a renewed focus on suicide prevention among adolescents following the 2017 death of a Naperville North student, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law a bill clarifying the expectations on school officials when questioning a student about potential criminal behavior. The new law took effect immediately upon the Aug. 23 signing.

House Bill 2627, introduced by Illinois Rep. Stephanie Kifowit of Aurora, states that prior to questioning a student in such a situation, school officials must “ensure that notification or attempted notification to the student’s parent or guardian is made,� and “make reasonable efforts to ensure that the student’s parent or guardian is present during questioning.�

The law also requires schools to “make reasonable efforts to ensure that school personnel, including, but not limited to, a school social worker, a school psychologist, a school nurse, a school guidance counselor, or any other mental health professional, are present during the questioning� in the case that a parent is not present or is unable to attend.

In response to the law, Sinikka Mondini, District 203’s executive director of communications, issued the following statement on behalf of the district: “Naperville 203 will continue to work with our local law enforcement agencies to ensure compliance with the law. At Naperville 203, the student-staff relationships are of paramount importance and we remain confident in our staff who serve with our students’ best interests at heart.�

The Central Times contacted several district per- of students. sonnel, including deans at Naperville Central and “I don’t know if it would prevent suicides, but members of the Board of Education, all of whom I think it will definitely protect the kids from declined to comment for this story. intimidation,� said Melissa Pytlak, a parent of a NaOthers, however, are speaking out. perville Central student. “That, too, would depend “We are very pleased with the passage of the new on each individual child’s emotional state and how law,� Maureen Walgren said. “We hope it will help they process things.� prevent a tragedy like this from happening again. “Rais[ing] awareness of the constitutional rights No family should have to experience what we of minors in the school setting and provid[ing] edhave.� ucation on how disciplinary practices Walgren “We are very pleased with the passage in schools can better support the emoof the new law. We hope it will help and her tional well-being of students� is a key prevent a tragedy like this from hap- component of Corey’s Goal’s mission. husband, Doug, es- pening again. No family should have The law appears to address both of tablished the to experience what we have� these issues. organization “We believe that Corey’s story has Corey’s Goal - Maureen Walgren, mother of revealed some shortfalls in the way in response Corey Walgren, a Naperville North stu- schools handle serious disciplinary dent who died by suicide in 2017 to the matters, and we will continue to try to events surrounding the death of their 16-year-old make change to fix those shortfalls,� Walgren said. son, Corey, who took his life after walking out of In January, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Naperville North High School following an intense filed by the Walgren family against District 203 investigation by school administrators into alleged and the City of Naperville for their responsibility questionable material on his cell phone. in their son’s death. After appealing the decision, Though the new law formalizes procedures for both the District 203 Board of Education and the school officials seeking to detain and question stucity recently agreed to a $125,000 settlement apiece dents on school grounds, not everyone believes it in exchange for the family dropping the suit. As rewill actually mitigate the larger problem of suicide. ported by the Chicago Tribune, neither the school “The law itself is not going to prevent suicides,� district or the city admits to any wrongdoing or Naperville Central sophomore Matt Blessing said. liability in their decisions to approve the financial “If you’re going to [complete] suicide, you’re obvisettlements. ously facing something else.�

National Suicide Prevention Hotline: Perhaps more broadly, however, many see the 1-800-273-8255 law as a positive first step in protecting the rights

...and on our website: Meet Central’s new staff members with our Q&A profiles on centraltimes.org or on Twitter @centraltimes #teacherfeature

Students: Know your rights Mary Jane Deer @mjdeerCT

House Bill 2627 has expanded the rights of students during criminal questioning on school grounds, but to an extent. The student rights under this law are confined to school hours and property and when being questioned by a law enforcement official, school resource office, or security guard.

A “reasonable effort� to contact the questioned student’s parents or legal guardians must be made and recorded, and officers should make a “reasonable effort� to have a parent, legal guardian, or school staff member who is a mental health professional present during questioning.

If the questioning is for criminal action, the student rights are not protected under the law if it is necessary to protect bodily harm or injury to the student or any other person, stop the destruction of evidence, apprehend a fleeing suspect, or address an emergency or dangerous situation.

When being questioned by a dean, school resource officer, or any other staff member, students are advised to request adult representation by either a parent, counselor, nurse, or trusted adult and have that attempted request recorded. If the questioning is not regarding criminal charges or investigation, the new law does not apply.

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NEWS

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

Seniors concerned about working with new counselors on college applications Kylie Brown @kbrownCT

With most college applications due in just a couple months, many seniors are in a frenzy to complete their essays and submit their test scores. Another important factor for many is a counselor’s letter of recommendation.

This year, there are three new counselors in the building: Erica Eysturlid, Michelle Olejnik and Tony Colletti. Students who previously reported to Rachel Rogers, Jason Booker or Patricia Henneberry last year are now assigned to a new counselor or one of the veteran counselors.

The change has largely impacted seniors in need of a letter of recommendation from a counselor, since their new counselors will only have known them for a few months before writing their letters.

Counselor letters of recommendation are meant to demonstrate a student’s strengths from the counselor’s perspective. Many seniors worry that their new counselors will not know them well enough to write a strong letter.

“A letter of recommendation is pretty important because your counselor is one of the only people in the school that knows you for all four years, so it’s hard if the counselor changes,” senior Ella Ruiz said.

Ruiz has been reassigned to Colletti as her new counselor.

As worrisome as it may be to some, there is no way to avoid the change. Some seniors are attempting to make the best out of the situation. This means taking certain steps to make a connection with their new counselor, overall making things easier for them down the road.

“I met with my counselor and went through my transcripts and test scores with her so she could get to know me a little bit academically,” said senior Emily Oakley of her new counselor, Olejnik. “I also wrote about what I do outside of school so she had a good impression of who I am and what I do.”

Seniors who are worried about their new counselors can schedule a meeting with them or prepare a resume. Many counselors offer a survey on Naviance with several questions pertaining to who the student is and what they want to do in the future. This survey gives the counselors a better sense of what to write in their letter.

Olejnik urges seniors not to stress over the personnel changes.

“We all want the same thing you want,” Olejnik said. “We want to write the best letter we can. If you’re still nervous, make an appointment to see your counselor. We’re happy to meet with you.”

Olejnik and other counselors recommend students request letters at least three weeks before needing it. Although letters can be requested through Naviance, counselors ask that students also request in person.

By staying calm and taking action, the college application can still be a smooth process for seniors, even if some of the faces have changed.

Photo by Cameron Rozek

Students can find their counselors in Student Services, located in the flat wing.

Photo by Emme Moore

Naperville Central, along with other schools in District 203, is experiencing a lack of trained staff to assist the special education department in meeting the individual needs of certain students. The late posting of vacacancies, coupled with lower pay than neighboring districts, are possible factors. Current faculty and staff have been stepping in to provide additional support to respond to immediate needs while hiring continues.

‘We’re putting a Band-Aid on’: Late postings, low pay leave Special Ed department short on staff Vivian Zhao @vzhaoCT

Just three school days into the new year, Assistant Principal of Student Services Angie Ginnan sent an urgent email to Naperville Central staff. Its subject: “Help Needed!!”

“Special Ed is in DESPERATE need of assistants,” Ginnan wrote. “We are looking for teachers who are willing to sub for teacher pay as sped assistants during your off periods.”

The issue began at the end of the 2018-2019 school year. Special Education Department coordinator Elizabeth Jasinski estimates that there were eight to nine vacancies.

Typically, District 203’s Human Resources Department posts available positions on Frontline Education, self described as “school administration software for K-12,” at the beginning of summer. “[The vacancies] didn’t get posted until really late in July,” Jasinski said. “We would have liked them to have been posted earlier because it’s a hiring process. You’ve got to find people through the website, interview them, check the references and [finally] there’s the background check.”

The delayed postings likely hindered the department’s ability to hire new staff, causing a shortage at Central. The shortage was furher exacerbated by high turnover from the 2018-2019 school year.

“Quite a few of the specialist assistants who worked here last year decided not to come back this year,” Principal Bill Wiesbrook said.

The vacancies extend to the entire district.

As of Sept. 5, 38 special education positions were listed on the district’s Frontline Education page.

“We’ve been in communication with our other high schools and our program that serves our adult population, our 18 to 22 population,” Jasinski said. “They’re struggling also, so this is a widespread problem. This is not just a Naperville Central problem.”

With a select amount of candidates, the vacancies have left each school competing against one another.

“There’s 22 schools in the district,” Jasinski said. “They need teaching assistants, too. A lot of the time, we’re interviewing the same person, and they can only go to one spot.

You’re kind of working against each other, sometimes, to get that same person.”

The Central Times contacted District 203’s Chief Human Resources Officer, Bob Ross, who declined to comment for this article. Instead, Sinnika Mondini, the district’s Executive Director of Communications, wrote in a statement: “While the majority of our hiring

takes place in preparation for the start of a school year, we are always looking for highly qualified candidates to fill special education positions throughout the District to meet the needs of our students.”

In addition to the late postings, the district’s paraprofessionals’ salaries are low compared to other schools, potentially discouraging applications.

In an interview last year with the Central Times, now retired paraprofessional Jackie Earl said, “It’s very hard work, and it’s not for everyone. A lot of people might say we don’t get paid very well. We get paid the least of assistants in pretty much any district here.”

Earl’s words are reflective of certain hiring experiences in the special education department.

Jasinski recalls an interview in which “one person chose Schaumburg because the pay was significantly better.”

According to company review site Glassdoor, Schaumburg High School and others in Township District 211 pay paraprofessionals $18/hour, while their Naperville counterparts receive $14/hour. Assuming that, like those in District 203, Schaumburg’s paraprofessionals work for 7.5 hours a day and 38 weeks a year, the difference amounts to nearly $8,000 annually.

“If there’s a lot of jobs to pick from, and you are qualified, maybe pay is going to be a big factor, along with the job duties,” Jasinski said. “But pay always is a factor.”

An employment application for a District 203 paraprofessional lists several physical tasks under work environment.

Physical demands include “significant lifting, carrying, pushing, and/or pulling; some climbing and balancing; some stooping, kneeling, crouching, and/or crawling; and significant fine finger dexterity,” the application reads. “Generally the job requires 50% sitting, 25% walking, and 25% standing. The job is performed under conditions with some exposure to risk of injury and/or illness and in a clean atmosphere.”

In addition to comparably low pay, the challenging nature of a paraprofessional may deter some from applying or increase turnover.

“It’s kind of a high stress job,” Jasinski said.

“It’s a job that the people [who] are doing it really enjoy. I think it takes a special person and so it’s not the type of job that everybody would apply to or everybody would want.

I also think that some of the kids are big, adult-sized children, and some of it’s physical work too. Maybe not everybody can do that type of work.”

Paraprofessionals, however, are highly important to the special education department’s

operations.

“They are super busy, hard working, just critical to the needs of our students and to make this program work,” Jasinski said, adding that among other tasks, “They do everything from escorting students to the classroom, walking them to the classroom, making sure they’re safe in the hallways, being with them in the classroom, working at academic work or working directly with the teacher and a small group.”

Wiesbrook agrees.

“They do a lot behind the scenes [and] never or rarely do they get celebrated like they should,” Wiesbrook said. “They’re doing important things and helping kids that many people aren’t aware of and don’t notice.”

Because of the vital role paraprofessionals pay, the existing vacancies are felt strongly, adding pressure on the staff and students.

“We are working our tails off to make sure that students are safe, kids are safe, staff are safe,” Jasinski said. “Because I think it’s kind of high stress here right now, it’s affecting some of the other kids in the classes, too.”

To address the shortage, special education staff have begun picking up tasks outside of those that their positions require.

“We are taking on duties that haven’t been part of our job before,” Jasinski said. “There are some things that I do in the evening now because I want to go into the classroom and help out in situations and serve as a paraprofessional for that moment.”

Central’s administration, staff, and students have remained supportive, with some volunteering their time to help students in the department.

“Mostly what I’ve done is given approval for other staff members to pinch hit and sub,” Wiesbrook said.

Teachers who have a free period, for example, may assist a special education staff member during that time.

“A lot of people have stepped up and offered to help and offered to support a student in a classroom,” Jasinski said. “We’re very fortunate for that. Of course, we’ve used all of our staff that we’ve potentially possibly could. We’ve had to reach out to the rest of the staff and some people have really stepped up, and I think the school has noticed the need.”

Even so, the current situation isn’t sustainable without new hires.

“Every day we’re redoing our schedule based on the needs of the student or if somebody’s out, or if something else comes up that’s big [or] more severe at the moment,” Jasinski said. “We’re kind of putting a bandaid on day by day, sometimes even hour by hour.”

NEWS

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

Hallway Headlines The Central Times’ Cameron Rozek explores events and issues impacting other high schools around the country.

Fruitport, Michigan

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Vincent High School in Milwaukee, WisconFruitport High School is in the process sin has a unique agricultural program that of redesigning the entire school in an offers students the chance to raise animals on effort to provide the best protection the school’s farm. Students learn in a handsfrom potential shooters. The school on environment includes numerous, carefully thought unlike any other in out details that serve as a defensive the country. Vinmeasure in the case of an emergency, cent High School such as curved hallways with jutting prides themselves wall pieces to thwart a shooter’s line in the unique of sight and provide cover to escaping information about students. The school and parents of consumerism and students hope that the redesign can agriculture that provide some peace of mind that they their students have. cannot find in the law.

Houston, Texas

Anchorage, Alaska Breckynn Willis is a 17 year old athlete at Diamonds High School in Anchorage, Alaska. After winning a race, she was disqualified by the referee, who claimed her school-issued swimsuit violated the national standard. Alaska schools follow the national standard that requires the bottocks to be completley covered.

Accusations against the referee and demands for the athlete to be given her victory have sprung up around the issue.

Langham Creek High School in Houston, Texas went on lockdown on Sept. 13 due to the threat of a student with a gun. 17 year old and former student Jordan James McGee was in the hallways and later fled to a nearby neighborhood. The young man was in possession of an illegal weapon and apprehended.

SAC welcomes new faculty sponsors Emily Brodzinski @ebrodzinskiCT

Former Student Advisory Council (SAC) sponsors Eric Kaisling and Megan Plackett stepped down following the 2018-2019 school year, allowing for Robert Lugiai and Megan Cosgrove to take over.

The club, responsible for events like Mr. NCHS and the Staff vs. Student basketball game, also emphasizes giving back to the community through volunteer work, something its sponsors and participants are proud of.

Four-year sponsor Kaisling will continue to take pride in the experiences that the Student Advisory Council offers to students.

“SAC does a lot of great things,” Kaisling said.

“One of my favorite activities that they do is go to Hesed House. I think it’s great for the kids to see it so that they can have an idea as to how good they have it.”

Lugiai is excited to begin SAC’s work after getting to meet some of the club’s student participants.

“I met a lot of the students that are involved, and they really are some of the best students out there,” Lugiai said. “Working with them and hearing their ideas on how they want to transform the school into a better place is really, very fun.”

Aside from the change in sponsors, the club has decided to take a year off from one of their most well-known events, the blood drive.

“There was just a lot of hiccups in the entire event, which made it semi-frustrating for a lot of people involved,” Kaisling said.

The sponsors and board members plan to use this year to rebuild and hope to work out any bumps in the road that were faced during the planning of last year’s drive. In the meantime, members look forward to planning this year’s highly anticipated activities.

Board member and senior Shivani Shete expressed her excitement in getting the details together for this year’s Mr. NCHS. “I’m excited for that one because we have to recruit senior guys for the show,” Shete said. “I’m also excited for the student vs. staff basketball game, and of course all of the volunteer work we do. It should be a really good year.”

Photo by Prem Chandrasekar

Students can direct transportation inquiries to the transportation office at 630-420-6464

Busses arriving past 9 a.m. on late start Wednesday mornings Cameron Rozek @crozekCT

Naperville Central is once again struggling with bus dropoffs on late arrival Wednesdays.

“The busses are a big problem,” Principal Bill Wiesbrook tells the Central Times. On Wednesdays, busses are expected to pick up students approximately 100 minutes later than on the other days of the week, but many students are experiencing longer pickup delays.

According to Cindy LaBorn, Director of Transportation for Naperville Community School District 203, there are a few factors that can slow down busses on a normal basis.

The most prominent are vehicle crashes, equipment breakdown, weather, and busses going back to pick up students that missed the bus.

Freshman Theodore Ng believes that the busses are usually late because students who run late haven’t adjusted to the late arrival schedule. Busses often wait for these students, creating delays.

History class invesitgates Central’s historical nuclear bomb shelter Jane Thompson’s Modern American Social History class visited the school’s basement to explore and discuss procedures popular in the 1950s and early 1960s, like the “duck and cover” videos once shown to students. The drills were tied to growing fears of nuclear war.

Find the full photo gallery at centraltimes.org

COMMUNITY

Blart Paulpitations Braden Hajer No, Chicago Tribune, it’s not the academic pressure I saw a Chicago Tribune article the other day about how teenage depression is on the rise, “and we don’t know why.” The article goes on to identify two culprits as the harbingers of mass anxiety: academic pressure and a lack of social interaction brought on by social media.

This diagnosis infuriates me on a fundamental level. It’s one of the most surface-level hot takes one could possibly give. “Teens are depressed… What’s happening to teens? Ah, yes: We make them work too hard in school and they aren’t talking to people. That sounds good.”

This would be great if teenagers existed in a closed societal system. However, teenagers are living in the real world too, Tribune. What you need to understand is that you’re absolutely right. Social media does have a hand in killing the teenagers of today, but you’re missing the real point in a miraculous fashion.

Social media has led to an unprecedented hyper-awareness of the endless quantity of global calamities humanity is facing right now. Every day, teenagers see horrid updates on climate change, gun insanity, the evils of today’s major corporations, healthcare prices, political gridlock and turmoil, wealth inequality… The state of the planet is an inescapable abomination for today’s youth.

Our brains aren’t yet fully developed, and won’t be for up to another decade, so heap on this onslaught of misery and it isn’t hard to conceptualize what this is doing to us. This is of course amplified by constant messages of “optimism” spewed by the naive boomers of the world: It’s our job to fix the planet we had no hand in creating! We get to go out there and do something with our lives! In a world where a total collapse seems inevitable, we get to grow up and be independent!

Have you considered the subconscious reasons for this academic pressure? Why are we so concerned about kids getting into college and filling their heads with semi-relevant knowledge? It’s quite easy to put 2 and 2 together and get 4. You and everyone else who grew up before the 1980s, at some essential level, seem to feel that the solutions to the world’s problems are in the next generation.

For you, the time is now to pass the torch of saving the planet. From this lens, your extreme focus on college and degrees becomes a particularly misguided but natural outcome.

Teenagers feel hopeless. The classic disillusioned view of “school doesn’t teach me anything for the real world” starts to make a whole lot of sense when you realize that maybe these people actually do want to perform a meaningful act of positivity for Earth, and school tends to fail dramatically in doing something about that.

Alas, it’s the pushing from adults for kids to perform in school that’s the cause. It’s the new medium of communication that’s apparently making people not social and causing depression as a result. That makes perfect, complete sense.

Let’s entertain the idea that academic pressure is found to be the monster we say it is. What will we do then? Make kids try less? This train of thought drives right off of a cliff the moment you extend it past the identification of its existence. There is no logical solution to this problem. Are we just going to train some more therapists? Build more mental health-focused hospitals? You and I both know that these are Band-Aid fixes.

Consider this an open letter to the powerful adults of the world, from media executives to welloff parents to politicians to corporate executives; your laser beam focus on these ultimately minute issues is reaching unprecedented and cataclysmic levels of negligence. Teenagers are depressed in this world because you destroyed it.

You have spent your whole lives constructing an uncrackable, multidimensional hierarchy of power on this planet. You’ve gotten all the wealth for yourself. All the influence. All the land. You won life.

It’s not our job to fix your problems. For our sake, stop endlessly wondering if you’re pushing your children too hard or giving them too much time on the internet and use that power to actually create meaningful change.

Art by Maggie Dalton

Our growing obsession with brands Amisha Sethi @asethiCT

The Nike swoosh. The Lululemon silver circle. The Vans skateboard. The Adidas stripes.

Walking through the hallways of Naperville Central, it’s hard not to notice these ubiquitous logos plastered on many students’ clothing. The popularity of certain brands at the school raises the question; what draws teenagers to them in the first place?

As it turns out, the allure of these brands extends far beyond the walls of Naperville Central. In fact, according to the Spring 2019 Piper Jaffray survey, the brands mentioned above are ranked as some of the top Gen Z brands of the year nationwide. These brands all seem to have one thing in common; a targeted marketing strategy that successfully appeals to teens.

In a Forbes Magazine interview, Joe Cardador, PhD, and VP of consumer intelligence at Barkley, explained that Gen Z currently ac counts for up to $143 billion in direct spending

in the US, and is on track to become the largest generation of consumers by 2020. As such, brand name companies are investing an increasing amount of resources into finding the most effective ways to market to teens.

In the Piper Jaffray survey, 70% of the 8600 teen respondents said Instagram was their preferred method of brand engagement. Just under 50% of respondents said that Snapchat was their second preferred method of engagement. Thus, companies targeting teens use these apps as primary advertising channels for their brands.

Junior Martina Ruiz explains that social media is the main thing that motivates her to buy new items.

“I really like the brand Lululemon, which I mainly get ads about on Instagram,” she said.

“Sometimes if I browse on the website I’ll find things that I like but I won’t buy them in that instant. Later, on my Instagram feed, those same items will be in my ads and I will remember that I wanted to get them, so I’ll be more likely to

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019 actually make that purchase,” Ruiz said.

Data also shows that brands backed by celebrity figures and social media influencers are more likely to attract teens. Junior Maya Mikos explains that seeing popular celebrity figure’s posts while wearing certain brands makes them increasingly desirable for her.

“I am even more likely to buy something if I see celebrities or social media influencers like the MacDonald sisters wearing the same brands,” Mikos said.

Companies also often use social media to appeal to the emotional insecurities that are common among adolescents, namely the desire to fit in. As described in a University of Arkansas study, by marketing major Moriah Houser, the tendency to use fashion to try and fit in can often lead to teens losing their own original style and expressions. Though many teens reported feeling like they had a unique fashion sense in the study, the clothing in their closets — full of popular items and brands — proved otherwise.

Junior Iva Glogovac explains how she sees this same phenomenon at Naperville Central when she sees people wearing what she calls “identical clothing.”

Glogovac said, “I am not a big brand wearer myself, but I see it all around me. There are a lot of people who don’t care about whether something is $1000. If everyone is wearing it and it is what is popular, they are going to buy it. And then you get a school with everyone wearing identical clothing. Forget the price. Forget the quality. It’s about fitting in.”

The popularity of the Nike swoosh, the Lululemon silver circle, the Vans skateboard, and the Adidas stripes in the halls of Naperville Central is less about the quality and features of the items themselves, and more about the way these brands target teens. These companies, amongst others, have been successful by targeting teens through social media and appealing to their need to fit in with their peers.

Restaurant run-down: authentic eats Mary Jane Deer @mjdeerCT

With 15 Starbucks in a nine-mile radius, finding a new restaurant away from the growing crowds and fast food chains is often more frustrating than fun. Central Times has composed a list of must-try, lesser known chains and small business restaurants located in Naperville.

Invicto This Naperville and Vernon Hills chain, with a third location scheduled to open in Chicago next year, 2020, serves fresh, flavorful food inspired by the recipes of Mexican street vendors. The taqueria is known for delicious and simple-ingredient tacos, and the food is rivaled only by the atmosphere. Invicto is modeled after bright and airy Mexican markets, complete with retro style furnishings, fairy lights strung above tables, and colorful murals to pose in front of for the perfect aesthetic picture. For every meal ordered, Invicto provides a meal to a child in a developing country through their One Feeds Two program.

Naperville Location: 1721 Freedom Drive Recommendation: Mexican Chocolate custard shake with a churro Kogii Kogii Express The menu at this small Korean restaurant is inspired by both traditional recipes and Korean street food. Build-your-own bibimbap bowls and udon noodles meet fried chicken wings and french fries loaded with sour cream, cheese, and bulkogi, creating an unusual but delicious twist of old and new creations. This quick service restaurant brings both flavor and spice to the table, all to a K-Pop soundtrack.

Naperville Location: 1763 Freedom Drive Recommendation: Chicken tacos Little Pops This family owned pizza place has carried their New York roots to Naperville, serving up NYCstyle pizza and Italian cuisine. With many of these recipes from or inspired by family dishes, Little Pops provides delivery, quick service, and table service meals in a local, friendly environment filled with New York art and memorabilia.

The owners, both coming from New York Italian restaurant families, wagered what was left of their finances on opening the now successful restaurant in 2014. Little Pops provides a diverse Italian-East Coast menu in a casual and family friendly atmosphere.

Naperville Location: 1819 Wehrli Road Recommendation: Garlic knots New Wok Although at first glance this small Chinese restaurant seems unimpressive, appearances can be deceiving. New Wok’s menu is packed with flavor and perfect for large gatherings or individual meals. Traditional Chinese recipes fill New Wok’s expansive menu, featuring a variety of spices, flavors, and authentic ingredients and preparation techniques. There is not much seating in New Wok, so orders can either be delivered or carried out.

Naperville Address: 1807 Wehrli Road Recommendation: Shrimp fried rice Sparrow Coffee Nestled in the newest addition of downtown Naperville, Sparrow Coffee is an aesthetic and urban cafe servicing hot and cold brews along with a score of sweet treats. The unique cafe rotates their menu between 100 signature coffee roasts while also serving a variety of teas and hot chocolate. Just like any Starbucks, the restaurant is full of long stations and tables for customers to work or relax and is located only minutes from Central. Sparrow Coffee commits to serving customers sustainable, organic, and artful drinks, moving towards less wasteful and more responsible brewing techniques.

Naperville Address: 120 Water Street Recommendation: Peanut butter cookie and Oat Milk Latte Buttermilk Buttermilk Cafe serves breakfast and lunch with an entire menu dedicated to vegan and gluten free options. This industrial farmhouse-themed restaurant provides a bright and welcoming environment to enjoy traditional, handcrafted breakfast and brunch options. Buttermilk’s bar serves a wide assortment of expressos and hot

and cold coffees. Sweet pastries and cinnamon roll pancakes meet healthy sweet potato quinoa salad and vegetable paninis.

Naperville Address: 1715 Freedom Drive Recommendation: Lemon blueberry pancakes Pho Thien Vietnamese Kitchen This 2018 winner of Naperville’s Best Ethnic Restaurant serves authentic and vibrant Vietnamese food, including pho, smoothies, and noodle bowls. The family operating Pho Thien come from three generations of restaurant owners and are passionate about sharing bold flavors and classic recipes to the Naperville community.

Naperville Address: 931 W 75th Street Recommendation: Shrimp pho Great Harvest Bread Co. Although Great Harvest is a national chain, its Naperville location is rarely overcrowded. Each location doubles as a bakery and cafe with its own unique menu, including coffee, sandwiches, pastries, and dozens of types of bread. Fresh ingredients and whole-grains are the pride of Great Harvest, with all items being baked from scratch and by hand. Pre-order from the bakery or stop by the counter to order or to sample from the constantly evolving menu.

Naperville Location: 192 W Gartner Road Recommendation: Cinnamon scones For more reviews, visit centraltimes.org.

Photo by Maggie Dalton

The “pollo asado taco” is one of the many tacos available at Invicto.

PROFILES

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

Nationally recongnized figure skater Karah McCarl discusses how dedication and hard work have led her to success Paula Recio @precioCT

Figure skating isn’t simply a sport, but a performance art that requires an artist who can express themselves through movement in a graceful way.

For Naperville Central sophomore Karah McCarl, the ice rink is her canvas, her skates are her paint brush and her emotions are the palette of colors that conduct her every movement.

“I love the feeling of the wind in your hair,” McCarl said.

“It calms me. I can let out my emotions, anger or anything you are feeling, you can express it on ice.”

McCarl’s family noticed her love for the sport at a very young age and her fearlessness when performing on the ice.

“She’s not shy about performing at all,” McCarl’s mother, Christy McCarl said. “She’s always told me that once she’s on the ice, skating is her only focus, and she tunes everything else out.”

Ice skating requires a lot of hard work and many practices with different coaches to work on different aspects of technique and endurance.

McCarl is part of the Downers Grove Dazzlers, which is a nationally-ranked synchro ice skating team located in Downers Grove. Even though it is a team effort, every single team member is required to pass certain levels and test moves. McCarl has to continually be working with a special trainer in private coaching sessions to be able to pass several tests that keep her in good shape and in a highly advanced level, making her a good recruit on the team.

She also has four different coaches, each with different specialties, including, two coaches for her synchro team which focus on team choreography. An ice coach works on McCarl’s detailed moves and technique, and a freestyle coach centers his training on McCarl’s individual competitions, where she works on jumps and spins.

McCarl has early morning practices in the ice rink as well as off-ice conditioning and ballet.

“I usually wake up around 4:30 in the morning to get to the rink by 5:30, so I have time to get my skates on and stretch,” McCarl said. “So then we usually have two hours on ice and then we usually do ballet as well as part of our conditioning.”

She also has lengthy afternoon practices. Once she makes it home, she catches up with school work. McCarl somehow

Photo by

MC carl

Photo by KrPhotogs

Left photo: McCarl at synchronized ice skating competition with nationally ranked Downers Grove Dazzlers; Right photo: McCarl with olympian Brady Tanner at Dupage Open

manages to navigate her training while also handling several honors courses at school and maintaining a 4.0 GPA. “You’re learning how to balance both schoolwork and training,” McCarl said. “I like the challenge, but at the same time, sometimes it does get overwhelming.”

Time is limited and keeping up with academics and at a very high performance level can be stressful and may give athletes like McCarl a lot of anxiety and stress but McCarl is able to manage every aspect of her life and still keep a good mindset.

“She goes into it with a pretty positive attitude and is usually pleased with the outcome,” Christy McCarl said.

Even though McCarl’s life revolves around her training and academics, she makes sure that she makes time for her social life and being with her friends and family. “ I don’t skate on Fridays, so I always have one day of the week where I can at least relax and go do some things,” McCarl said. “It’s really during the week. I’m very limited on what I can do, but during the weekend, I’m able to balance my time.”

McCarl’s ice skating journey has given her the honor to compete against highly competitive and national ice skaters in the Midwestern Area.

“Competition season is definitely a hard time for me, which starts November and goes through February,” McCarl said. “They’re always out of state; we only have one in-state competition the entire season.”

At one of these competitions, the DuPage Open, McCarl had the opportunity to meet Olympic American ice skater Brady Tanner who was ice skating at the same competition, though in a higher level than McCarl.

There have been many coaches, events, idols and even teammates that have led McCarl to want to possibly pursue ice skating in her future. McCarl’s dream would be to skate in college.

“I would love to skate for the University of Michigan’s collegiate team, but I would also love to skate for Adrian College,” McCarl said. “They have some really good junior and senior teams as well. I don’t know if I’m good enough, but they’re very, very good and very competitive. In my opinion, one of the best teams in the United States are the Haydents, they skate at Boston, and they are just incredible.

It would just be a dream to skate with them. But that’s a lot of money, time and commitment.”

McCarl is unsure of her future plans or what life might have in store for her but she is excited and willing to keep working hard to find out. McCarl is a role model to many, not only for her achievements but also for her positive attitude and outlook on life.

Joey Rubas Cube: Student takes love for classic puzzle to competitive levels

Photo provided by Joey Rubas

Joey Rubas at a competition CubingUSA Nationals 2019

Prem Chandrasekar @pchandraCT

13.72 seconds.

That’s how long it took sophomore Joey Rubas to solve a 3x3x3 Rubik’s Cube at CubingUSA Nationals 2019, which ran from Aug 1-4. The Rubik’s Cube has stumped millions, but not Rubas, who has made it part of his life.

Rubas’ interest in cubing was sparked in elementary school when he found a cube in his bedroom.

“I just picked a cube off my dresser that was scrambled for a year and a half and went on YouTube to figure it out,” Rubas said.

However, it wasn’t until 7th grade when Rubas’ interest in cubing started to develop after he began competing.

“The first competition was really fun,” Rubas said. “It was in this tiny little room with 100 competitors. It was a great introduction and I met tons of really cool people.”

In Rubik’s cube competitions, competitors solve five randomly generated cube scrambles. Their best and worst times of the five are eliminated and the middle three are averaged.

Since then, Rubas has competed in nine tournaments, including two national ones in Salt Lake City and Baltimore.

While Rubas didn’t make it past the first round in either of the national tournaments, it was a great experience for him nonetheless.

“I was just having a good time the whole time,” Rubas

said. “It was just a lot of hanging out with cool people that I knew before that and cool people that I met, and watching the finals and a great time.”

Joey’s sister senior Grace Rubas agrees.

“I think it’s really, really cool,” Grace said. “I think I don’t know anybody else who does anything like it.”

Practicing for Rubik’s cube competitions is unlike any other activity or sport.

“You just have to sit down and do multiple solves,” Joey Rubas said. Over time, you will honestly feel like there is a serious decrease in your solve time.”

This means that Rubas is constantly scrambling and solving multiple times a day. To help, Rubas uses a computer program that gives out scrambles, which Rubas solves and moves onto the next scramble.

This has led Rubas into trying different and faster ways of trying to solve a scramble.

“I use a method called CFOP (Cross, First 2 layers, Orientation of the last layer, Permutation of the last layer) to solve a scramble,” Joey said. “The first step is [that] intuitively you’re gonna build a cross or a plus symbol on the bottom. Then, you assemble the remaining pieces of the first two layers. Then you have the first two layers formed.

Then, you’re just going to memorize a couple of sequences to solve the cube.”

Rubas’ accomplishment in cubing can be attributed mainly to cubers posting their records on YouTube.

“You see people on YouTube all the time-solving scrambles,” said Rubas. “The world record is under five seconds.

That seems super amazing and super out of reach when you first start, and it’s a motivation factor. It’s something you want to work towards.”

This motivation has affected Rubas in not only cubing but in other aspects of his life, too.

“It’s taught me the skills to practice and get better at something and have dedication in something,” Joey said.

“I’ve been able to apply this to lots of extracurriculars, and just about anything I’m struggling with.”

Another one of Rubas’s ventures was with his new website he made during the summer. Called ScheduleShare, the website allows students who attend both Naperville North and Naperville Central to put in their schedule and see if anyone else that they know are in one of their classes.

“Every year, there’s this stressful period of time between when the schedules come out and school starts where everyone discusses on social media what classes they have,” Rubas said. “You have to go and check your schedule and every other person’s schedule to see if they are in your class, and it’s always just been such a pain. It never ends up working out. So I decided it would be a good idea to try and come up with a better way to do that, and ScheduleShare came to be and became a great success.”

The motivation stemming from cubing not only helped Rubas, but it also inspires others, such as sophomore Cameron Rozek, to apply his motivation to their own lives. “[He has] devoted himself for [so many] hours into cubing that he inspired me to really focus on some things and get a lot done,” Rozek said. “Just seeing how much he’s able to do has shown me what you can do once you set your mind to it.”

Rozek has been cubing with Rubas since they first met, and they even competed together in a tournament.

While Rubas is only a sophomore, he hopes to continue competing throughout high school and in college.

“It’s certainly something I’d love to continue and for the rest of my high school career and into college and see where it takes me,” Joey said.

“It’s certainly something I’d love to continue and for the rest of my high school career and into college and see where it takes me,” Joey said.

“It’s taught me the skills to practice and get better at something and have dedication in something,” Joey said. “I’ve been able to apply this to lots of extracurriculars, and just about anything I’m struggling with.”

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

La Vida de Vivi

Does it have to be college?

Vivian Zhao Let’s talk about college Growing up, my trajectory before 22 was certain. Anything past that fell victim to my imagination.

At eight, I yearned to become the next J.K. Rowling, though I’d never read Harry Potter. Shortly after that, I dreamt of living in the 1800s, like Jo from “Little Women,” despite nonexistent womens’ rights. I vaguely remember the desire to be an astronaut, which quickly dissipated due to my frequent motion sickness.

One thing was certain: I was going to college.

In elementary school, I merely accepted it. Everyone I knew had attended university. In fact, a popular question to ask recent high school graduates was which college they planned to attend.

As years passed, I looked forward to it: the opportunity to concentrate my classes in areas of interest, the independence of living in dorms, tightknit friendships with my roommates. In a way, it represented a transition into adulthood.

Central has been wholely supportive on this front, prioritizing its students’ college readiness.

We’re encouraged to meet with our College and Career counselors; the corresponding center is filled with books to prepare for standardized testing. A few days ago, counselors walked seniors through Naviance, explaining how to request transcripts and letters of recommendation.

In just six months, a map will hang in the hallway for my class sticks their names in the states they’ll spend the next four years in.

The approach of college applications has solidified this reality.

My friends complain of countless essays and the approaching November deadline. In class, students ask one another about the colleges they’re applying to. Oh - our upcoming assignment in AP Lit? A personal essay - and for most, their Common App. And as a growing amount of attention is placed on college, students tend to feel more pressure, anxiety, and stress.

Even after decisions are released, many will discuss the colleges others plan to attend. Some at Central dub the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign “Super Central,” referring to the high amount of students that attend after they graduate. Though the nickname has a negative connotation, UIUC itself is an excellent and cost-efficient option.

Nor does the college one attends define their self worth. A lower admission rate doesn’t speak to one’s potential. And there’s much more to a person than where they get a degree - or if they get one at all.

Yes: right now, college is one of my primary concerns. But I’m well aware that, for many others, it isn’t.

There are a variety of reasons why a student wouldn’t choose to attend college following high school.

Perhaps they don’t need a degree to pursue their future career or the high cost of student debt has encouraged them to find an alternative solution.

There are jobs that don’t require a college education, yet offer financial stability. A teacher has once joked that her plumber is paid more and does not have a degree. I’ve heard of non-profit programs where one learns to code outside of college, with attendees claiming positions at well known Silicon Valley companies.

Ultimately, the decision is in the student’s hands.

A future with or without a degree does not make one less respectable, nor does the college one attends speak to their worth.

And though I’m familiar with Central’s vigor in preparing students for college, I don’t know how the school addresses students that plan to pursue a different path.

Do we focus as much on other post high school options as we do on SAT prep, Naviance and college visits?

It’s my hope that there is as much for these students as there is for those that are college-bound.

After all, high school is not a stepping stone to college, rather one to future success.

Naperville Central prepares students for college. But there are other paths to future success.

Many popular companies such as Netflix and Google hire employees without 4-year degrees, instead focusing on the ability of the individual to accomplish given tasks.

Source: Business Insider

Only 8% choose other options, like the military and employment Information source: Naperville Central College and Career Center

Emily Brodzinski & Kylie Brown @ebrodzinskiCT & @kbrownCT

In a school system that places a heavy emphasis on going to college after high school, it is easy for students to get tunnel vision. For many, the idea of college seems like the only option available. Naperville Central does an excellent job of preparing students for college through rigorous courses and thorough planning. However, some students feel that the typical university path is not for them.

“I know what I want to do in the future,” said Central senior Phil Lifka. “I want to be able to run a huge business. Since I know what I want to do, staying in high school is hard for me because I feel like what I’m learning is not what I’ll be applying in the future.”

Lifka already owns a landscaping business called Lifka Landscaping, which currently serves over 40 customers weekly. He also works with mold, splash removal, bush-trimming and anything landscaping related. Since Lifka knows where his passions lie and wants to focus on his business, he’s made the decision to graduate early. After this semester, Lifka will leave Central for College of DuPage to pursue an associate’s degree in horticulture. While doing this, Lifka will continue to run his business.

“If you don’t know what you want to do, COD is a great path,” Lifka said. “If you do know what you want to do, I think COD programs are just as good as a lot of the other four year universities.”

Lifka knew COD was the best option for him in order to continue to manage and grow his business. He also knew his passion for landscaping from an early age and knew it was what he wanted to pursue.

Alumnus Cameron Palmer, on the other hand, did not know what he wanted to do after high school for the majority of his time spent at Naperville Central.

“My counselor asked me where I was thinking about going and I just told her I simply didn’t plan on going to college,” Palmer said.

Palmer, unsure of what exactly he wanted to do after high school, considered being a teacher.

But by the day after his 2019 graduation, he and a friend were running an auto mechanic business called CPAAutomotive. Although Palmer’s hobby of working on cars started his sophomore year, he did not realize until his senior year that his hobby might be something more.

Palmer currently works 50-60 hours a week and saves most of the money he makes to reinvest in his business. Although a lot of hard work goes into what he does, he is confident it will pay off as his business grows.

“A piece of advice I’d give to a new business owner would be to work your [but] off every single day and not expect much in return for a while,” Palmer said. “You really need to make sure you love what you’re doing and have a passion for it.”

Palmer is an example of someone who took the alternative route of starting a business. That being said, starting a business is not the only alternative option a person can take.

Senior Esther Kim realized this when her brother Joseph Kim opted out of college to instead join the Marines.

“Since I know what I want to do, staying in high school is hard for me because I feel like what I’m learning is not what I’ll be applying in the future.”

- Phil Lifka, senior

Joseph, like many other high school students, was having extreme difficulty deciding which areas of study interested him.

“He was planning on going to college until he found out about joining the Army during the second semester of his senior year,” Esther said. “I think that when the idea was brought up to him it was something that he thought he could do; it was interesting to him.”

Joseph left the December following his high school graduation. Prior to reporting to the Marines, he kept busy with a part-time job, while his sister and his family became accustomed to the idea of not going to college after high school.

“My whole life I felt like college was just something that you had to do,” Esther said. “But after seeing my brother join the Marines and learning more about other options, I would say that if you think college isn’t right for you, you shouldn’t feel obligated to go.”

Often students will hustle their whole high school careers in order to get into college, something that they have been trained to believe is the only path to success. However, there are many alternative options that students have access to after high school proving that the sky really is the limit.

All art by Danielle Pritchard

ENTERTAINMENT

‘Central’s Got Talent’: Looking behind the curtains at Coffee House

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

Senior Anna Galo, Junior Jeff Bonomo, and Senior Hayaa Chhaya singing on stage.

Danielle Pritchard @wdpritchardCT

For more than 10 years, Central has hosted Coffee House, a talent show for students and their families. On Sept. 13 and 14, dozens gathered to sit at tables and on rugs in front of a makeshift stage. While the performers on stage put their best feet forward, it was the hard workers behind the curtain that kept the gears turning.

Theatre Central sponsor Suzie Johnson explained that a lot of work goes into preparing for the show.

“There’s a week of the production of it,” Johnson said.

“So it’s a lot of work, but it’s not over a long period of time.”

Coffee House is carried publicly by those showcasing their talents, but a good deal of work has to go into the production before even meeting the performers.

Theatre Central’s executive board laboriously dedicated their time and resources, lead by their treasurer, junior Kelli Saldivar, and point secretary, junior Lauren Gilfillan.

Already busy with the start of the school year and rehearsal season for their performance of “Clue: on Stage,” both Saldivar and Gilfillan supervised auditions, directed and produced the event itself.

“For me, this is the first show that I’ve had the chance to work behind the scenes with and coordinate,” Gilfillan said.

“So it was very much of a learning experience, you know, learning how it works [...] was an uphill battle.”

Since she had never participated in Coffee House prior to this year, Gilfillan was proud of her participation in the final production and the team who put it together.

“I think that it’s like a very underrated show for the fact

that it’s only two nights, and it’s very short,” Gilfillan said.

“Actually, a lot of work does go on behind the scenes.”

Since any student or staff member can take part in the show, there is no limit as to what talent is presented.

“Students who don’t necessarily participate in the theater productions themselves have an opportunity to showcase their singing or dancing or whatever they bring to this performance opportunity,” Johnson said. “It’s great to have people come participate, even if this is the only thing they do all year, and give them a chance to perform for their peers.”

Since most of Theatre Central’s productions require auditioning for a certain part, Coffee House offers the chance to perform whatever you favor, Gilfillan said.

“It’s all of these different people,” she said. “And a lot of them who don’t actually do theatre come together and put on this performance… it kind of shares that message of Central. We have so much diversity and talent, nobody gets left out.”

This year there were many brilliant performances, including that of junior Jane Rechner, who performed a tap dancing sequence that she had coordinated herself, and senior Alex Wons, who presented “Live On,” with both piano and voice.

The Coffee House poster, provided by junior Lily Prochaska, says that Coffee House is an open environment “whether you sing, dance, play an instrument, or tell jokes.”

Like previous years, Coffee House has successfully showcased Central’s diverse array of talents.

“...it kind of shares that message of Central. We have so much diversity and talent, nobody gets left out.”

Photos by Danielle Pritchard

Theater Central’s fall mainstage: ‘Clue: On Stage’ Mary Jane Deer @mjdeerCT

Theater Central’s upcoming annual fall mainstage will be “Clue: On Stage.” The high school adaption of this production will be directed by the club’s sponsor, Susan Johnson, and managed by a variety of student producers and crew heads.

This will be the second mainstage Susan Johnson has directed since becoming Theater Central’s sponsor two years ago.

“Clue: On Stage” is a murder mystery and comedy inspired by the popular Hasbro-owned board game and its 1985 live-action movie.

The iconic game pieces of Green, Mustard, Peacock, Plum, Scarlet and White come to life as guests at a strange dinner party where everyone’s a suspect in the death of the host. Chaos ensues, leaving both the audience and the characters following a string of evidence and accusations that keep the laughing and guessing coming until the final plot twist.

“It’s a murder mystery that’s hilarious,” says senior

Costas Qirici.

Costas, who has been cast as Colonel Mustard in the show, has performed in three other Theater Central productions since coming to NCHS two years ago, including the 2018 fall mainstage of “The Man Who Came to Dinner.”

The show’s complexity keeps both the actors and crew on their toes, especially since it is set in a grand, multi-room manor. The added sets and location changes needed for the mansion makes “Clue: On Stage” full of moving parts and people, yet not any less fun, according to Costas.

“We’re cracking up in rehearsals,” Costas said. “It’s all based off this cult-classic movie which is funny. It’s just insanity.”

The show is set to open on Thursday, November 7.

The other performance dates are Friday and Saturday, November 8 and 9, with each of the three shows starting at 7:30 pm in the auditorium. Tickets will be sold at the door and cost $5 for students and $8 for adults.

Photo Source: Dubuque Senior Drama

Compositionally, Taylor Swift’s ‘Lover’ stands out about as much as its title Braden Hajer @bhajerCT

“Lover” is the seventh studio album from singer-songwriter superstar Taylor Swift. Clocking in at 61 minutes and 18 tracks, it stands as one of her longest projects to date. Unfortunately, Swift fails to make much of an impression with it. The vast majority of the album falls prey to the same few debilitating compositional choices.

Countless tracks feature skeletal verses with only about three sounds in them. “I Forgot That You Existed,” “The Man,” “I Think He Knows,” “Cornelia Street…” The list goes on and on.

It’s as if Swift is afraid of making the verses interesting and full, because that would mean the choruses would have to be bigger than they are. On nearly every track, Swift’s vocal performances on the verses are lifeless and plain. Even the fantastic tracks here tend to share this critical flaw.

I don’t mean to discredit the legitimately great songwriting that pops up occasionally on this record. Tracks like “Cruel Summer”

show that the wasted potential is real. The vocals are energetic and powerful, the beat has a fun bounce to it, and the track has more than two MIDI files in it.

The title track is also a winner. Where much of the album is very artificial, the instrumental on “Lover” is natural and down-to-earth.

It starts slow, but over time it builds to be something that’s surprisingly heartfelt and at times even beautiful. The pizzicato strings in the bridge are delightful, and one of the few times that Swift does something unique with her sound. The lyrics are a bit of a cornfest, but I suppose that’s to be expected when the name of your song is one of the most commonly used words in all of music.

“You Need to Calm Down” is one of the only tracks on the record that takes advantage of a texturally thin instrumental. It provides the perfect backdrop for the lush, incredibly executed harmonies in the chorus. The simple verses contrast with the particularly full choruses in a way that actually works.

If every song was like the ones above, the album would be one of the better albums of the year for sure.

However, the album is seriously bloated. It simply doesn’t need 18 tracks. Musically, much of what Swift has here is bland, low-effort, generic pop. I have trouble discerning most of the record from itself, let alone the rest of current popular music.

However, very few tracks on this album are… bad.

They’re all listenable. You won’t be offended by 95% of the audio in this thing. It’s designed to weave in and out of the playlists and stations of the modern streaming world. “Paper Rings” literally sounds like it was designed for a Google Pixel commercial. The album is catchy without the substance for the earworm melodies to coincide with.

The album can be summed up in one word: safe. It’s formulaic, radio-friendly and ultimately boring. For every “Lover” or “Cruel Summer,” there are three “The Man”s.

SPORTS SPORTS

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

One foot in front of the other

All my Rowdie friends are back in season

Maggie Dalton

With fall sports kicking off, the Redhawk Rowdies are sure to be seen at NCHS sports and activities.

This year’s crew follows a long line of Rowdies, seeking to maintain the groups popularity. The new leaders of the student section are seniors Cameron Dougherty, Jaeden Howell, Patrick Julian, Carter Stenmark, Jackson Wigger and Leyton Spencer.

“I think our talents as a whole kind of cover everything,” Doughtery said. Wiggers’s talents with videography are key to the Rowdies’ interaction with students.

“We’re really, really blessed to have Jackson behind the music and the videos,” Julian said.

Non-Rowdies are excited as well.

“As far as Rowdies go, I’d say that we have a really good group this year,” senior Evan Allgauer said.

“They’re loud, lively and have a lot of really good playlists.”

The Rowdies have no shortage of enthusiasm.

“We have a lot of people who are really invested in the Central football team and that care a lot,” Doughtery said. “We had a bunch of planning meetings in the second half of summer and leading up to the school year. We really sat down and planned out all the chants.”

The Rowdies are bringing back the classic chants like “Let’s Go Hawks” and even “You let the whole team down,” after a penalty by the opposing team.

Skits like Moses parting the “Red-Hawk Sea” and the “Redhawk Express,” conducted by Howell, will be a mainstay of football halftime festivities.

The new Rowdies are also looking to make their own mark.

“Cam has a new one for when we’re winning, the

Perseverance, the strongest quality It is easy to give up or quit, but it takes great strength to persevere. Perseverance is both physical and mental. To persevere, it takes courage, bravery and strength. Perseverance is staying in the fight despite difficulties. Those who persevere have always inspired me. I like to think that I persevere in cross country by continuing to run no matter how tired I get, but compared to Tim Don, that’s nothing.

Tim Don is a World Champion triathlete. He holds the world record for the Ironman, which consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bicycle ride, and a 26.22 mile run. Don completed the Brazil Ironman course in 7 hours, 40 minutes, and 23 seconds.

Days before the 2017 Kona Ironman World Championship, he was hit by a truck while on his bicycle, causing him to break a vertebrae in his neck.

The story could have ended there with Don getting his spine fused. Instead, Don chose to wear a halo for three months, where four screws in his skull, attached to beams, held his head in place. The painful device would likely let Don compete once again.

It is extremely brave for someone to choose pain over the easy way out. He decided to give himself a challenge to ultimately let him to be able to keep doing Ironmans.

“It’s a new challenge, and athletes like Tim love challenges,” said Don’s coach in the documentary “The Man With The Halos”.

Within a few weeks of the accident, Don was back training. He trained creatively in order to get the most out of his workout while still not being back to his best self. Once the halo was off, there were still some difficulties that Don and his coach had to work around. He swam with a snorkel because he was not able to turn his head to breathe. It could have been so easy for Don to give up and not look for solutions to his training problems.

Four months after the halo was removed, Don ran the Boston Marathon. He ran it in two hours, 49 minutes, and 42 seconds.

A year after his accident, he competed in the Kona Ironman and placed fifty-third out of more than 2,300 competitors. It was a miraculous comeback, although Don stays humble.

“If this had happened to an age grouper, they would’ve fought just as hard,” said Don to Ironman. com.

An age grouper is a triathlete that doesn’t hold professional or elite status. Therefore, they are common people who like to do triathlons. Don wants others to know that his comeback wasn’t for the career aspect. The work he put in to continue to compete was for his love of triathlons.

My freshman year of cross country, I was having hip pain, and eventually the pain spread up my back. I found out that my right pelvic bone was rotated forward. I couldn’t run until I strengthened my hip muscles enough to keep my bones in place.

The usual course of action for injuries on the cross country team is cross training on a bicycle. Biking took a toll on my hip and after a week I found out that I couldn’t bike. I wanted to stay in shape but I didn’t know how. I talked with my physical therapist and we decided that I could workout on the arm bike.

I eventually got well enough to return to cross country meets. It wasn’t an amazing comeback but I put in work and was patient.

I have worked through various different injuries, but I couldn’t imagine an injury like Don’s. He worked hard for a goal that he knew he would maybe never reach. It takes a great amount of bravery to put your time, effort, and pain into a dream, and that is exactly what Tim Don did.

Perseverance can make or break an injury comeback physically or mentally. Perseverance is what makes an inspiring athlete.

I have worked through different injuries but I couldn’t imagine an injury like Don’s. He worked hard for a goal that he knew he would maybe never reach. It takes a great amount of bravery to put your time, effort, and pain into a dream, and that is exactly what Tim Don did.

Richie Holmberg Jr. @rholmbergCT

Photo by Thom Blair

The Rowdies left to right: Jackson Wigger, Ben Riker, Jaeden Howell, Carter Stenmark, Leyton Spencer and Cameron Dougherty at the football home opener on Sept. 6, 2019.

‘winning team losing team chant’,” Julian said.

Historically, the Rowdies have focused on football, soccer and basketball games, but this year they are looking to cheer on a greater array of Naperville Central sports and activities.

“I know we have a lot of big things planned for this year, especially trying to get to as many sports and events as possible,” Julian said. “We’re planning on going to a golf match, and we’re going to a tennis match.”

There will also be a change to the ever-popular in-game music.

“For every game, Jackson is going to make this five-minute music mix that’s going to change, and we’re gonna have that to get everyone excited,” Doughtery said. “We want people to come up to us and say ‘Hey, have you heard the song’ or ‘I really like this song.’ We love that. We love when people

tell us what they want to hear [us play].”

Although the student section will still informally be organized by seniority, with seniors in the front followed by juniors, sophomores and freshmen at the top, the “One More Row!” chant has been nixed.

“It’s frowned upon,” Julian said. “And we’re trying to phase it out. Obviously, we are not going to start it.”

The Rowdies stress the importance of “being there.”

“There [in the student section] we can have a real effect on the game,” Doughtery said. “So I think people should just be loud, as loud as possible all the time. There’s nothing wrong with losing your voice in the student section.”

Concerns over athletic-nutrition plans lead to changes Prem Chandrasekar & Paula Recio @pchandraCT & @precioCT

At Naperville Central student-athletes regularly face a not-so-simple question: what’s for lunch?

Many athletes take part in intensive training, requiring them to have a diverse and calorie-rich diet.

However, they cannot get the nutrients they need from a standard school lunch.

“I’ll get home and I’ll be doing my homework and I really don’t want to [make lunch] because it takes so much time,” senior Alexa Puccini said. “I would say it’s definitely a struggle sometimes to make food for myself. We just don’t have any time and it’s hard.”

High school athletes have to consume more calories than the typical high school student.

“My intake during water polo season is about 5,000 calories a day,” varsity football and water polo player Spencer Roehll said. “For football, a lot of times it’s a lot of carbs. Many times it’s more healthy food like salads just to keep me full and not hungry every single day.”

Athletes have to balance food from different groups into their diets to incorporate not only a high caloric intake but also nutritional value.

“The more vegetables and fruits, the more it is going to restore the muscle that we are breaking down during a workout,” Michele Fumagalli, a registered dietitian, said. “Then the second thing is carbohydrates, which brings in more energy into our body.

Photo by Emme Moore

Aramark’s “protein pack” on sale at the NCHS cafeteria.

The last thing would be would be protein used to rebuild the body after working out.”

Puccini agrees, pointing out that lack of nutrition leads to poor performance.

“If you are not eating the right way, you’re not gonna be able to perform the way that you want to perform, so we need to make sure we’re eating enough,” Puccini said.

With their busy schedule, athletes don’t have enough time to make their own nutritional meal.

One suggestion that Roehll mentions is that the school lunch provider, Aramark, could offer lunch options geared toward athletes’ needs.

“It would give athletes a chance to actually eat and not have to worry about bringing their own meals and carrying it around all day,” Roehllsaid.

Puccini agrees, adding that college programs already have this in place.

“Obviously in college, it’s super competitive,” Puccini said. “The whole nutrition thing is like a bigger deal, especially with our schedule I definitely think that’d be a benefit for a lot of people at our school and other athletes at other high schools.”

While Aramark doesn’t have an athlete specific meal program, they do provide several items that could benefit athletes.

“We have different protein packs that we’re offering, which include eggs and hummus, fresh fruits, and vegetables,” said Nicole Grosh, the General Manager of Aramark at District 203. “The idea behind that is like a take-it-to-go model, so athletes can take our protein pack [with them].”

However, Grosh is open to providing athlete-specific meals.

“What I’d like to do maybe in future months is maybe coordinate with the athletic director and offer maybe some snack packs… like a mobile cart at the end of the day [for athletes],” Grosh said.

Fumagalli agrees, adding that this would benefit an athlete immensely.

“More sports dieticians and colleges are studying and working more with athletes with their diets because [this] would provide an athlete with a competitive advantage,” Fumagalli said.

Allocation of sports funding at Central Amisha Sethi @asethiCT

Naperville Central prides itself in providing its students with countless extracurriculars to get involved in, including 31 school-sponsored sports teams. Yet, some students on these teams are unaware of how these teams are funded.

Junior Rhea Bhatia explains that she has been part of the girls’ tennis team for three years but still does not know where resources for the team come from.

“I know that my parents pay a fee on 8 to 18 and we have car washes and fundraisers, but I would be curious to know the breakdown of where that money goes and where money comes in from,” Bhatia said.

According to Naperville Central Athletic Director Andy Lutzenkirchen, the main source

of funding for these athletic programs is the revenue-generating athletic fees each student pays when they join a team. Athletic fees for each sport are based on a three-tier system determined by the cost per athlete for each sport.

The athletic fees of Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 sports are $100, $80 and $60, respectively.

Revenues from ticket sales are an additional source of funding for athletic programs. Tickets are sold for sports such as football, soccer, volleyball, swimming, basketball, water polo, lacrosse and wrestling.

Some teams don’t generate enough revenue to sustain themselves, so both athletic fees and ticket sale revenues are pooled together and used to cover the cost of all 31 school-sponsored teams. There are some predetermined costs such as uniforms that every team needs.

In addition, coaches compile lists of what equipment they need to play a sport, such as

tennis balls and helmets, and what equipment they would like to supplement their program, such as a tackling dummy for football.

Once the necessary items have been budgeted for, additional requests are reviewed and incomplete requests are sometimes forwarded to the NCHS Athletic Boosters.

The Booster Club generates revenue through membership. In addition to purchasing equipment for teams, Boosters have paid for signage in the main gym, expenses for the Hall of Fame and team awards dinners.

Sports teams can also fundraise independently if they feel that the allocated funding is not sufficient for their needs.

“Coaches say supplement if they want to buy a different uniform than what I can provide or, for example, pay for buses so that the football team can go play a school in Ohio,” said Lutzenkirchen.

OPINIONS

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

Apple’s latest iPhones are not worth the wait Cameron Rozek @crozekct

Photo by Thom Blair

Central’s Rowdies lead the student fan section at the Sept. 6 home game against Lincoln-Way East. Tradition gives seniors priority at the front of the fan section, while freshmen students are often pushed out of the fan section completely, depending on the size of the crowd.

With football seating, you can’t always get what you want Richie Holmberg Jr. @rholmbergCT

A vital part of the high school experience is attending football games on Friday nights.

Year in and year out, Naperville Central has a great turnout at home games. Our school spirit is high and our ability to buy into a shared experience is part of what makes Central a lively place. However, there has been a history of contention between upper and lower classmen at football games.

In particular, there is a seemingly constant struggle between seniors and the younger grades when it comes to seating at football games.

In my freshman year, getting a seat on Friday nights was a cutthroat affair. With the “one more row” chant in its heyday, freshmen were forced over the top railing of the student section, where they would have to shamefully walk down the stands and sit in an overflow section. Now, in my fourth year at NCHS, the “one more row” chant is

seldom occurring, but the discontent has not subsided. Seniors believe that they have paid their dues and want unfettered access to the front rows of the bleachers.

Many are concerned that the seniority they have earned is being worn down. They are upset that they still have to put forth the effort to get prime seats, yet I would have it no other way. Yes, we have paid our dues, supporting NCHS while sitting at the uppermost sections of the bleachers, but continued support of NCHS does not make us entitled to a spot.

If we wanted to have saved spots we would have tickets with assigned seating, but the fun of it is getting there early and working for your spot.

I am glad that we no longer jettison underclassmen out of the student section, but seniors need to toughen up. If seniors want a “good” seat, they should get there earlier, because the seats are there for the taking.

Academic tracking benefits certain groups, hurts everyone else

On Sept 9, Apple unveiled the long-awaited iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro. It’s no doubt that students at Central have strong ties to the titanic brand and will likely be jumping all over the new models of this device.

For me, the excitement that came with the display only lasted mere minutes before reality set in. The iPhone 11 lineup shares too much with the previous models and offers little to no innovation, especially compared to its Samsung, OnePlus, and Huawei counterparts.

The iPhone 11 lineup is based on the exact same body as the iPhone X and Xs. The bezels are rather thick in relation to the bezel-less Galaxy Note 10 and OnePlus 7 Pro, two cutting-edge smartphones that directly compete with the iPhone price-wise, but have overall better specifications.

Then there are the prices. I applaud Apple for bringing the price of the base model to a slightly more modest $700. However, Apple kept the old resolution of the iPhone XR. The display is barely HD, and far from the 1440p displays of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 lineup and the OnePlus 7 Pro. This phone is intended to be a direct upgrade from the iPhone XR but innovates very little beyond the processor.

The bigger brother, to the iPhone 11 is the iPhone 11 Pro and the iPhone 11 Pro Max counterpart (the same as is the iPhone 11 Pro, but with a larger screen) While it sports a slightly better 1080p display, it still lacks in comparison to the phones of other brands with higher resolution and brighter panels.

The defining feature that Apple is pushing is the new camera system, but when compared to other phone cameras from the Google Pixel and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10, it’s lackluster and offers little that other phones don’t.

Apple is only just now catching up with features like dedicated night mode, this made significantly improves nighttime cam-

era performance and is a nice addition but, other flagship phones have had this feature for well over a year now.

People who are considering purchasing the iPhone 11 are better off waiting for next year’s iPhone. The iPhone of next year is expected to make a large leap in performance because of the three consecutive years or similar design from the iPhone X, Xs, and 11.

Apple still insists on using the large notch at the top of the phone, where other manufacturers have very small and non-invasive notches or cutouts, some even using mechanical mechanisms to eliminate the front-facing camera from the front display altogether. They claim they need the notch for the high tech cameras that enable faceID. Face-ID definitely offers something new, but it lacks in comparison to the competitors. Other brands have already moved to fingerprint sensors that are beneath the screen, and are much faster.

The iPhone admittedly has excellent power management, efficiency, and processing power. At this stage in the game, however, the processor speed makes very little difference when so many phones are reaching such heights of computational performance.

With that said, I personally enjoy the new matte finish on the iPhone 11 Pro and the midnight green color option. With its outdated design and subpar overall quality, the iPhone 11, and 11 Pro are very difficult to recommend at their steep price tags, going all the way up to $1100.

At the end of the day, I see that the iPhone is a massive status symbol to people, and the brand is what some people pay for.

If you’re only in the market for an iPhone, I would personally skip this year and wait for next, simply due to the expected improvements that Apple neglected to add to this year’s disappointment of an iPhone.

Amisha Sethi @asethict

In District 203, students are placed in either honors or regular classes when they’re as young as 8 years old, a practice known as “tracking.” According to the New York Times, controversy over the issue has increased as the method has become increasingly common in schools across the United States since the 1990s.

In theory, academic tracking pushes students to their maximum potential, given that every student has a different starting point and is capable of different things. In practice, however, it does just the opposite, limiting students in the material and rigor that they are exposed to, and thus setting them on a certain life track at too young of an age.

In our school district, for example, students are chosen for the honors math and PI programs starting in third grade and ending in fifth grade. From these respective grades through their high school career, these selected students have the opportunity to experience a different kind of rigor and challenge in the courses they take, giving them a better opportunity to have a more in-depth understanding of the subject.

As for the others, however, for the rest of their school careers they will be taught a modified and implified curriculum in comparison. If a student wishes to switch into an honors class after fifth grade, the process can often be long, complicated, and is not properly advertised to parents, leading to the vast majority of students sticking to their original track. This also doesn’t account for “late-bloomers” who are equally as capable as other students but just take

longer to find their strengths.

Through this system we are contradicting the “growth-mindset,” or the concept that anyone can learn something as long as they work hard — an idea that so many teachers preach to us every day. Instead, the system actually imparts a culture in which a child’s ability to excel in a certain subject is predetermined without allowing them to try. Just because someone is not good at math on a CogAT test does not mean they cannot be good at math after learning and practicing the material.

The system is also set up against minorities. Statistically, studies by the U.S Department of Education Office for Civil Rightsshow that the students who are enrolled in honors programs and pass these classes are disproportionately affluent, often being either white or Asian. This is intuitive given that these groups are commonly advantaged both in terms of education and income levels. Thus more time and resources can be put toward their children’s education, aiding them in entering these honors programs.

Instead, if we had a system where all students were taught with the same curriculum, we could push all students to reach their maximum potential regardless of their test-taking abilities or socio-economic status. In other cases, students who can’t handle the workload should be handled on a case by case basis, as opposed to assuming that these students are the vast majority.

The result of this new type of system would be a more level playing field that would encourage growth and success amongst a broader range of students.

Photo Source: 9to5mac.com

Apple’s iPhone 11 line hit stores on Sept. 20. The new phones offer a wider variety of color options, expanded camera capabilities and longer battery life.

The Central Times is looking for your voice!

Share your opinions with us at: nchspaper.ct@gmail.com Exercise your First Amendment rights!

EDITORIAL

Hats off to new policy, despite poor communication of change For as long as students can remember, hats were an obvious “no” in our school dress code policy. Unless it was religious headwear, most accepted that no hats, regardless of style, were allowed in Central.

As of the start of the 20192020 school year, hats are now allowed in Central. The shift in policy is attributed in part to the diminishing relationship between hats and their longstanding negative connotations. In the past, for example, hats served as a symbol of gang affiliation. The Central Times welcomes this change and agrees with the administration that in the current environment, there are few concerns about the dangers hats may pose to school safety.

In the future, however, the Central Times hopes that the administration will do a better job of communicating changes in policy.

Many students were unaware that hats are now allowed in school. Some might be finding out now as they’re reading this.

Though deans discussed the dress code in a back-to-school video that was shown to all students, there was no mention of hats, which is one of the largest changes from prior years. Students are encouraged to read their Redbook for more information, but we know that many

Prem Chandrasekar Managing Editor Editorial Editor @pchandraCT

Thom Blair Online Managing Editor Focus Editor @tblairCT Maggie Dalton Head Photo/Art Editor Community Editor Sports Columnist @mdaltonCT Mary Jane Deer Head News Editor @mjdeerCT Art by Maggie Dalton

do not. Policies should be communicated through multiple channels to clarify any confusion students may have.

In our editorial discussion, a staff member mentioned a policy from the previous year in which a student could request permission to wear a hat inside the classroom, even if it was not for religious purposes.

This, too, was news to the rest of us, if in fact that was a policy at all.

We are also aware that individual teachers will choose to continue to ban hats in their classrooms, and feel that students should respect a teacher’s

decision in this area.

Many Redhawks, including some members of our editorial staff, still believe that hats are a sign of disrespect. Even though they no longer pose a threat to school safety, for some, the wearing of hats in the classroom may not be justified, as it is associated with impoliteness.

Though the Central Times commends the administration’s decision to allow hats, we urge our community to tolerate these viewpoints as valid and to respect them.

There are a variety of reasons for the differences in attitudes on hat allowance in school.

For example, when some teachers attended high school, what was considered “appropriate” attire was drastically different than what it is today.

Some may see hats as damaging to the classroom atmosphere, as they aren’t accessories that one would typically wear in formal situations.

Despite this, it’s important for policies to match the changing times, and the administration has recognized this. So, we tip our hats to the administration, which, while keeping Central safe, h a s s u c c e s s f u l l y adjusted its dress code to o u r n e w s t a t u s q u o.

Letter to the Editor: Naperville Central cheering cheer section for Central were holding a large flag throughout the entire song. They were all standing and the flag was waving. That in itself was great to see.

Then, about ⅔ of the way through, I started to hear them

sing and as we neared the end, they could be heard loud and clear. It was one of those “give me tingles” moments to hear these kids singing the anthem so loud and waving the flag.

Kudos to all those kids.

It was a great feeling to see

January Corrections

H

that kids today still do respect the flag and what it means. A great display of patriotism.

Thank you.

To submit a letter to the editor, email: nchspaper.ct@gmail.com.

If you could change something about our dress code, what change would you make?

A W K centraltimes.org

“I think that shirts that are super exposing, like tank tops, shouldn’t be allowed. There should be a requirement of sleeves of some sort so that it is more is covered.”

-Adelaide Fleming, freshman

“I would change it so that guys are able to wear tank tops or sleeveless shirts. I don’t really think that it’s a distraction to anyone’s learning.”

-Ryan Maniaci, junior

/nchscentraltimes

“I personally don’t think that hats should be allowed in school because my parents had always told me that it was disrespectful to wear hats inside of a building.”

-Adam Lifka, sophomore

“One thing I would change about the dress code is the way in which the violations are given out. I don’t think teachers should be able to interrupt instructional time to dress code a student, it is something that should be done during non-instructional points of the day.”

- Naomi Thevatheril, senior

@centraltimes

Cameron Rozek News Editor @crozekCT Amisha Sethi Profiles Editor @asethiCT

Danielle Pritchard Features Editor @dpritchardCT Kylie Brown Entertainment Editor @kbrownCT

Richie Holmberg, Jr. Sports Editor @tblairCT Rachel Cole Opinions Editor @rcoleCT

Braden Hajer Copy Editor Columnist @bhajerCT

Reprinted with permission from Naperville resident Bruce Kamp, via Nextdoor Maplebrook We attended the recent Central-Lincoln Way East football game. We were with friends from LWE so we sat on the visitor’s side. As expected the National Anthem was played before the game.

I noticed that the kids in the

Vivian Zhao Editor-in-Chief Editorial Editor Features Columnist @vzhaoCT

Central Times Editorial Board

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

T A L

Art by Yoo Young Chu

n

Emily Brodzinski Staff Writer @ebrodzinskiCT Paula Recio Staff Writer @precioCT

Emme Moore Staff Photographer @emooreCT Evelyn Krupicka William Tong Jonathan Wu Staff Writers Keith Carlson Adviser kcarlson.ct@gmail.com Taryen Polykandriotis Assistant Adviser tpolykandriotis.ct@gmail.com The Central Times meets every Thursday at 7:10 a.m. in Room 218. All students are welcome to contribute writing, art, photography and story ideas.

For a copy of our full editorial policy (excerpted below), please visit the “about” section on our

Contact Us:

CT

nchspaper.ct@gmail.com

K @centraltimes

The Central Times is a student-produced monthly publication which strives to inform, entertain and provide an open forum for students as well as faculty members, parents, administrators and community members associated with Naperville Central High School while continuing a tradition of journalistic excellence.

The Central Times is a member of the Illinois State High School Press Association, Northern Illinois High School Press Association (NISPA), Quill and Scroll, National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA), Kettle-Moriane Press Association (KEMPA) and Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA).

Mail order subscriptions are available in Room 218 for $25.

FOCUS

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

What you said YES to Central Times read through several of the most popular social media sites’ terms of service.

The things you post and the data you create on the internet is not as secure as you may think it is. Sometimes, clicking “accept” without reading first is not the best idea.

Instagram has a right to collect all information and content you provide to the app, as well as information regarding the networks that you connect to, how long and what you do on the app, transactions you make through it and things that others post about you. They also claim the right to use and sell this information to third-party sources.

If you’ve ever read “1984” by George Orwell, the term Big Brother can be applied to Snapchat. That’s because any information you give to Snapchat is collected and stored. Including: your location, name, username, date of birth, and items you post on public stories.

Everything in the YouTube terms of service is pretty straight forward. They track your recently viewed videos and all the likes and comments you leave on other people’s posts. Obviously, they also collect analytics on the videos that you post.

Twitter is the only company of these four that will not sell your information to a third-party company. However, you do grant Twitter the permission to use anything you post.

All art by Thom Blair